Economy seats rarely provide enough room for those blessed with height, leaving passengers little option than to squeeze their limbs into the tiny space available and endure several hours of discomfort.
Thankfully, there could well be a light at the end of the tunnel thanks to new airline seats.
A design company has unveiled a style that solves the issue of cramped leg room.
PearsonLloyd’s new design sees the headrest separated from the back and attached through a central spine that runs along the back of the chair.
This affords fliers more space by narrowing the seat from behind.
Passengers can then sit with their knees either side of the spine.
Luke Pearson from PearsonLloyd told Lonely Planet: “The new ‘central spine’ of the seat would hold tray tables and other things that passengers need, while making it easier to get in and out for takeoff, landing, toilet breaks or just to stretch your legs.
“The seats have also been designed to allow passengers to recline further without annoying the person sitting behind them quite as much.”
Another positive of the new-fangled seats is that they are eco-friendly.
The rear is partly made from recycled plastic containing a big percentage of sunflower seeds.
The seat covers are created using a recycled wool mix while the aluminium sections come from recycled aircraft parts.
Suitably, the chair has been named The PearsonLloyd Eco Seat.
According to London-based PearsonLloyd, the driving force behind the idea is that airplane seating is rarely designed with an emphasis on passenger comfort – and they want to change this.
“Our seat is designed with the main ambition to increase passenger space and visual sight lines and to optimise the ergonomic potential, comfort and value within the framework of the class,” say PearsonLloyd.
The chairs were revealed at the recent Aircraft Interiors EXPO 2018 in Hamburg where digital agency Neutral Digital turned it into a virtual reality experience.
Other seats displayed at the event will likely not prove such hit with tall people.
Italian seating manufacturer Aviointeriors unveiled their design for upright seating where passengers have only a very small seat on which to perch.
Aviointeriors believe that 20 per cent more people could be crammed on board plane if the designs are taken up.
The company said in a statement: “The Skyrider 2.0 is an innovative seat, it allows an ultra-high density in the aircraft cabin.
“Skyrider 2.0 opens the travelling experience to a wider passenger market, creating also a useful space for the introduction [of] mixed classes boarded on the same aircraft.”
