2 days ago
- Business
- Condé Nast Traveler
These Airlines Are Adding More Legroom in Economy Class
Flying in economy class is not exactly associated with comfort. Especially in recent years, the go-to strategy for most airlines has been to shrink coach passengers' personal space to fit in more seats and make flights more profitable.
But, mercifully for budget travelers, that trend is beginning to show some signs of reversing. When it comes to their latest long-haul international economy cabins, a handful of airlines are actually increasing the amount of legroom allotted to passengers at the back of the plane.
'Airlines have realized what customers really want: comfort,' Anthony Harcup, founder and CEO of aviation interior design firm DeepBlue Studios, said recently on the Aircraft Interiors podcast. 'If there's anywhere where we really need to shake things up, it's premium economy and economy. There's been huge advances made in both in terms of comfort—the seats are much more lightweight, better sculpted, even the materials and technology is far better.'
One of the main impetuses for this is that newer planes are flying further, which means airline routes are getting longer. Smarter design allow airlines to give economy passengers a little more space and comfort on those extra long journeys without sacrificing efficiency. 'That I think is the next frontier,' Harcup said. 'You've got to start with comfort.'
