Airlines target lighter, thinner seats to save

ByABC News
May 11, 2009, 9:21 PM

— -- Airlines are paying more attention to one of the most important and least-discussed amenities: seats.

Seat manufacturers say airlines have a greater selection of coach seats to choose from. And some airlines that are quickly adopting them Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways and India's Jet Airways are putting pressure on U.S. competitors to take advantage of them, too.

"Food is great, and in-flight entertainment stops the boredom factor," says Tony Hughes, Qatar's senior vice president of the Americas. "But if you're uncomfortable in your seat, it's a nightmare."

Airlines have always focused on the quality of the seats in first and business class, a source of much of their profits. But customers in the back have had to endure flat, worn cushions that sit on hard metal shells and people who recline them without a thought to the person behind.

The chance to help weary coach passengers is here. A number of designers are taking advantage of new technology to create thinner, but potentially more comfortable, seats.

The question is whether airlines take advantage of the technology to provide comfort and more space or use it to put more seats on the plane. So far, the evidence is: both.

There's no doubt that economics is driving the new designs. Heightened competition, tightened profit margins and steep oil prices have increased the need for less weight in the air, says Anthony James, editor of Aircraft Interiors International.

"Manufacturers are really grappling with weight reductions," James says. "Anything that can reduce weight, they are grabbing with both hands."

The lightest seat made by Recaro, a German manufacturer, weighs as little as 20 pounds for short-haul aircraft, compared with about 24 to 33 pounds on many planes currently flying, says Hartmut Schürg of Recaro.

Some seat backs are now as thin as 6/10 of an inch, compared with 3 inches in most planes, says Klaus Brauer, an aircraft interior expert who recently retired as a Boeing executive.