SkyRider airline seats pack fliers into 23 inches of space

Are you ready for the SkyRider?  If you think airline seats are cramped and uncomfortable now, you ain't seen nothing yet.   So says this article in USA Today.

The new airplane seat, to be unveiled next week at the Aircraft Interiors Expo Americas conference in Long Beach, would give passengers an experience akin to riding horseback.

They'd sit at an angle with no more than 23 inches between their perch and the seat in front of them — a design that could appeal to low-cost airlines that have floated the idea of offering passengers standing-room tickets on short flights.

The SkyRider isn't headed for an airplane cabin just yet. But its designer, Aviointeriors, an aircraft seat design firm based in Latina, Italy, says several airlines, including some in the U.S., have expressed interest.

There's a photo of the prototype in the article.  The promoters of this concept explains,

The SkyRider could be its own class of seating, like business or coach, Menoud says. Passengers would likely pay lower fares. But airlines could boost their profits because the narrowly spaced seats would allow them to squeeze more fliers on board.

Uh huh, sure.  These things all start out as a low cost option, and before you know it, it is the only optionand the price goes back to normal.

In recent years, flying commercially has become so unpleasant, and just when you think it can't get much worse, they come up with more ways to torture their customers.

Of course in this country it will take FAA approval.

Les Dorr, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration, which regulates air travel in the U.S., says he's not familiar with the SkyRider's particular design.

However, he says, "While it's not impossible, it's difficult to conceive of a standing seat that would be able to meet all applicable FAA requirements and still be cost-effective."

And do you think that there might be a smidgen of pressure exerted by the industry to get these things approved?

Remember, the airlines have all adopted the  "We're not happy until you're not happy" attitude, and there doesn't seem to be any motivation to change that any time in the near future.