A U.S. Senator wants to end the shrinkage of airplane seats by amending a bill that would provide more legroom and seat width in commercial planes. New York Democrat Charles Schumer wants the Federal Aviation Administration to act on the issue as according tot he senator, passengers are sitting like sardines.
As per The Guardian, Schumer will be amending the pending FAA Reauthorization Bill that would require the agency to set the guidelines for the commercial seat size. The senator said that the bill will prevent shrinkage of airplane seats and seat pitch from dropping. In 1970, the average distance between rows of seats was 35 inches and dropped to nearly 31 inches. He also said that seat width has narrowed down from about 18.5 inches to about 16.5 inches.
"One of the most vexing things when you travel on an airplane is there's almost no legroom on your standard flight. There's been constant shrinkage by the airlines. They're like sardines," Schumer said of airplane passengers. "It's no secret that airlines are looking for more ways to cut costs, but they shouldn't be cutting inches of legroom and seat width in the process ... It's time for the FAA to step up and stop this deep-seated problem from continuing."
Schumer's motion to prevent shrinkage of airplane seats follows the same legislation brought up by Representatives Steve Cohen, Tennessee Democrat, and Janice Hahn, California Democrat in the congress just about two weeks back, USA Today reports. Unfortunately, the move to add their seat-size provision was turned down by the committee. Schumer thinks that shrinkage of airplane seats would continue if the FAA won't rule out.
Apart from shrinkage of airplane seats, Schumer also pointed out on the fees that passengers needed to pay just to enjoy a better legroom and seats. "It's just plain unfair that a person gets charged for extra inches that were once standard," Schumer told Associated Press via Yahoo.
FAA's reauthorization bill is renewed every four to six years with voting expected in March. Schumer believes that his amendment with the bill is a must-pass legislation to address the aviation problem immediately.
