Fighting over who gets the top bunk is standard, but are you ready to do this for a plane seat?
Airbus is looking into whether it should start using two-tier seating to fit more people into cabins.
The idea is that as well as airlines being able to sell more tickets, passengers would even have more space, with those on the bottom having extra legroom and those at the top being easily able to recline.
But the bottom seats (pun not intended) have been given an unfortunate nickname that might put travellers off.
Rather than merely being in the economy zone of the plane, some think they’re in the ‘fart zone’ of the person sitting above them.
After CNN first reported on the idea, people only had one thing to say… and it was along the lines of: ‘The guy in front of you farts right in your face now.’
Would you sit in the ‘fart zone’?
Actually, some did have something else to mention, but it wasn’t very positive either, as they wondered if it would be harder to evacuate or if the person on top could come down directly onto the head of the person below in a crash.
Not everyone was put off though, with one person commenting they would still sit there ‘if the price was low enough’.
The seats were developed by Spanish start-up Chaise Longue, who posted on LinkedIn a week ago that they were ‘exploring some early stage concepts with Airbus’.
Founder Alejandro Nunez Vicente wrote: ‘It’s the dawn of a new era for commercial aviation, so I hope that you are as excited as we are with this announcement and that soon, you can be crossing the skies in a more comfortable, spacious and two-level seat’.
Many of the comments were complimentary, saying they wouldn’t wait to see the first plane flying.
But Daily Mail journalist Jonathan Chadwick asked: ‘Does this design not make farts more detectable? Thanks in advance.’
Mr Vicente responded with a laughing and wink emoji: ‘Interesting that your mind goes straight to that Jonathan.
‘Gas in general doesn’t go through solid objects like seat cushions, seat covers and plastic shells… With some common sense and maturity you should be able to find your answer.’
When CNN Travel first reported the developement, he said he did not necessarily envisage them replacing standard seats but complementing them, potentially as seats in the middle of the plane rather than next to the windows.
Airbus confirmed were ‘exploring some early stage concepts’ on two-level seating for commercial.
But they said that ‘given the nature of this early phase level’, they preferred ‘not to further comment at this stage’.
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