Aircraft seat manufacturer Recaro has managed to shed 30% of the weight of its previous economy class seat without the use of non-recyclable carbon fibre.
Recaro's Basic Line 3520 seat, which it is demonstrating during the show, weighs in at 11kg (24.3lb) and offers passengers more leg room by moving the literature pocket from the knee area to above the tray table.
"Our goal was to allow airlines to install an additional two rows of seats to Airbus A320 and Boeing 737-sized aircraft but to also give passengers the same amount of living space and reduce the weight of the overall shipset," says Recaro vice-president platforms Hartmut Schuerg.
He adds that "all seats are recyclable" because they do not employ carbon fibre and are made instead from aluminium and recyclable plastic.
Recaro achieved the weight loss by removing seat cushions and inserting a torsion bar underneath the seat, which meant the cross bar could be removed from the backrest.
Lufthansa Group became the launch customer for the BL3520 in November when it installed the seats on aircraft operated by five of its subsidiary carriers. "Lufthansa has added capacity of 2,000 seats [by installing the BL3520]," says Schuerg.
"We hope the market realises that there is a seat designed for lower cost of ownership, better passenger comfort and a better impact on the environment."
Source: Flight Daily News
