Italy's Aviointeriors unveiled its "Ultralight28" economy class seat yesterday, a simplified derivative of its existing "Ultralight R" (reclining) short-haul product line. The figure 28 stands for the minimum seat pitch (28in/71cm), which the design has been optimised for.
Weight has been slashed by around 10% from 10kg (22lb) to 8.9kg per passenger by thining out the seat padding, removing the recline mechanism and reducing the number of parts.
Kevlar panels have been employed to support the seat cushion and padded backrest, but the fundamental aluminium structure remained identical with the base model. Indeed, the main structure has been brought forward to form the visible part on the side of the aisle seat.
No plastic panels are employed to hide the construction, only two narrow rubber lines have been added that cover a number of screw heads. However, the company is working to replace the complete aluminium structure with a carbon fibre construction. The target is to have this ready by the end of this year and cut the seat weight per passenger to somewhere between 5-6kg.
Source: Flight Daily News
