A new influential report has called for the minimum leg room on flights to be increased by at least two inches.
The report by the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee found that limited space may be stopping some passengers from adopting the brace position for crash landings. Concerns about deep vein thrombosis (blood clots that may be formed by sitting in restrictive seats for long periods) may also have played a part in the recommendation.
The Lords called on airline regulator the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to “increase the regulatory minimum distance between seats to at least 28.2 inches”.
The CAA has said that any move to increase the minimum “seat pitch” would have to be undertaken on a Europe-wide basis by the European Aviation Safety Agency.
It also said that most UK airlines already offer a 28-inch minimum seat pitch, although some budget carriers do not.
The committee’s report also suggested that it was wrong for the government to be taxing premium economy passengers the same rate as passengers in first class for air passenger duty.
