Would You Pay Extra To Purchase Empty Economy Class Seats Next To You?
Joe Cortez April 29, 2019
China Southern Airlines appears to be experimenting with a new way of making flights more comfortable. Through their WeChat account, the carrier is advertising “One Passenger, More Seats” options, which allow flyers to buy additional seats near them at the airport.
SkyTeam member China Southern Airlines may be experimenting with the future of passenger comfort. Discovered by Loyalty Lobby, the carrier is advertising a new option called “One Passenger, More Seats” on flights departing Guangzhou, China.
Offered via social media, the promotion allows travelers to purchase empty seats near them for personal use. The blocked seats could be used for extra lounge space, or simply to get away from other passengers. Pricing for the extra seats depends on how many seats a flyer would like to reserve and the distance of the flight. Short-haul flights charge around $35 to buy a bonus seat, while international flights can charge up to $250 for the same seat.
Although purchasing additional seats on an aircraft for comfort is nothing new, the way China Southern is going about it is. According to their WeChat posts, the seats may only be offered at the airport and only when all passengers are checked in for the flight.
So far, whether the promotion has been successful is still unknown. The advertisements are only appearing on social media and have not yet appeared on the airline’s website. Outside of their main hub of Guangzhou, no other markets appear to offer this service.
The move to offer additional comfort in economy class is being replicated across airlines as passengers demand more for their money. Earlier in April 2019, Thomas Cook Airlines debuted a new kind of sleeper seat, where a lie-flat bed is stretched across three economy seats.
[Image Source: Shutterstock]
You’re Reading
clever travel agents know how to improve your chances of having empty seats beside you + be nice to check in staff. If flight not full & you ask nicely, might get an empty seat or 2 beside you.
We've done this several times on JetBlue, buying an empty seat so 2 of us were in 3 seats side by side. We book the empty seat under the name "EXTRA SEAT (lastname)" and it's a good way to be much more comfortable at a reasonable price. The only drawback is constantly being asked by various JetBlue staff whether the seat is taken, probably because they are eyeing it for nonrev use.
This feature already exists for a long time; it's called "Europe business class"!
"only at the airport and only after all passengers have checked in" > very high chance that free seats will stay free (as when is the check in cut-off ... 30 minutes) .... so the seat is empty why would I then pay for it?