A new way to travel?

Check out this site, it\'s a new design for airplane passenger cabins that’s completely unlike anything else:

http://www.airbornehotel.com

What do you think?

[Titan]

I suppose that it would be a nice change.

I don\'t like the idea, personally.  The ladder set up would never work.  It looks like it would be a hazard, and whether it would be or not, people are nervous enough flying without something that looks that way.  I doubt something like that would work well.  Besides, the climbing looks as if it would be difficult for older people, and many people who just aren\'t that energetic or physically fit.  Getting to and from your seat shouldn\'t be a chore.

As for the ones that are aranged in a conventional style, that kind of doesn\'t really server a purpose.  If that made sense, then there would be planes with that amount of leg room already.  It doesn\'t make sense, economically, since fewer people would fit on the plane.  If you wanna fly in comfort, just get first class tickets.  If you wanna fly cheap, you have to live with not so perfect conditions.  The choice is already there for people.

That being said, I am almost certain this topic will be closed.  Nice first post :rolleyes:

[Titan]

shockwaves, I doubt it will be closed though. Other people might have a different opinion, even though you got some strong points there.

I dont think its a bad idea. Elderly and those unable to climb would probably have certain accomadations as in our current forms of travel. I dont think it\'s that great for national and local flights, it would be great for intercontinental flights though.

As of now, there is no reaosn for this thread to be closed.

I just thought it would be closed because it is clearly here for advertising purposes.  The page he linked to is also his home page, and this has been his first and only post.

shockwaves:

The best way to keep injuries to the minimum will be to make the first-level seats preferential for older or disabled passengers, leaving the upper-level seats mainly for the youngest and most physically fit.

I’d like to emphasize that the ladders are designed to be safe: they are not loose, but sturdy and solid; they have rounded corners to avoid injury; they have plenty of ergonomic handle grips; and they will feature anti-skid materials to prevent slips and falls.  

And, like luckee pointed out, in an ABH economy-class cabin, there are 10% special accommodations—next to the windows—and 30% of the remaining modules are at floor level, which would give a total of 40% of modules that could be occupied by elderly or disabled passengers, without counting the middle tiers, which are not high at all.  In business-class cabins, this percentage of floor-level modules would be around 57%.

I’d also like to mention something else regarding the ladders.  Along with things like the bow, the arrow, the plate, the bowl, and other such tools, stairs and ladders have been essential to humans since the earliest times.  So much so that all of these have been discovered by almost every civilization on its own since the most remote times, even before they came in contact with each other.  Moreover, stairs and ladders are a fact of life for all of us: they’re in our homes, in our offices, in shopping malls and stores, in airplanes, in boats, in trains—they are everywhere and are used by us every day. The point is most people do things that imply a certain amount of risk everyday, from crossing the street or driving to work to riding a bicycle.

Regarding passenger capacity, in ABH cabins it ranges from 85% to 100% of the capacity of conventional cabins, approximately and depending upon the aircraft and cabin type.  

About this being an advertisement, it’s not.  I’m merely someone with an idea who wants to share it.  The fact that I have a website to share that idea doesn’t make it advertising.  I’m not selling you tickets for a trip on this concept and my website has no banners or advertisements of any kind; I’m just asking for your opinion.   If you’d like, we can discuss PlayStation games, I like many of them.

[videoholic]

I agree with Shockwaves.  People fear change.  People are weird.  Old farts would never deal with this.  ANyone with any type of back trouble what so ever would have probs getting in.  Ain\'t gonna happen/

I don\'t see how you can get the same number of seats on an airline without stacking them.  You are giving more leg room to the people, so how can you fit the same number of seats in an airline by doing something like that?  On the ones I\'m usually on, the seats are plenty close to eachother side by side, and there wouldn\'t be room for extra seats that way.

As for the ladders, I don\'t mean that they are a bad thing for injury related reasons (although with air turbulence and such, which can often come at unexpected times, having people climb up and down ladders to go to the bathroom and such probably isn\'t the best idea).  It\'s all about convenience.  Americans, on average, are lazy.  Why would the idea of climbing a ladder to get to their seat ever appeal to the average American?  I don\'t think it could be marketed here at least.  It just wouldn\'t be appealing.  Stairs are also very different from ladders in their basic design.  On a ladder, you have to hold yourself up.  Your weight is naturally centered on what would simply be air, when you climb it, and you have to pull on the ladder to keep your balance.  Stairs don\'t have this problem, making them easier to use, more appealing, and less likely to cause injury.  Sure, things we do everyday involve some risk, but when the risk is created by the setup of the airline, that\'s when you\'re putting yourself at risk of being blamed for any problems that may arise.  I really see those ladders as a lawsuit waiting to happen.

