FAA to Seek Public Input on Aircraft Seat Sizes
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has launched an official review of aircraft seat sizes and spacing between rows that could lead to drastic reconfigurations of commercial airline cabins.
This comes after the FAA missed an October 2019 deadline to establish seating size standards as part of the 2018 FAA Reauthorization Act where the administration was instructed to set these standards based on what is “necessary for the safety and health of passengers.”
In January, the consumer group Flyers Rights filed a petition to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia to push the FAA into action on this matter, which finally appears to have worked.
A document will be released to the public to comment on seat widths and pitch (space between rows) that they feel are “necessary to ensure safety during airplane evacuation of a broad range of passengers”. Currently, the only regulation in place with regard to seat sizing is that the aircraft must be able to be evacuated within 90 seconds with existing seating arrangements.
According to the results of evacuation tests released by the FAA in March of this year, which recapped drills taking place from November 2019 through March 2020, current cabin configurations do not prohibit the rapid evacuation for 99% of the population. However, the testing was done exclusively with able-bodied individuals, neglecting to examine how people over the age of 60, children, and disabled people would fare in similar circumstances. There is no word yet on whether revised testing will take place with these population groups in mind.
It’s encouraging that the FAA is going to look into this matter, but with airfares soaring and performance subpar, perhaps a look into seat width and pitch might also be a matter of customer satisfaction and comfort. Take passengers of size for instance, who are routinely penalized by airlines and the general public just for taking up space. An inch or two in seat width can make or break a flight for passengers like us, ignoring the fact that from a safety perspective there is the very real concern of getting stuck. Tall passengers too could do with an inch or two of space between rows to avoid potential cramping and literally tripping over their feet when trying to exit a row.
The psychological benefits for everyone are well worth removing a row or two of airline seats in an economy cabin. Frequent air travelers complain about the lack of personal space on flights nowadays. We can’t count the number of videos showing airline passengers fighting with each other and cabin crew that have gone viral due to people losing their temper as a result of their discomfort. And in the age of COVID-19, more space between people is always a good idea.
The concern about safety and health should not just extend to how fast an aircraft can be evacuated. There are many physical and psychological health factors related to being so tightly herded into such a small space. Hopefully, the FAA will see our comments and extend the scope of their decision-making.
The public will have 90 days to submit their recommendations on seat width and pitch after the request-for-comments document is posted in the Federal Register on August 3rd.
