European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 11, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                The latest pitch from the airlines by Betsy Wade new York times in Economy class the squeeze is on. If you Feci you Are having a tougher time getting into your air plane seat than you used to and if you find sifting there for a Long time More trying it is not your age or your bulk. You Are being packed in More snugly instead of a seat that occupied 34 inches or even 36 along the aisle four years ago you will probably now get a scat that takes up Only 31 inches. In a can of sardines that is a considerable loss. Fuzzy As airline people Are in discussions of passenger space certain facts Are apparent about seat spacing in the Industry it is called pitch meaning the distance Between a certain Point on a seat and the same Point on the seat behind it. First on overseas flights the profit is in business class and Economy class gets squeezed to provide More of these higher priced seats. If an airline takes one Inch away from the space allotted to each of 36 rows it can add a Row to business class. Second As several experts said although All of the big airlines would probably be forced to follow suit if one suddenly began to tout More space for each seat in Economy class the trend is going the other Way if one airline can get away with a 31 Inch pitch they will All try it. And they All Are. United has rearranged business class in its new 747-400s to provide 40-Inch pitch instead of 37 or 38 inches and to seat the business class customers seven across instead of eight but the Economy class seats which arrive from Boeing at 34-Inch pitch Are reconfigured to 31 inches. Right now according to consumer reports travel letter s invaluable Survey of seat Comfort Only two Small airlines Are using Roomy Economy class seats As a Selling Point Midwest express which provides first class seating extra Width As Well As length a on Economy class on flights out of Milwaukee and la Deco a chilean line which has 38 Inch pitch for an Economy class seat in its 707 s and 727 s although the seats Are still arranged in the usual six across. British airways promoted added space in Economy class during february but with a couple of twists. The me announced an eight month Experiment called Economy select on its dc-10 flights from Dallas fort Worth to Gatwick Airport near London. Passengers who paid full Economy class fare which was$l,i02, taxes not included for a 30-Day round trip with a midweek departure British airways said got a number of privileges including seats with 34-Inch pitch in a special Economy class Section. Most of these were arranged in the regular rows of nine two five two but the pitch is 3 inches More than the 31 inches used elsewhere in Economy class the 31-Inch seats Cost $548 for a 30-Day round trip with midweek departure a half the Price of Economy select. But British airways did not rearrange the seats it does not say it did. Carlson s airline seating guide a periodical that prints diagrams of airline seating but not seat dimensions last fall published the British airways dc-10 layout. It showed the same arrangement As the airline now uses with the 31 seats that now constitute Economy select in the same Island behind business class and ahead of the Overwine exit. But Carlson simply designates them Economy seats. People paying discounted Economy fares were evidently requesting these particular seats rows 15, 16, 17 and 18, to get the extra room in its new program British airways decided to declare these seats non smoking scats and to advertise them but at a doubled fare to people who had not caught on to the extra value if British airways extends the Experiment to other routes it will create a fourth class of service in addition to Economy business and first class there Are some other goodies a a special Check in desk special ticket wallets and baggage checks a but the space is the Deal and a Price tag has been put on those three inches for Price comparison the year round first class round trip fare on the Dallas London route is $5,254, and business club class is $3,104 when consumer reports 1 Ravel l Etter printed its latest Survey on seat size in october 1989. It listed British airways As offering 33 Inch pitch in Economy class on both its l-1011 Tri stars and its b 747 s however. Margie Vodopia. A a spokeswoman says that 31 inches is Correct now and was probably Correct then although the line uses some planes it got in a merger with British caledonian and there can tie variations Quot we re the airline for Short thin  Vodopia said in Economy class All airlines Are for Short thin people in the View of de Perkins the editor of the consumer reports travel letter who every two years pulls together statistics in addition to pitch for the world s airlines to develop his Quot Comfort score the computer created scores show that newer 727 models and the 737 s and 757 s Winch All seat six abreast a three and three a Are generally the least comfortable with narrow seats poor configuration and tight pitch Quot the situation is getting worse Quot Perkins said Quot primarily because of the shift of airline fleets toward 737 s with tight pitches the big wave of reconfiguring went on three years ago when a lot of airlines made cutbacks in pitch the situation is As tight As it can gel Perkins research shows that tie Best Comfort la tags show up on the new md-80 s and i tie b 767 s the do 10 s and l-101 i s the tug 747 s fall in the Middle Lange As do the older 727 s the August 1989 consumer report travel i Otter with the Chart on 76 major airlines seating costs $5. Write the newsletter s circulation director 256 Washington Street mount Vernon. N y 10553 a year s subscription of 12 issues is $37. Carlson s airline seating guides appear four time s a year in both an overseas airline edition $44 95 a Yeai and a  edition $39 95 a year Carlson publishing Box 888. Los Alamitos Calif 90720 stars and stripes bookstores stars and stripes bookstores or encyclopedia of aviation a super Saver discount 0 m8\s wiped a of aviation is a stars and stripes super Saver selection for the of March. You la save s8 in cover Price of $29.95 for this fascinating Yaj rom e of the tremendous advances in flight technology a from the first Wright flyer u1 o e latest Northrop b-2a stealth bomber Jane s encyclopedia of aviation captures the Mance thrills and science of flight. The discounted Price for Jane s encyclopedia of nation is Only $21.95 at a stars and stripes shopping Center Bookstore near you. Hid 0u c8t save go or More on month s selection of other super Saver and mv8r a 10sg nce photog Phy a chronicle of . Military history greek mexican cooking embroidery children s fairy tales Art playing the guitar and More. Hard rent t8s 00st0res Are we stocked with numerous magazines paperbacks and 57rnnnn a discounted for you. Customer savings already total More than / a us in fiscal 1990. Stop in and save at a stars and stripes Bookstore today stars and stripes bookstores stars and Quot stripes bookstores e 0 q z it it it oct the history of flight from hot air balloons 10 1 he set a with More than 2000 illustration sunday March 11, 1990 the stars and stripes a a a Page 17