Shrinking airline seats or expanding waistlines?

By SCOTT MacLEOD transport reporter

The relationship between a pair of buttocks and the size of an aeroplane seat assumed such importance that it took centre stage in a court case.

Former millionaire Graeme Raymond, found guilty under the Insolvency Act of contributing to his own bankruptcy by living the high life, argued he was forced to fly business class because the width of his bottom exceeded the span of a seat in economy class.

But Raymond was not the first and will not be the last to complain of the "shrinking airline seat" phenomenon.

It is a long-held tradition of war stories by airline travellers of being cooped up in tiny seats with the elbows of their neighbours jutting into their midriffs.

The industry standard "pitch" - the distance between a point on one seat and the corresponding point on the seat in front - in economy class has slipped over the past 30 years, from 85cm to 80cm.

But airlines argue that the back-rests on their new seats are up to 10cm thinner. That has allowed them to cram more seats into the same space without cutting leg-room.

Other airlines argue that the tighter fit their passengers are noticing in aircraft has less to do with shrinking seats than with expanding waistlines.

A United States consumer report predicts that cheap seats will continue to be cramped as airlines spend more on giving space to business-class travellers, who are the best source of income.

But the man who is perhaps the world expert in aeroplane seating, Boeing passenger accommodation project director Klaus Brauer, denies that seat pitch is shrinking at all.

Mr Brauer predicts a trend in which airlines will cut first-class facilities and give more space and service to "high-end" seating in business and economy - for which you will pay extra.

Airlines spend much time pondering how much room to give passengers. On the one hand, they want them to be comfortable so they will use the airline again. On the other, they want to keep their airfares down to compete. To do that, they need to cram as many people as possible into their aircraft.

But research shows that comfort is only a priority for passengers when they are flying "long-haul," for more than six hours.

The Independent Traveller website cites research by Boeing that shows the most important factor for passengers is the availability of a flight. On a short-haul flight, comfort ranks fifth. On long-haul, it rises to second.

In New Zealand, Qantas Airways, Air New Zealand and wannabe-carrier Virgin Blue all have an economy-class pitch of about 79cm to 81cm, about average compared with other airlines.

Freedom Air is slightly more cramped, at 74cm to 76cm.

Air New Zealand spokeswoman Rosie Flay says her airline has the best economy-class pitch in the world for its international aircraft. She seems to be right. A survey of 67 airlines published in Gateway Online puts Air NZ first-equal with 17 others.

There is some good news. Last year, American Airlines said it would remove 7200 seats from its 700 jet planes - adding about 6.4 per cent more room for its passengers. However, that could mean a 6.4 per cent rise in the price of an air ticket.