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Cape Town - British Airways will be doing away with reclining seats in their latest short-haul planes, which will fly on routes around four hours or shorter.
It will only affect Economy class, and the airlines hopes to improve legroom drama for taller passengers, according to The Telegraph. The seats will be set at a comfortable angle, taking away the big lurch backwards that irritate many passengers.
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The 35 planes getting this new feature will be Airbus A320neos and A321neos, and will start on routes later this year.
BA did add that the planes will have charging ports on the seats and will offer on-board WiFi, while the lack of reclining seats could also reduce air fares for customers. This cost-saving measure follows BA's decision to stop providing free food and drinks in economy on short-haul flights, a popular trend among low-cost domestic carriers.
The Telegraph also reports that the airline will also be reviewing the practice of selling duty-free goods on its short-haul flights.
Some were excited for the change, while others felt it damaged the brand.
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A few other airlines also don't offer reclining seats, including Allegiant and Spirit in the US and Monarch Airlines in the UK before it went defunct. Slate reported in 2014 that one airline saved $3,5 million a year on maintenance since taking them out, and can also conserve on fuel consumption, saving around 416 400 litres due to the decreased weight of the plane.
In a survey done by Skyscanner in 2013, 91% of people were all for taking seats out of short-haul flights, with almost a third of those surveyed citing that they've felt discomfort before from a reclined seat.
What do you think? Should our domestic airlines follow suite? Let us know at info@traveller24.com or tweet us!
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