3 French Guys Created A Titanium Seat That Could Save Airlines Millions Of Dollars
Saving fuel is a key concern for airlines, and one of the main reasons United and other carriers have switched over to lighter seats on some aircraft.
Those seats, made by Germany's Recaro, have the extra advantage of being thinner than conventional options, so rows can be closer together and more paying passengers can be packed onboard.
That's a trend in the airline industry, as carriers try to make coach as profitable as possible.
Now, three young French guys have upped the ante with a seat that's nearly three times lighter than Recaro's.
Benjamin Saada, Jean-Charles Samuelian, and Vincent Tejedor created Expliseat in 2011 and have now started selling it. Made from titanium and composites, it weighs just 4 kg (8.8 lbs).
The Recaro seats used by United weigh 11 kg.
The difference is enough to cut fuel consumption to the tune of up to $400,000 per plane per year, the company says. If that's right, putting these seats on all 300 of Ryanair's 737-800 jets could save the budget airline about $120 million a year.
The seat, which consists of just 30 parts and is "pre-reclined" by 18 degrees, is designed for use in the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 family of aircraft. Those are the most popular planes for short- and medium-haul flights and represent a huge market potential.
Eariler this year, the European Aviation Safety Agency approved the seat for commercial use. At the same time, the startup signed its first customer. It will provide 220 seats for an A321 flown by charter airline Air Méditerranée, according to French newspaper LesEchos.
[An earlier version of this post was written by Alex Davies.]
More From Business Insider
Korean Air Chairman Admits He Failed To Raise His 'Nut-Rage' Daughter Properly
This Awesome Time Lapse Video Shows How Airlines Install Wifi On Planes
This Plane Will Be Able To Fly Anywhere In The World In 4 Hours
Emirates Has The Best In-Flight Entertainment System In The World
Delta Will Offer 5 New Classes In 2015 — Including A Super First Class!