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I feel like this is missing something very important -- weight distribution. Premium economy in my limited experience has been closer to the front. Even if you

I feel like this is missing something very important -- weight distribution. Premium economy in my limited experience has been closer to the front. Even if you shift it towards the center, you suddenly have a section of the plane that's far heavier than the rest. (Not to mention higher) The article was really quite brief, but I'd love to learn how that issue would be addressed.

deleted 7y ago
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notahacker 7y ago
The claimed weight is 50kg per unit - more than a modern aircraft seat but not dramatically so to the extent it's likely to unbalance anything - and they seat the same number of passengers per metre of cabin. The bigger question is how on earth they expect to get an airline safety certification for something involving passengers sitting high above the cabin floor and accessing the aisle by sliding out ladder in the middle of it
- caymanjim 7y ago
  Trains have bunks and ladders and move around a whole lot more violently than planes.
  - dev_tty01 7y ago
    Sorry, I have to disagree here. Trains do not make multi-meter sudden vertical movements. At any rate, the concern is about egress in an emergency. In a train, every window is an emergency exit. In a plane everyone has to go down the aisle to the nearest exit. The ladders are in the aisle during use and will inhibit that process. They could of course disable the ladders during an emergency so people would have to jump or climb down, but that would certainly lead to injuries and other mishaps that would also inhibit the escape process. Hard to see the FAA certifying this unless the aisles are made wider. That would reduce overall packing density, so there goes airline's interest in the approach. It is beautiful in concept. Who wouldn't want to get horizontal during that redeye back to the east coast or the long haul to Japan? Its just hard to see the profitable and safe path to adoption.

deleted 7y ago

[deleted]

notahacker 7y ago

The claimed weight is 50kg per unit - more than a modern aircraft seat but not dramatically so to the extent it's likely to unbalance anything - and they seat the same number of passengers per metre of cabin. The bigger question is how on earth they expect to get an airline safety certification for something involving passengers sitting high above the cabin floor and accessing the aisle by sliding out ladder in the middle of it

caymanjim 7y ago
Trains have bunks and ladders and move around a whole lot more violently than planes.
- dev_tty01 7y ago
  Sorry, I have to disagree here. Trains do not make multi-meter sudden vertical movements. At any rate, the concern is about egress in an emergency. In a train, every window is an emergency exit. In a plane everyone has to go down the aisle to the nearest exit. The ladders are in the aisle during use and will inhibit that process. They could of course disable the ladders during an emergency so people would have to jump or climb down, but that would certainly lead to injuries and other mishaps that would also inhibit the escape process. Hard to see the FAA certifying this unless the aisles are made wider. That would reduce overall packing density, so there goes airline's interest in the approach. It is beautiful in concept. Who wouldn't want to get horizontal during that redeye back to the east coast or the long haul to Japan? Its just hard to see the profitable and safe path to adoption.