Absurdly Driven looks at the world of business with a skeptical eye and a firmly rooted tongue in cheek.
The new mood lighting will make you feel so good.
The overhead bins will have 40 percent more space.
As you walk onto the plane there will be more “wow.”
I wanted to offer you warm feelings before numbing you.
JetBlue, the airline that always seems like it has more legroom, has decided it’s going to give you less.
Because everyone else is doing it. And, well, think of the money.
As Bloomberg reports, the airline has decided to densify its Airbus planes.
This is an allegedly nice word that means shove more seats inside. 12 more seats on every plane will equate to $100 million and even JetBlue is fond of lucre.
Mind you, the airline will still claim it has the most legroom, because the other airlines are getting even more cramped.
So JetBlue’s new 32-inch seat pitch will still mean that it has the most legroom when you look at all the planes in all competing airlines and average the legroom out.
Still, the airline hasn’t yet attempted to mimic one of the great marketing lines of all time, offered not too long ago by an American Airlines executive.
Speaking of the airline’s own densification, he offered: “These seats are designed to make efficient use of the space available and feel more spacious, so a 30-inch pitch will feel more like today’s 31 inches.”
You see, it’s all about how you feel.
Anyway, passengers are used to being squeezed, whether it’s financially or physically.
What’s another inch here and there? Especially when you will get a bigger TV screen to ease your pain.
Remember, when you get on the newer JetBlue planes, you’ll feel an instant “wow.”
Then you’ll find your seat and mutter: “Wow, this isn’t as spacious as I remember it.”