That used to be the case on some 757s. Pilots had to set up a curtain over 3 economy seats. Currently at least at my carrier on a 757, a business class seat is set aside for pilot rest. Unfortunately for flight attendants they still have a row in economy.
"Screaming child"is sooooo real ........when i did red eye flights before the pandamic we had to rest in the cabin and the worst nightmares were the "screaming children"
Flying the 757 across the Atlantic on many occasions, the company would block off a first class seat for us. For a while in order to sell the extra first class seat, they tried blocking off an emergency exit row. It was weird going back there and on one occasion I woke up with a kids finger in my eye. It was totally unacceptable.
@@bynokia20 Yes, eventually they succumbed to flight crew pressure and gave us back the first class seat. I only used the coach seats that one time, I would nap in the cockpit until the stars quo was resumed.. We were carrying Air Marshals regularly during that period as I remember, so another first class seat was lost.
That was just a poor job from revenue management. You just reduce allowed bookings by one in the res system. Sounds like they were aggressively overbooking business class.
@@johniii8147 You are right, but I think they figured the profit on a first class seat was worth several coach seats. So from a numbers point of view it made sense.
As a for former A320 pilot I think the best crew rest is to not come to work anymore at all under such conditions. Every year the airline management find new ways to bend the rules. Good luck sleeping amongst passengers and not getting paid properly. Now I just fly a biz jet 6 months a year. Can’t be bothered. Life is to short.
Another option is a "container" on cargo deck used as crew rest with starirs up to main deck. I beleive this was done on early 340s. Either way, this reduces $$$ revenue per flight, so changes the economics. I thin the 321 might do OK on trans-atlantic 7-8 hour flights max, but may not be so commercially profitable on longer routes that require crew change. On the other and, it would be a perfect VIP transport aircraft.
The unit load devices that fit into a320 family jets have a height of just under 4 feet and a width of just over 6 feet at that height. I know it's a rest area, but a room that size sounds pretty cramped even if set up with a single bed.
The Crew rest in a loft works at 4 foot high in the centre because the curve widens at the base but in the hold the reverse is true so you wouldn’t be able to fit in a rest either side of a corridor
@@joewileman4480 4ft tall? That's tiny! I think the best arrangement would be to put the crew horizontally, such that the beds are perpendicular to the fuselage. Then have 80cm beds and a 50cm corridor area. Two beds in this arrangement would take up 210cm of space. If required, Airbus could also rip up the floor of the cargo hold.
Thank you for sharing. I remember having flown the 757-200s from L.A. to Hawaii the crew would just rest on the jump seats only. That would be the rest space. But if I flew Chicago to Hawaii then we had the 747s and then later on the 777s two class. It was and is nice to have the crew rest bedding area for us. I do like the fact we could and can have a separate crew rest area from the passengers.
@@johniii8147 Yes, coming from LAX is nice but I like the larger aircraft to fly the distance. I have helped out the LAX Base before on the 757s but having being based in ORD then 777s with crew rest is needed. I use to love the old DC-10 S flying the routes. They were nice as well.😊😊😊
From personal experience, any crew rest area in the passenger cabin is never acceptable as you are continually woken up by passengers/crew members walking about and making noise. A designated area away from this should be made available and I hope that the authorities mandate it.
9 to 10 hours in a single-aisle narrow-body plane is not my cup o' tea! I will find an airline that flies larger aircraft. I once flew an Airbus A321 to Hawaii from Los Angeles, and that is my limit in a single-aisle plane!
Never understand people getting obsessed with the aircraft size! No matter the size of the aircraft you only sit in one seat at a time. You can only walk in one aisle at a time and you can only look out of 1 window at a time and use 1 toilet at a time . . .
I just recently flew a 7.5 hour leg on an A321LR. The very last row in economy was reserved for crew only and they actually used it during the flight to get some rest.
So what I have learnt from this video is Im going to avoid this plane like the plague if its a long haul flight. Cant say Im keen on the idea of being on a plane with exhausted crew that dont have anywhere private to rest either.
It's not uncommon on 767's to have a business class seat curtained off for pilot rest on routes that require it. Presumably something similar would be used on the XLR. Flight attendants on such 767s presumably have to make do with 3 seats in the back ("poor man's business class").
There likely isn’t enough room on an XLR for a curtain. Depending on contracts I think it’s likely any XLRs will follow a similar plan to 757s and use a regular business seat in the last row for pilot rest.
@@andersonrodriguez8258 I just got my 787 type today. It truly is a remarkable aircraft. That being said, it’s expensive. Unless a route needs the 3000 nm extra range I doubt airlines will opt for 787-8s, especially on thin transatlantic flights. Although cargo capacity could be a area where the 788 could earn airlines enough revenue to justify the expenditure.
When CO started flying B752s TATL, particularly those really long flights (Berlin/Newark), seats in the business cabin were designated and dedicated for crew rest.
I don't understand why people let the number of aisles determine their level of comfort as if an economy seat in a 9 abreast 777 is any different from a seat in an A321 or 737. If anything, narrow-bodies mean higher chance of getting either a window or aisle seat, shorter meal service time, shorter loading and unloading, and cheaper tickets. As for the airlines, it allows them to launch new routes that were previously unjustifyable due to the low chance of being profitable on a large wide-body, and allows for more versatility by further bolstering established routes and being able to use these aircraft on shorter/domestic flights as well. Unless you fly business class or first class, it will pretty much be the identical experience, determined primarily by how the airline chooses to configure their planes. If you're a business or first class flyer, you already know which type of planes specifically to fly and with which airlines.
