Airlines Eye New Seats to Save Weight, Accidentally Satisfy Passengers

While the current economic crisis has left countless people jobless or underwater with worthless mortgages, there is one group that may benefit from the downturn: air travelers.

Generally speaking, money (whether high in the black or deep in the red) is the main driver behind change in a business. Fortunately for air travelers, they may get to reap a few unexpected benefits. To cut costs in these trying times, airlines have begun exploring new seat designs.

Currently, airline seats weigh between 24 and 33 pounds a piece and sport backs that are roughly 3 inches thick. New seat designs aim to reduce costs by reducing weight and potentially, allowing more seats to fit on each plane.

Thankfully for airline passengers, there could be unexpected benefits to the new designs. Nearly all new seat models offer more personal space and they accomplish it in a variety of ways. Some include better footrests, some have a hard shell back that never moves and floating cushions that slide down and forwards when the passenger reclines.

Perhaps the most creative concept are the staggered seats (shown above) by Thompson Aero Seating. The unique design eliminates the competition for elbow and shoulder room without reducing the number of seats. Even the most economical of the new seats, a slender 20-pound model made for short haul flights, still offers 4 and a 1/2 extra inches of shin and leg room compared to current economy seating.

The bottom line: airlines have finally found a way to save money that doesn't involve an extra charge, and they may improve passenger experience in the process.

Delta Has an Idea to Generate Revenue: More Bag Charges!

Bag charges. They're the worst. But here's some even more annoying news: they're going up!

Yes, that's right. Delta has decided that people traveling a really long way shouldn't be able to pack more than one bag for anything other than highway robbery, as they've raised their "second bag price" on international flights to a whopping $50.

Effective today, for international travel beginning July 1, Delta will charge customers a $50 fee to check a second bag, which the company expects to generate more than $100 million annually.

Well, goodie for Delta, who will make a ton of money. The downside: this is, um, not awesome news for consumers. The airline may have posted huge losses recently, but that's still not an excuse to seek awkwardly aggressive methods of charging consumers in an attempt to recoup some money. They're better off doing something counter intuitive like giving out free peanuts. I'd buy more airplane tickets.

Obamas, Clinton living large in Trinidad

While the U.S. government grills corporate executives for spending on things like retreats in Las Vegas and other high-profile destinations, President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are on their way to the crystal clear waters of Trinidad in the Caribbean.

The fifth Summit of the Americas gets underway in Port-of-Spain this week, which will bring leaders from North and South America together to discuss topics ranging from the global economy to social prosperity. And the digs couldn't be nicer.

Accommodations for the [Obamas] have not been officially confirmed, but speculation has them either at the private residence of Prime Minister Patrick Manning or in a large suite at the 380-room Hilton. Clinton will be staying at the 428-room Hyatt Regency Trinidad, the headquarters hotel for the summit.

While I'm sure the summit is all for a good cause, how much work could you get done looking out on this each day?


Note: The Hilton Trinidad is currently closed to the public, as it is hosting only summit attendees while undergoing a complete facelift.

Seychelles Goes the Way of Iceland

Clear blue waters. White-sand beaches. Wealthy vacationers soaking up the sun. Seychelles has all of these things. Unfortunately, this tiny island country off the coast of Africa is also bankrupt.

This playground of the rich and famous is saddled with more than $800 million in debt, taking a page out of Iceland's "How To Destroy a Country's Economy" handbook. With sagging revenues from the country's two biggest source industries -- fishing and tourism -- Seychelles' debt is about the same as the country's total economy.

It's already defaulted on one $230 million loan and is now seeking relief from countries -- including the U.S. -- it owes.

"We borrowed more than we can repay," complains Ralph Volcere, the editor of Le Nouveau Seychelles Weekly and a vocal government critic. "This was wholly irresponsible."

In the hopes of boosting its tourism industry, the country is launching an "Affordable Seychelles" campaign with the motto, "Once-in-a-lifetime vacation at a once-in-a-lifetime price," in the hopes of drawing visitors. Affordable might be overstating it, but there are certainly deals to be had.

Breaking: U.S. Airways Announces Return to Free Drinks for All Flights

Ramsey Qubein is Travelin' Light's on-the-road correspondent.

US Airways management is reversing its decision to sell drinks in the Economy cabin bringing free soda, coffee, tea, and, yes, even water back to the traveling public. Since the idea was announced in 2008, passengers and flight attendants have dealt with grumblings that the charges were a step too far on the "fee front".

Management claims that Coach passengers were not booking away from the carrier due to the charge and that there was no significant dip in passenger satisfaction (their justification for keeping the charge, one they had hoped other airlines would match).

Anecdotal evidence suggests that customers were indeed booking away and dissatisfied with the nickel-and-diming approach. Thankfully, the Tempe, Ariz.-based airline will adjust the program to free non-alcoholic drinks in the main cabin. Alcoholic drinks and certain specialty items will remain for sale as on other airlines.

The sale of drinks produced cleaner cabins as there was less trash from drink cans on board and subsequently less use of the restrooms. But, as the only airline in the United States to charge for a cup of water, this change is a step back in the right direction for US Airways passengers. Now, if only the ridiculous $50 surcharge to book so-called "free" award travel would be erased!