Boeing seemingly has acceded to Ryanair Holdings' request to squeeze in more seats for better economies of scale
These days, airlines are buying lesser quantities of long-range airplanes despite efforts from the likes of Boeing Inc. (BA) and Airbus in trying to make their commercial aircraft more fuel-efficient, regardless of the future demand for this type of aircraft. With the rising costs making it difficult to justify purchasing large airplanes, many airlines are hooking towards smaller medium-sized airplanes, which is economical, since they are also are fuel-efficient.
The only issue is the number of seats. A typical Boeing aircraft 737 commercial , an Airbus A320, or an A330, has a seating capacity at an average of 190 seats at best. Surely, an addition of a few more seats might do, just to cover for additional demand for spare capacity. This is something that Boeing and Airbus are addressing by launching their set of narrow body aircrafts by 2015 and 2016 respectively.
However, there is a problem. The airlines these days are eyeing towards narrow range aircraft, since they are relatively less costly compared to buying the wide body aircraft, which is vulnerable to fluctuations in demand. Narrow range aircraft mostly address those issues, but what if in case it has to meet some additional demand to cover it. Boeing and Airbus are planning to do exactly that by adding more seats. People wonder about the compromise on leg space and passenger comfort.
When this point was raised by industry an analysts, an Airbus representative responded in an email by pointing out that they put everything into perspective. They explained that an A320, with a possible 195-seats layout, would be for special ‘high-density’ configurations for airlines who want it for business models and certain markets, so they are examining how many more seats can be squeezed in whilst still ensuring passenger comfort, especially in the high demand sector of the route.
Another issue that is being raised is the expectation for passengers to evacuate in 90 seconds as per aviation regulation. One frequent traveler laughs about that happening in the face of a potential congested airplane, when asked about more seats to be added. He responded, “Watch what happens in the real world when [passengers of size and] old people try to get out carrying their bags of medicine!”
Federal aviation authorities say that they want the aircraft manufacturers to demonstrate that additional seating capacity will not affect the 90-second evacuation rule, which has to be followed strictly at all costs. It was asked for accurate analysis showing that it is indeed possible.
The only issue is the number of seats. A typical Boeing aircraft 737 commercial , an Airbus A320, or an A330, has a seating capacity at an average of 190 seats at best. Surely, an addition of a few more seats might do, just to cover for additional demand for spare capacity. This is something that Boeing and Airbus are addressing by launching their set of narrow body aircrafts by 2015 and 2016 respectively.
However, there is a problem. The airlines these days are eyeing towards narrow range aircraft, since they are relatively less costly compared to buying the wide body aircraft, which is vulnerable to fluctuations in demand. Narrow range aircraft mostly address those issues, but what if in case it has to meet some additional demand to cover it. Boeing and Airbus are planning to do exactly that by adding more seats. People wonder about the compromise on leg space and passenger comfort.
When this point was raised by industry an analysts, an Airbus representative responded in an email by pointing out that they put everything into perspective. They explained that an A320, with a possible 195-seats layout, would be for special ‘high-density’ configurations for airlines who want it for business models and certain markets, so they are examining how many more seats can be squeezed in whilst still ensuring passenger comfort, especially in the high demand sector of the route.
Another issue that is being raised is the expectation for passengers to evacuate in 90 seconds as per aviation regulation. One frequent traveler laughs about that happening in the face of a potential congested airplane, when asked about more seats to be added. He responded, “Watch what happens in the real world when [passengers of size and] old people try to get out carrying their bags of medicine!”
Federal aviation authorities say that they want the aircraft manufacturers to demonstrate that additional seating capacity will not affect the 90-second evacuation rule, which has to be followed strictly at all costs. It was asked for accurate analysis showing that it is indeed possible.
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