Thursday, April 23, 2015

Blog Post #4 - Size or, in This Case, Space Matters

Sometimes all we read is negative news – especially about anything that happens in the cabin of an airplane.  In the last portion of Tom Crouch’s book, Wings, the author explains that industry technology has trended toward enhancing air travelers’ comfort in the cabin.  A recent article from Good Morning America via Yahoo News illustrates Crouch’s theory.

The article, entitled “Boeing Increases Overhead Bin Size by 50 Percent,” relates the news that Boeing’s 737s will soon be fitted with redesigned in-cabin “luggage holds.” This does not mean that passengers will be able to bring more or larger carry-on bags into the cabin.  What it does is provide just enough extra room so that carry-ons can be stowed and retrieved more quickly (people won’t have to be doing aerobics with their upper arms while trying to shift other bags, suck it in for passengers needing to get by them, and looming over already seated passengers).  In addition, the bottom part of the bin is lower so that shorter passengers will have better access, and that all passengers should be able to see to the back of the compartment (in case something works its way out of the bag and gets left behind). 

Although this change was revealed at a recent industry technology show, Boeing is already retrofitting its 737s, and customers (as well as the cabin crews) are looking forward to this improvement.  Hopefully, it will help cut down on some of the frustration that often occurs during boarding and leaving commercial airliners.

Prisco, Joanna. “Boeing Increases Overhead Bin Size by 50 Percent.” Good Morning America/Yahoo News. 17 April 2015. Web. 18 April 2015.


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