WHEN flying in economy class, the space to stretch out can be tight enough without hidden obstacles cutting into your legroom.
Housing boxes are often overlooked but can definitely be legroom killers and ruin your comfort, so make sure to know how to find them when booking your plane seats.
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These boxes, typically hanging down under the seat in front of you, can limit your ability to stretch out fully, especially on long-haul flights.
The purpose of these boxes is to house electronic components or inflight entertainment systems, but their placement often interferes with passengers’ legroom.
Gregor Milne, of aircraft seating plan website Aerolopa, told The Telegraph: “On some long-haul aircraft, six out of 10 economy class seats are affected by these boxes.”
Thankfully, technological advancements are beginning to offer some relief.
“Thanks to new designs, these boxes are being replaced by smaller units that sit inside the seat pan and no longer get in the way of your feet,” the travel expert explained.
Some of the older, intrusive designs can still be found on British Airways’ Boeing 787 Dreamliners and Airbus A380s, where many economy passengers might find their foot space partially blocked.
But more recent aircraft like BA’s Boeing 777s, Airbus A350s, and refurbished Boeing 787-8s are equipped with the newer, space-saving units.
If you’re planning a long-haul flight, it might be worth checking the aircraft type beforehand and booking accordingly to avoid this annoying legroom killer.
It comes as new airline designs being rolled out include thinner plane seats so that more can fit into the cabin.
But this is bad news for hand luggage travellers too – as it means less space underneath.
According to USA Today, this is because it often reduces the amount of legroom.
And travellers, especially those flying with budget airlines such as Ryanair and easyJet, often rely on the floor space to fly with their bags.
We’ve recently raved about the Narwey bag that lets you fit a weekend’s worth of clothes into it, and fits under the seat in front of you.
But as seats get thinner (and more uncomfortable) – this may end up proving impossible.
Expert Christopher Elliott said: “When an airline announces a new cabin interior, it often moves to thinner seats, which allow it to add more capacity.
“Installing extra rows of seats usually means subtracting legroom.”
He said he found this out the hard way himself after being “unable to sit facing forward” on a recent flight as there was so little space between the seats.
Many travellers are resorting to underseat bags not only to save on cost, but also due to a lack of room in the overhead lockers.
Most airlines charge to check in a bag, which has resulted in the cabin lockers being full of hand-luggage suitcases instead.