Airlines could face minimum legroom legislation
Airlines may have dodged a bullet when lawmakers dropped plans to cap spiralling bag fees, but they could still face legislation limiting how many seats they can cram into a plane.
The FAA reauthorization bill requires the FAA to draw up rules defining minimum seat width and pitch.
For years it has been a major issue with passenger rights groups, yet the FAA has refused to do so, as it claims its mandate is to oversee safety and not passenger comfort.
It has steadfastly maintained that decreasing pitch sizes do not pose a safety issue based on the time it takes to evacuate an aircraft.
Consumer group Flyers Rights is not expecting much progress.
"The problem I see is that it could give the FAA the ability to simply reiterate their current position, which is that seats are safe and [the FAA] has nothing to do with comfort," said Paul Hudson, president of Flyers Rights.
"I can see us going around the block on this for a year and then coming back to exactly where they are now."
The 1,200 page FAA reauthorization bill details a slew of passenger issues and rights, which include the banning of cellphone voice calls and vaping on flights.
The bill would also make it illegal for carriers to bump passengers off flights once they have boarded, and no animals are permitted in overhead bins, following two high-profile incidents on United Airlines flights.
The bill also orders the FAA to make a full appraisal of current cockpit safety and plans to further tighten up rules over drone flights.
With the deadline approaching to reauthorize FAA funding, Congress will meet this week to vote on the bill.
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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