Recaro's Xtend option allows exit row legroom shrink

Nov 04, 2023

5 June 2023 By Seth Miller Leave a Comment

There are scant few areas in an economy class cabin where leg room is a guaranteed amenity. At the over-wing exit row passengers are guaranteed a bit of extra space. But even that benefit may now be coming to an end, thanks to Recaro‘s Xtend exit row seating option.

Well, now there's a way to trim exit row legroom and maintain egress ratings. @recaro_as has a design where the smaller pan has a flip up for support when seated, then it auto flips out of the way when you stand up. Allows max capacity seating. #paxex #aix2023 pic.twitter.com/slyDG7hMPV

The Xtend seat delivers a (much) shorter seat pan, plus a flip-up extension. It allows for the required 13″ gap between rows at the emergency exit when the extension is out of the way. When flipped into place, the extension allows the seat to approximate a normal cushion, though there's an obvious gap.

Most importantly for the exit requirements, when a passenger stands up the extension immediately flips out of the way, reverting to the exit-safe configuration.

Ultimately, the option allows an airlines to save a few inches of pitch on the exit row, should they so choose. But a few inches there alone does not generally do an interior layout much good. Take away a few inches there and then also an inch or two for the rest of the rows behind the wing, however, and it just might be possible to eek out enough room for an extra row on board. Ultimately, the Xtend seat is designed to help airlines fly at max capacity config on board; getting the extra row helps make that possible.

Many airlines have decided not to go for max density, preferring the increased revenue from selling extra legroom on board. But this concept is likely to be more popular in Asia where planes are already more likely to fly at higher density layouts.

Airlines will also have to contend with the associated costs of additional spare parts required and adding moving components to the seat. Recaro executives acknowledge those challenges, but note that the latching mechanism is designed to fail "open" so the seat should default to retracted, meaning the plane can still fly even if the extension is not working correctly.

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This story is about: Aircraft Interiors Expo, AIX, AIX23, economy class, Recaro, seating, seats Filed Under: Seats & Cabin