subject: Would You Accept This? [print this page] Skyride seat can be low-cost air companies' new favorite.
With the new seat, the distance between each row of seats could be shrunk to 23 inches, according to the company behind the idea. There are seven inches, almost 18 centimeters, shorter than the distance of, for example Ryanair.
This distance (pitch) is used as a measure of legroom by the website Seatguru among others.
The idea behind the Skyride is that passengers should sit in the same way as on a moped. This means that they need much less space.
SAS describes the new mini seats as "funny."
It's like riding on a horse. And I honestly don't know if our passengers want to ride between Oslo and Trondheim, chuckling information manager Knut Morten Johansen of SAS.
All innovations that are helping to renew the aviation industry are interesting. But this is probably not appropriate for SAS. Simply because the seat comfort is one of the most important thing for our passengers.
The idea behind the new chairs is that airlines should be able to squeeze in several rows of seats and thus make room for more passengers per flight, writes the Italian company Aviointeriors on their website.
The seats also make it possible to have multiple classes of aircraft - with a business or first class with spacious seats - and still accommodate the maximum number of passengers that the aircraft is approved.
Airlines, such as Lufthansa has already begun to switch to more compact seats to accommodate more passengers in their aircrafts.
Also, airlines are replacing their seats, to get more legroom with the same pitch (29 centimeters). They are considering not to go over to the Skyride.
To us, comfort is important. Passengers will still have a good and pleasant journey, "said head of information in Norwegian, sa Larsson.
According to the boss in Aviointeriors, Dominique Menoud, several airlines have already expressed interest in the idea, which is already developed and about to be tested.
This will be a comfortable seating solution for flights on from one to perhaps up to three hours. It's like a saddle. Cowboys ride on the horse for eight hours in a day, and still sits comfortably in the saddle, "said Menoud the Daily Mail.
Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary has previously proposed that people should stand during the flight, which due to security reasons, probably never will be approved.
The Italian company showcases Skyride at the fair Aircraft Interiors Expo Americas 2010 in California.
