- Airlines are seeing a surge in demand for premium seats from leisure travelers.
- To meet this demand, airlines are retrofitting planes to add more premium cabin space.
- While economy seats are not becoming scarce, they may become more cramped on some aircraft.
Airlines have seen a surge in demand for premium tickets from leisure travelers in the past five years, and it’s a trend that shows no sign of slowing down.
For example, United Airlines executives said during the company’s second quarter earnings call in July that they were seeing a 5.6% increase in premium cabin revenues year-over-year, and that the airline will invest in more premium cabin products and capacity in the coming years.
“Demand may not be quite as strong across the board as it once was because of the national economy, because of decrease in travel demand … (but) premium leisure demand appears to be more resilient,” Henry Harteveldt, president of Atmosphere Research, a travel industry analytics firm, told USA TODAY. “The people who earn above-average incomes, much higher than above-average incomes and who enjoy traveling are willing to spend extra to have flights that are more comfortable.”
To meet that demand, airlines have been investing in cabin overhauls that focus on adding premium seats. But, in order to do that with limited airplane cabin space, airline executives have to make a calculation about how to ensure the right mix of seating is available onboard.
“It’s real estate, the aircraft is real estate,” Ahmed Abdelghany, associate dean for research at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s David B. O’Maley College of Business, told USA TODAY. “It has limited space and it’s up to you to put X number of premium seats or Y number of economy seats, but at the end I have to make sure the revenue from the premium seats is the same or higher as for the economy seats in the same space.”
For travelers still looking to buy economy tickets, however, the shifting balance of the seating mix can mean a squeeze in more ways than one.
How airlines are retrofitting their planes
Airplane remodeling doesn’t happen overnight, but executives at airlines across the board in the United States have made it clear that doubling down on premium offerings is a key part of their strategy over the next few years as their aircraft go in for overhauls.
American Airlines recently introduced a new business class suite and like United, said it plans to expand its premium seating in the coming years.
“Airlines are focused on the higher revenue that they’re able to extract from the premium passenger and aircraft cabins are shifting toward the higher premium mix and removing economy class seats to get there,” Seth Miller, editor of paxex.aero, a website focused on developments in the airplane passenger experience, told USA TODAY.
Because airplane cabin designers have to work within the existing dimensions of the aircraft, there are limited options for exactly how they can add more premium seats.
“Depending on the plane, they may be removing lavatories or coat closets or other storage spaces, or reducing galley spaces,” Harteveldt said. “They are doing a lot of things to find ways to free up cabin real estate for seats.”
In general, airlines try to maximize the number of profitable seats on every flight, and sometimes adding more premium seats means taking out economy seating or reducing the legroom for the cheap seats as well.
“Airlines are either removing seats from the economy class cabin, which arguably is better for passengers that way, or they are squeezing more in economy,” Miller said. “Southwest is a good example of that one where the shift to offer premium seats, even though it’s just economy seating with extra legroom, is creating a situation where those who don’t pay for seating with extra legroom on Southwest are going to have less legroom than what they have on the old configuration Southwest planes.”
Southwest Airlines acknowledged it’s reducing pitch for some economy seats on many planes as it adds extra legroom in other rows.
“We didn’t want to remove any seats from the planes so we pulled down an inch of pitch to accommodate the ELR seating and stay at 175 seats,” Chris Perry, a Southwest spokesperson, told USA TODAY in an email, referring to the airline’s Boeing 737-800 and Max 8 planes. He said the airline’s 737-700s will each have six fewer seats after retrofits.
Will economy seats become scarce as premium seating expands?
Probably not. While some airlines may take out a small number of economy seats as they expand their premium cabins, most carriers will try to optimize the real estate on their aircraft in other ways, and add premium seats without reducing the number of economy passengers they can carry significantly.
Still, that means some economy seats may be more cramped, so it comes down to doing your homework and understanding that the nature of air travel has changed since the so-called golden age.
“I don’t think the value (proposition) for economy has shifted dramatically in recent years. It was maybe a decade or so ago where things changed,” Miller said. “Most of the time, it’s less comfortable than it used to be, but you do still get there. It’s more of a utility now than it used to be, as opposed to an experience.”
To get there as cheaply, and comfortably, as possible means doing your research in advance. Websites like aerolopa.com can help travelers get a better understanding of what to expect when they go to pick their seats.
There are also some good strategies for deal seekers.
“Definitely look at the bundles, especially if you’re going to check a bag, and if it looks right, grab it, because it’s almost always more expensive to buy those extras individually,” Miller said.
Keeping a flexible schedule can help, too.
“Buy early, make sure you’re including Saturday in your stay,” to try to lock in pricing for leisure travel, which can be cheaper, Abdelghany said.
He also suggested avoiding peak travel times around holidays whenever possible.
Zach Wichter is a travel reporter and writes the Cruising Altitude column for USA TODAY. He is based in New York and you can reach him at zwichter@usatoday.com.
