Forum Archive Index - May 2002

[Share Boy <jj_martinz@yahoo.co.nz>]

The following is from the UK Sunday Times about
Longhaul flights and comfort on those flights. 

Air NZ gets a good mention...

Forgive the format of the text as I just copied &
pasted from the web-site...

Cheers...JJ...
...................
 
Long-haul legroom campaign: Voting with our seats
Airlines failing to adopt our campaign demands are
losing business fast. Mark Hodson reports

Long-haul passengers are avoiding airlines with
cramped seating in favour of rivals offering more
generous legroom, according to new research. Travel
companies say economy- class flyers are switching
allegiance as a direct result of The Sunday Times
Campaign for Fair Flying, which has highlighted
differences in seat pitch between competing airlines. 

Six weeks ago, Bridge the World, a flight
consolidator, became the first travel company to
support our campaign for more legroom on long-haul
economy flights. While other agents gloss over the
issue of cramped seating, it decided to tackle the
issue head on, publishing details of seat pitch in its
advertisements and telling all its customers which
airlines provide the most space. 

The effect was immediate and dramatic. In March,
bookings with Virgin Atlantic, which offers just
30-32in of seat pitch in economy, were down by 36% on
March 2001. In contrast, Malaysia Airlines and Air New
Zealand, both of which offer a 34in seat pitch, were
up by 75% and 36%, respectively. 

But the sharpest rise in bookings was enjoyed by
American Airlines, which has removed rows of seats
throughout its fleet to provide an industry-best
economy seat pitch of 34-36in. Bridge the World says
bookings with American Airlines were up in March by
1,165%. 

Jerry Bridge, the managing director of Bridge the
World, says: “It’s clear to us that these booking
figures have been dramatically influenced by our
support for The Sunday Times Campaign for Fair
Flying.” 

According to Bridge, passengers are no longer choosing
airlines on the basis of price alone. “Everyone wants
a bargain, but the issue of comfort is becoming more
important. The airlines taking the most bookings all
have more generous seat pitches, not necessarily the
cheaper fares.” 

Liam Campbell, a sales agent at Bridge the World in
London, says: “I’m seeing a lot of former die-hard
British Airways customers switching to American
Airlines. Legroom is the watchword and it seems to be
even more important to passengers than convenience or
price.” 

Other flight consolidators confirm the pattern. Peter
Liney, the managing director of Travelbag, says that
over the same period he saw bookings with American
Airlines increase by “at least twice as much” as other
transatlantic carriers. Liney says: “I think it’s due
in a large part to the Sunday Times campaign. It shows
that passengers now consider seat pitch a key factor
in choosing an airline.” 

Air New Zealand says its sales have risen in recent
weeks as the public becomes increasingly aware of its
generous legroom in economy. The airline says: “Two
weeks ago, we launched an advertising campaign
promoting our 34in seat pitch to Los Angeles, and
bookings during the following week doubled on all our
routes. Passengers are talking about seat pitch,
saying that’s why they’re flying with us.” 
Bob Tolliday of Holiday Which? says: “Passengers are
choosing to fly with airlines that provide less
cramped conditions. Until recently, most people didn’t
even know what seat pitch was; now passengers are very
much aware of how it affects them in terms of their
comfort and health and general wellbeing.” 

We asked the airlines that performed least well in the
Bridge the World survey if they thought their ticket
sales would improve were they to increase legroom in
economy. None gave us a straight answer. 

Singapore Airlines, which has a 32in seat pitch and
was down 6% in the survey, replied that its “primary
concern is the comfort and safety of our passengers”
and pointed out that it had “consistently topped the
polls for the quality of our in-flight service”. 
BA, which has a minimum seat pitch of only 31in, was
up 2% in the Bridge the World survey because many
passengers are upgrading to its premium-economy cabin.


It said it was pleased at the figures, “all the more
impressive against a backdrop of ongoing capacity
cuts”. 

Virgin Atlantic said: “We believe we offer a superior
package of product and service. We do recognise some
passengers want more legroom, which is why we
pioneered premium- economy seats 10 years ago.” 

THE SUNDAY TIMES has been campaigning since January
for more legroom and greater transparency so that
consumers can make informed choices. We want the legal
minimum passenger space increased from 26in to 30in —
equivalent to a seat pitch of 32in. We also want a law
requiring companies selling air tickets to include
seat pitch in their advertising. 

More than 6,000 readers have written to us in support
of the campaign and many have also bombarded ministers
with letters and e-mails. Last month, victory came
closer when the aviation minister, David Jamieson,
told a meeting of MPs that the government would act to
increase the legal minimum, “in the light of the
Sunday Times campaign”. 

In theory, this could be done immediately, with a
simple change in the Civil Aviation Authority
regulations, but the government wants a Europe-wide
minimum that will not put UK airlines at a commercial
disadvantage and this will clearly take time. 
Now, the most likely catalyst for change appears to be
consumer pressure. If enough passengers choose the
airlines with the most generous legroom, their rivals
will be forced to act. 

One company has already responded. Travel City Direct,
the largest independent tour operator to Florida, says
it has increased the seat pitch on its long-haul
charter flights this summer as a direct response to
the Sunday Times campaign. It will fly to Orlando from
Gatwick, Manchester, Edinburgh and Glasgow with a seat
pitch of 31-32in. Competitors offer just 29-30in. 

LINKS 
www.travelleronline.com/planner/airnews.shtml
Seat-pitch league table 
www.airlinequality.com/Forum/seats.htm
Discussion of seats on individual airlines 
No contest
RETURN FARE from Heathrow to New York, valid for
travel between July 1 to 11, booked with Bridge the
World (0870 444 1716).
American Airlines
Fare: £449
Seat pitch: 34-36in 
British Airways
Fare: £445
Seat pitch: 31in 
Virgin Atlantic
Fare: £451
Seat pitch: 30-32in

CAMPAIGN OBJECTIVES 
Airlines should have a minimum seat pitch of 32in on
long-haul economy flights, providing at least 30in of
passenger space. 

We want legislation that will force any company
selling airline seats to state in their advertising
the minimum seat pitch passengers can expect. 

JOIN OUR CAMPAIGN 
Write to: Support, Campaign for Fair Flying, The
Sunday Times, 1 Pennington St, London E98 1ST; e-mail:
supportfairflying@sunday-times.co.uk. 
Or write to the transport minister: David Jamieson,
DTLR, Eland House, Bressenden Place, London SW1E 5DU;
e-mail: david.jamieson@dtlr.gov.uk.




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