Impossible to Sleep on Aisle Seat on 777 Because Aisles Too Narrow
 

Just had the misfortune of flying KLM on a 777 to CPT.

I had an aisle seat. However, it was impossible to sleep, as most people walking down the aisle would bump me/the seat. The worst offenders were the crew members who walked very briskly and banged the seat the hardest.

The aisle looked narrower than usual. I confirmed that the aisles were extra narrow by comparing the size of the aisle on my later flight AMS to SFO - the aisle was significantly wider on the A330 to SFO. It seemed that the aisle on the A330 was at least 6 inches (15 cm) wider.

By way of comparison - I looked on Seatguru, and the Delta 777 has one less seat across (9 vs. 10 on KLM.)

This is part and parcel of aisle seats - regardless of how spacious the aisle is.

If you want to sleep, take the window seat. This also prevents you from having to wake up and move everytime your rowmate(s) want to get up.

what he said. I live in Windows only, even C long-haul, for these exact reasons.

That's not my experience - it's only part and parcel of an aisle seat when the aisle is unusually narrow, as it was on the 777.

On the flight flight from SFO to AMS which was an A330 with a wider aisle, it was not a problem.

I have flown many miles over the years, almost exclusively in aisle seats, and never had this problem before. I think by and large people try to not bump into seats when they walk down the aisle - but, when the airline crams in more seats and narrows the aisle (as KLM has chosen to do and Delta has chosen not to do), this is not possible.

I'm the guy that is always having to "go", so I take the aisle seat so I can get up without disturbing my neighbor. Yes, frequent bumping of the aisle seat is a hazard that happens on any size aircraft.

I'm the guy who sustained a DVT that threw a PE some years ago. I take an aisle seat, so I can get up and walk around every few hours, whether I need to or not.

10 seats across in Y = narrow seats+narrow aisles. Case closed...

After reading these forums some years without actively getting involved I always thought people were complaining too much about the 3-4-3 configuration, but I normally fly Delta longhaul or Air France on the A380.
Then last monday was my first flight on the KLM 772 with the new Y seats, ATL-AMS. Luckily I was seated in Eco 'dis' Comfort with 2 friends. But it was still the most horrible flight ever! Plenty of legroom, but constant shoulder wrestling with my neighbours. Also the seats ik Eco comfort go too far back, which means when the person in front reclines you have the tv screen smack in your face needing you to recline aswell. Eating requires some coordination with your neighbours. Let the window and aisle eat first so after they have finished you have some room to manoeuvre your knive and fork. A flight attendant saw us making this deal and commented that we were lucky not being further in the back where the combination of lack of legroom and narrow seats make passengers sometimes go into fights with other passengers. She also told us she and most of the crew absolutely HATE the 777 and 787 because of the narrow isles. After every flight they are full of bruises. And they have to deal with all the complaints and arguments between passengers claiming space.
I used to be part of the: 'If it ain't Boeing I ain't going' team, but after this I will only fly Airbus including the 767 longhaul.

Lucky or unlucky you, you were not taught as a little kid how to 'properly' use cutlery with arms so close to your torso that a book under each of your armpit did not fall. A skill that pays a decent dividend when flying longhaul Y :D

Normally I just eat with my face in a plate, but on board the seat in front stops my lips touching the food 😝

Impossible to Sleep on Aisle Seat on 777 Because Aisles Too Narrow
 

In such case, just lift with one hand one of the three small plates closer to your mouth and use a fork in the other hand to move food right into your mouth ;)

Taking a UA flight from SFO to LHR in a few weeks - I'll get to see how 9 across seating works on a 777.

How'd they do on the new 789s? That's a whole new seating arrangement, I believe. I wonder if that is as tight.

In general I feel like KLM would do its image wonders if they went for a bit less density. 31" average seat pitch with people of Dutch sizes (i.e. 6ft and up) is painful to watch on any transatlantic flight.

The seat pitch of 31" is pretty standard on most airlines these days. I don't mind it all that much in aisle seats, and at 6'2" (188 cm), I'm almost Dutch size.

It think one of the reasons the legroom is fairly standard across carriers is that awareness of seat pitch has become more common among travelers over time. Thus, if KLM offered 30", word would get around and people might take their business elsewhere.

On the other hand, I think seat width is off most people's radar. Looking at Seatguru, it appears that both the KLM 777 with 9 across and 10 across have the same seat widths - 17.5". Which would mean that the extra room for the extra seat is taken away from aisle width. Per Seatguru, the United 777 with 9 across has 18" seats (I guess that makes sense, the Dutch may be taller but the Americans are fatter.

KL 789s have 3-3-3 which is pretty standard for 787s.