Would seem it would make sense to add comfortable seats on aircraft used in long haul service where people must sit for a long period of time, and use the more uncomfortable slim seats on short haul aircraft where it’s not much of an issue, and flight times are not as long.

Maybe the Ryanair chief wasn’t off his rocker when he talked about stand up seating or whatever it was called. I’ve stood for 2 hours on a 40 minute commuter train ride home many times (yes delays happen), so why can’t someone sit the way he talked about or in an uncomfortable slim seat for 2 hours.

However, it is probably inevitable as planes update. I think fewer and fewer are going to have personal entertainment in coach since people tend to carry their own now.

Now, if only we could get the pilots to turn on CH9 more often. In the last year, I’ve been less than 50/50 on the planes where it was theoretically available. I’m starting to wonder if it is another ‘work action’ like it was a few years back. The pilots have final say and they are just flicking the finger at management by not playing nice.

It was kind of cool to be able to relay delay information before the captain would deign to make an announcement. On one flight I had out of LAX, one pilot must have forgotten Channel 9 was on while we were awaiting departure from the gate. There was a ground stop at ORD that would keep us on the ground until it was lifted and it took him awhile before he got around to making an announcement, using information that was already 15 minutes old.

My favorite Channel 9 memory came on a descent into CMH. I don’t remember the exact circumstance, but the captain made some reference to his “superior airmanship.” He immediately took some ribbing from the controller and other pilots … and from me when I complimented his “superior airmanship”—with a big grin—upon deplaning. His co-pilot got a huge kick out of that … but that may be the last time Channel 9 was used on one of his flights.