WestJet scraps plan to pack more seats into economy class after backlash

The airline company is abandoning its plan to add extra rows to its aircrafts due to customer feedback.

Posted 1 second agoEmily Hwang

Kids watching airplanes at Toronto airport terminal, WestJet jet plane on runway, travellers waiting, aviation, travel, airport scene, Toronto, Canada, modern airport facilities. — WestJet will reverse its plan to add an extra row in economy-class on 43 of its planes (Courtesy: CP Images/Jeff McIntosh)

What to know

WestJet has reversed its plan to densify economy seating on some Boeing 737 aircraft after widespread customer backlash.
The airline says feedback from passengers and employees showed the changes “didn’t land as anticipated.”
Reversing the configuration on nearly two dozen planes already modified will take time due to safety, engineering, and certification requirements.

WestJet is reversing its plan to densify economy-class seating on some of its aircraft after facing widespread backlash from customers.

“Following a review of operational data and feedback from guests and WestJetters, the airline will return to its prior standard seat pitch for economy cabins,” the company wrote in a public statement.

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Last April, WestJet announced plans to reconfigure 43 Boeing 737 aircraft inherited from Sunwing, Swoop, and Lynx to “align with WestJet’s standard cabin layout.”

By September, the airline announced it would “invest in guest experience through major cabin reconfiguration” by adding a 12-seat Premium class to those aircrafts and expanding its Extended Comfort seating options on those planes.

While the change was welcome news for its Premium customers, they came at a cost for economy passengers. The new “ultra slim-line seats” allowed the airline to add an extra row, which WesJet initially claimed would “[reduce] the cost per seat and [help] to provide Canadians with affordable fares and optionality.”

The fixed, non-reclining seats – with just 28 inches of legroom – were not received with warm welcome.

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WestJet paused reconfiguring its fleet in December following the online backlash.

“This was all trending in the wrong direction,” WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech told the Canadian Press. “It just didn’t land the way we were anticipating… and that’s why we’re correcting it.”

The company says reversing the seating on nearly two dozen of its planes that have already undergone the change will take some time.

“Aircraft interiors are managed to the highest safety and engineering rigor, with changes requiring multiple phases, starting with an engineering certificate. Once this certificate is received, WestJet can begin to convert all 180-seat aircraft to 174-seat layouts, with timeline for completion still being determined.”