Besides, the problems would would extend beyond people who have a physical inability to use such a system.  What about claustrophobic people?  Or those who already have a fear of flying, and are now put in what appear to be more difficult to evacuate situations, where they could be off the floor of even the plane?  Also, imaging being the poor guy sitting below a pair of kids, who have decided they want to stomp their feet on the floor below them.  I don\'t see how that noise wouldn\'t carry to the floor below.  

Sure, the system has some obvious benefits, but with the risk involved, and the investment that would be required to make something like this available, it just doesn\'t seem realistic.  Proposals like this have to be a lot more air tight than this appears to be to me.  I don\'t know much about it at all, and I can already see problems arising with implementation, marketability, and safety/comfort issues.  That probably says something.

As for the advertisement, I don\'t mind if you stay around, especially because this topic is getting some discussion out of it.  It\'s just that all too often people come here, post something promoting their site, then leave.

The idea is ok, though i doubt the concept would actually work, it looks kinda dangerous as or not really locked in.

I have been in some pretty heavy turbulance, and without a seatbelt on I think its way too dangerous.

Originally posted by ##RaCeR##
The idea is ok, though i doubt the concept would actually work, it looks kinda dangerous as or not really locked in.

I have been in some pretty heavy turbulance, and without a seatbelt on I think its way too dangerous.

That can easily be fixed.

Why would the idea of climbing a ladder to get to their seat ever appeal to the average American? I don\'t think it could be marketed here at least. It just wouldn\'t be appealing.

Ever been on an Amtrak train?


As far as general practicality, I can only see this working out for trans-continental flights.

RaCeR:  The modules are designed to be sturdy.   Before answering yiur next point, I\'d like to mention that sudden severe turbulence is extremely rare.  That said, not only do ABH modules feature a safety rail/armrest, they also feature three-point adjustable seatbelts that passengers can even have on while sleeping, like in a car.

luckee: Very good points.

Do you work for the company? Your only a new member and seem to know alot about this new technology, just curious if you had anything to do with it.

Videoholic: Don’t tell me conventional seats are just what the doctor ordered for a bad back.  And as I mentioned above, there are plenty of special accommodations for senior or disabled passengers.

shochwaves: About passenger capacity, instead of having ten seats and two aisles across the cabin, as in a typical Boeing 747 cabin layout for economy-class, in an ABH economy-class cabin layout there are only eight seats—at floor level—and three aisles along the cabin.

Regarding the ladders, what about escalators?  They are in every shopping mall and in every department store you visit, just to name a few places, and people of all ages and physical conditions use them.  They have signs that warn us that using them can be dangerous and advising us on how to use them properly.  It’s not common to hear of a company going out of business because of so many lawsuits due to escalator accidents.  

For those who don’t feel comfortable being between two people, the best option are the aisle seats, which comprise 70% of all seats in an economy-class cabin using this system, while conventional layouts for economy-class in a Boeing 747 only offer 40% of aisle seats.  Also, the ABH modules’ design has plenty of open elements all across the cabin.  This open environment also permits a considerable amount of natural daylight to reach most parts of the cabin; however, all three aisles will have proper electric and emergency lighting.

Regarding evacuations, only passengers in the top tiers will need to make use of the ladders to abandon their modules, the rest can simply walk out of their seats.  Passenger manuals will include precise directions for emergency procedures, leaving the use of ladders only for passengers who need them to abandon their modules.  Additionally, clear signs will be in place all along the cabin to indicate the way to the nearest exit.

In present cabin configurations, it is not possible to leap over seats in order to advance towards the front or rear of the plane, so this leaves just the two aisles for evacuation.  For this reason, I’m positive that the ABH system’s three-aisle design—50% more aisle space—is an enormous advantage in case of an evacuation.  Moreover, the design of ABH modules permits passengers to move across the cabin—in three levels—and reach other aisles in case one of them has an obstruction.

About implementation and marketability, well, I guess only time will tell.

[Kurt Angle]

Those double decker seats are a good idea, it gives much more legroom so will no doubt reduce DVT on long haul flights.