Could flying get much worse and more uncomfortable in the future?
A couple of days back, MarketWatch wrote about “5 Horrifying Ways Airlines Are Making Flying Worse“.
After looking over the article, it did seem that if these things really did happen, flying would be getting a whole lot less comfortable. (I find it hard to believe that it could get much less comfortable than it already is…)
I decided to take a closer look at the article. Some of the things mentioned sounded like they could really happen while others sounded to be just ridiculous!
Here are the 5 ways airlines are making flying worse according to MarketWatch:
1. Airlines are shrinking and eliminating bathrooms.
MarketWatch says Boeing announed that bathrooms on its 777-300ER would be getting smaller to create room for 14 addidional seats and in 2016 the Airbus A320 would have smaller bathrooms to create more room for luggage.
The article also mentions how some airlines which used to have three bathrooms in coach now have 2. There are also constant lines near the back of the plane for the bathroom. One our most recent flight on July 4, I have to say that those flying in the back seeemed to always have a line of people standing next to them in the aisle, waiting for a bathroom. This problem most likely makes it quite annoying for those sitting in the back and the passengers that have to go really bad…
It made me wonder if more of this will start happening more frequently during flights…
2. Seats that can’t recline.
Considering the right to recline seats is such a debate, with many people already objecting to it, I’m not sure that I see this as such a big deal. Some might even say it’s rude to recline your seat on the person sitting behind you. However, MarketWatch points out that these non-reclining seats can be lighter, cutting fuel costs and could be much less comfortable.
I can’t say that I always recline my seat and when I do, I usually recline it a drop. I could see this being a pain for longer flights but for short flights, I don’t think it would be such a problem.
3. Cutting First Class.
I think this might bother some of you but to be honest I don’t see the big deal. We primarily fly coach to stretch our miles.
MarketWatch mentions how AA and UA “have downsized their first class cabins in recent years”. First class wasn’t so profitable with their not being enough paying customers. For those of you that get the upgrades, this is definitely not good news. For the majority of flyers, this won’t even be noticed.
4. Shrinking legroom even further.
We all know that the legroom on planes has been getting tighter and tighter. For those of you that are taller, this can make flying beyond uncomfortable.
Marketwatch says that 33 inches used to be the standared and its now 30-31 inches onboard. Budget airlines like Spirit are even worse offering just 28 in. of space, making it very hard to fly if you are over 5’8!
According to the article, airlines want it to be uncomfortable so you’ll want to pay to upgrade!
Smaller armrests and skinnier seats.
The width of seats have also been shrinking. The standard of 18 inches have now gone to 17- 17.2 inches. The article says “it’s meaningful difference for the average sized traveler“.
5. The future could mean no tray tables, headrests and armrests.
This sounds to be a bit riduculous and not even believable. MarketWatch mentions a patent Airbus submitted that shows a seat looking similar to a bicycle seat “without tray tables, headrests and armrests“. The reason for the design is obvious. The patent application states “to increase the number of cabin seats, the space allotted to each passenger must be reduced”.
The article also mentions how Spirit’s CEO said he was thinking about charging for tray armrests and tray tables. Oh please…
These ideas sound beyond ridiculous! Could you imagine flying for hours sitting in a seat much like a bicycle seat! Just imagine the potential for injury and lawsuits that could follow…
What do you think about MarketWatch’s ways airlines could make flying worse? Do you believe these things could really happen? Could you think of any other ways, flying could get much worse? If so, share your ideas with us in the comments below…
Find out more from MarketWatch here.
RaflW- There probably should be some standards set but I’d guess the gov gets their cut too from the increased revenue airlines make.
If U.S. airlines persist in making things more miserable, there may be unintended consequences. This won’t happen with the current Congress, but I can easily imagine a day not too far off when it will be necessary for the traveling public to bombard our elected officials to create minimum seat pitch rules and lavatory:pax minimum ratios (and, no, the first class lav doesn’t get to be in the divisor, not for the packed coach cabin w/ two aft lavs)