Sen. Chuck Schumer wants the feds to step in to protect the ever-shrinking leg room given to tightly squeezed airline passengers.
Schumer (D-NY) said he’ll introduce an amendment to the upcoming Federal Aviation Administration bill to force the agency to set minimum space standards for planes.
The average amount of leg room between rows of seats has dropped from 35 inches in the 1970s to 31 today, and the width of a seat has been cut from 18.5 inches in the 1990s to 17.
“Whether it’s between seats or between rows, passenger space onboard flights has become smaller and smaller squeezing passengers and making air travel uncomfortable and overcrowded,” Schumer said. “This squeezing, tightening and cramming of our airline seats makes people feel more like sardines.”
There are currently no laws that dictate how much space airlines must leave between seats, except in exit rows.
And while shaving space off regular seats, many airlines have begun to charge extra for seats with more legroom.
Schumer said Congress should use the FAA bill, which it must pass by the end of March to keep the agency running, to regulate the industry, which he says is now making record profits while squeezing customers.
“The FAA needs to tell the airline industry: Not one more inch!” he said. “With inches now equating to big dollars that have helped deliver even bigger profits for airlines, a minimum seat size standard is both fair and timely.”
New York Daily News
Archives for February 2016
Bachelor party causes Ryanair flight to divert
Six British members of a stag party travelling to Bratislava with Ryanair were kicked off the plane in Berlin for alleged drunken misbehaviour.
The men, aged 25-28, were part of a group of 12 heading to the Slovakian capital from London on Friday evening.
Reports say they became unruly and the plane was forced to carry out an unscheduled landing. German police officers met the flight.
The bridegroom was among those detained, officers said.
The other six members of the stag group continued their journey.
German federal police in Berlin said in a statement that six members of the group, from Southampton, were threatening the security on board and did not comply with the crew’s instructions.
Police told German media that the men kept standing up and cavorting, and one of them had undressed.
They reportedly became aggressive when the crew refused to serve them any more alcoholic drinks.
Police officers at Berlin’s Schoenefeld airport charged the men with misdemeanours under the German aviation security laws, which can be punishable by a fine of up to €25,000 (£20,000), they said.
A possible civil damages suit from the airline could also follow.
The men have now been released.
BBC News
FedEx saves young girls life
The 2-year-old whisked away to Chicago by FedEx plane for a transplant surgery Thursday is recovering.
“Brooklyn is out of surgery and it was very successful!” according to an update posted Friday on the Children’s Organ Transplant Association’s website.
Brooklyn Faris has Alagille Syndrome, which prevents the liver from properly eliminating wastes from the bloodstream. A liver became available for her Wednesday afternoon, but a snow storm canceled flights to Chicago. If she couldn’t make it to Chicago by Thursday morning, doctors told the family, they’d have to give the liver to someone else.
FedEx stepped in and flew the family to Chicago on one of its smaller, non-cargo jets. The family arrived in town shortly after 9 that night and in time for the surgery Thursday.
“She still has a long road of healing in front of her, but today we celebrate that she has received this HUGE gift,” the update said. “We celebrate the spark in Brooklyn’s eyes and her fight to live!
“We celebrate the doctors at Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago who have gone above and beyond. We celebrate MEMPHIS and the glow of love and generosity that beams out of this place. We celebrate FedEx being literal heroes to the Faris family. We celebrate every person who has heard B’s story and asked, ‘What can I do?’. We celebrate every person who has prayed and cried and donated and shown up for Brooklyn is such a mighty way. God is love… and love is surrounding Brooklyn every step of the way.”
Family friends continue to raise money for the family, including trying to raise $75,000 to help offset the bills for Brooklyn’s transplant. Shortly after noon Friday, nearly $35,000 had been raised toward that goal, according to the transplant association’s website.
The Commercial Appeal Memphis
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