Is E+ on some planes a great illusion?
 

Yesterday (6/26) I flew 20G in E+ in a 744 on UA870 (SYD-SFO), then 10C in E+ in a 752 on UA824 (SFO-BOS). I have to say that the extra leg room in the 744 seemed like an illusion :eek:. I thought may be it was just my imagination since it has been some time since I have flown E, but, and although I didn't have a tape measure, I could not see a very big difference in seat space for E+ versus E- on this flight and Mrs. IainC who was travelling with me agreed. I realized that it was not my imagination, since E+ on the 752 was unbelievable in comparison, offering a lot more space and legroom ^ I have to say that I was not impressed with the 744 E+ product which does not seem to offer much of a benefit in extra leg room :confused:.

Nevertheless, very happy to report that despite both flights being completely full Mrs IainC and I found everything quite okay, managed to sleep and experienced reasonably good service from attentive, happy and friendly FAs - keep it up UA :D.

The 747s and p.s. 757s do not have as much legroom in E+, but it still beats E-!

There are already entire threads on this forum (accessible via the FAQ sticky at the top) on seating on each type of aircraft. As well, there are entire websites on airline seating, at:

www.seatguru.com

www.seatexpert.com

If you had consulted this info before your trip, you would have discovered that the seat pitch in E+ on the 744 is only 34", while that on the 752 is 36". Regular E seating is just 31".

So no, E+ is NOT a "great illusion," :rolleyes: it's just that it varies among aircraft types, but nevertheless gives more legroom than regular economy.

That's great Kathy - thank you for the info. May be it's my delusion then, but sure seemed like more than a 2" difference between the 744 and 752....

That 2" is only a linear measurement, so when you multiply and get the difference in volume (i.e., three dimensions rather than one dimension), the difference is significant.

Yes Iain C - sadly those 747s are very tight in the Y cabin.

E+ is definitely BETTER though. E- 747 is very tight. I would avoid that at all costs on a 14 hr flight :td:.

yes in most cases and as KathyWdrf notes in her post, don't forget about seatexpert and seatguru, as there are some (n.b. some ;)) e- seats which are better than e+ (i.e. 21 b/h on the 763x2)

For me, the biggest difference between E+ and E- is that you tend to have empty seats around you in E+ if the flight is not full. Therefore, I do hope UA keeps enforcing the rule.

Hey, FIRST is an illusion--and not a great one--on some planes ;)

Yes, admittedly I haven't (or can't remember) what E- is like on the SYD 744 but I have to say I was very disappointed with E+. I guess my expectations had been puffed up by the enthusiasm expressed on FT and the seductive advertising made by UA about the virtues of E+. E+ on the 752 deserves all those accolades, but not in my opinion the 744, and I wonder how many other FTers (as well as those who cough up the bucks to buy into E+) feel let down (or duped) when they grace those 744 buckets to SYD :eek: Anyway, the good news for me was that it was nothing that a couple of reds and an ambien could not fix ;)

BTW, our flight was full to the max, not a spare seat in F, C or Y and was told by at checkin it's that way until August!

I personally think the E+ is a huge benefit. I can cross my legs (I am 6'1") with an E+ seat. I have never sat on E+ on a 747, only E- and business, but I think those 2-3 inches make a big differnce with your psychological comfort during an 11 hour flight.

Remember that "pitch" is not a direct measure of knee room, but the measurement from some point on a seat to the same point on the seat in the next row. The seats on different planes can be different models or from other manufacturers, and might be slimmer or thicker, thus giving more or less knee room at the same pitch.

Sorry Kathy but you lost me there - what has volume got to do with the difference in the seat pitch :confused:

E+ on the 747 is marginally better than E- but nothing like other E+ products. I can't cross my legs on the 747 without being wedged into the seat in front, and I'm just under 6' (180cm). However as it was the first E+ I experienced I was initially please that my knees did not hit the seat in front - I was gobsmacked when I encountered a true 5'' of extra leg room :D

I can only assume that with your 1K, MM status (like me), you couldn't get an exit row seat.

No, up until the morning of the flight the seat next to me in E+ was empty and I like to be able to move the arm rest. I was holding out with hope of things staying that way. Unfortunately, by the time I checked in, all seats in E- and E+ were full and no chance for re-seating. In fact, agent claimed the flight was oversold and they would be asking for volunteers to bump. Couldn't even get an Op-Up as Y and F also completely full- extraordinary!