It’s not all rosy, just one aisle means moving between toilets will be a problem on a longer flight, with flight attendants sharing the same space. Some LCCs are going to use the XLR and pack 230+ seats into it, so that’s a lot of trips to the toilet on a 8 hour flight. So i believe XLR operators should instal a toilet at door 3 just behind the wings, so you don’t have to go all the way in front or all the way to the back to use the toilet. But i do agree that people are being too hard on this aircraft before they even set foot in it or there’s too much hate around this narrowbody longer haul revolution that’s coming. This is not a 757 or 707 that is previous generation stuff, this is the latest and greatest with the AirSpace by Airbus cabin fitted, with modern ergonomics and what not. So while not on par with a widebody for perceived space and comfort, it should be better that what most long-haul fliers on narrowbody aircraft are used to.
I recently read an article about ACF V2. It's about utilizing the wasted space at the back of the cabin to create more toilet. Due to the curve of the aft fuselage, it haven't been possible to make use of the space. So I think Instead of adding an extra 1-2 toilets, Airbus should rather redesign the space for crew rest, and move the extra toilet forward.
I flew London Stanstead to Newark on a 757. I don’t recall it being a problem. Flying on an a320 Frankfurt-Astana or Astana-London was worse mainly because the entertainment was so awful in the early 2010’s on that route. Long haul narrow bodies will be no more problematic than a packed 777.
The best solution is to keep this aircraft for short haul flights. They were never designed to cross the Atlantic on regular basis. If you compare A320 systems with A330, you will realize that although they look almost the same. The redundancy on A330 is much much better. We are going in a wrong direction yet again. But as long as passengers look at the ticket price only and don’t care who suffers for that price. This is the future of aviation.
there is also something called "clima change": We have to reduce the consumption of fossil fuel - thats why narrow body planes are the first step into the right direction - to fly around will be very differnt in a decade...
American have introduced their 777s to their domestic longer flights since they are not using them internationally. Everyone loves them. This demonstrates that the flying public prefers the wide bodies for most flights.
@@hanskaesbohrer2809 sure… climate stuff is a thing ofcourse. But aviation is only acountable for 8% of the co2 from the entire trasport sector. And … the transport sector is only 15% of the entire pool of co2 contributors. In the grande scheme its not a huge polutor. That said, aviation still has to work on bringing down emmisions
Even as a pax I would not spend that many hours on a narrow body jet when I can get the comfort and breathing space on a widebody. Which makes me believe many crew members will feel the same. A curtain wont offer any privacy at all. What you can't see doesn't mean you can't hear it.
Crew rest space would be the last row of economy class seats for cabin attendants like in the days of medium to long haul flights on the B707, DC8, etc and one business class seat for flight crew. The A321xlr crew would 5 flight attendants 1 dedicated to business class, 3 dedicated to economy and 1 floater to help out in both classes as required, There will be 3 flight crew 2 in the cockpit and 1 reliever. Airlines will factor in the loss of 1 row of economy seats and 1 business class seat in the th eoperational costs of the flight, so I don't see its as an issue.
@@chingweixion621 - Jetblue will be or is using the A321lr in 138 passenger seat configuration on transatlantic services, so it seems they meet the regulations and the unions. The rule usually is 1 flight to up to 50 passengers. Air NZ has 4 flight attendants sometimes 5 depending on passenger loading's on their 214 seat A321neo's.
@@chrismckellar9350 that is the crew to passengers ratio. And on top of that the lhr flight its right at the limit and does not exceed 8hrs. If longer flight is operated, it will be interesting to see how the airlines bypass the regulations.
The crew will need 2 to 3 empty rows of seats in the back of the plane so they can lie down flat to rest. It will not be comfortable for passengers and crew on narrow body plane for 9 to 10 hours.
Ha, I don't know why this is really even a question. Crews have been doing rest in the passenger cabin for years. They usually install a curtain device over the row. I've seen this a million times on flights between North America and South America.
Let me ask a question. I have flown a lot. From small Embraer 145 to Boeing 747. I have not found any difference between a 747 and 320 seats. They have the same legroom, same tables, armrests and so on. 8 hours in 747 is just as comfortable or annoying as 8 hours in 320. So why people say long flights in narrow body aircrafts are worse? They are just the same.
Because they have no idea. They probably assume to find the same seats as they would do on their go to holiday low cost airline. The only problem I see is proper crew rest
Maybe you underestimate the psychological aspect. Flying is already taking away the basic feeling of control for a lot of people and putting them in a confined space. The idea of sitting in a smaller cabin doesn't sound appealing to me. Basically, on some routes or airlines, that would mean that you have the same amount of people in a smaller cabin. I personally like taking that walk during a longhaul flight and stretching my legs in the back galley. Good luck with that on a single isle.
British Airways removed their loft crew rest on their Gatwick based B777 on their Caribbean routes. The flight crew use the back row window seat in business class for their rest . The cabin crew use the last row of seats in the middle with a curtain across it . The flights are around 10 hours
Well, if you look backwards, the quality of service was at it’s peak perhaps sometime in the 1950’s. Ever since then it’s pretty much been going more or less down hill. So no surprise to see that they have found yet and still another way to make it less good. Next they’ll be having no windows. You know, to save weight. And how about some seats in the hold? What class shall we call that? Steerage?
It depends on the configuration. Long haul aircraft have long haul cabins, that’s also the case with the 757 and A321. I crossed the Atlantic several times on a 757 and the seats weren’t different to those that you could find on a widebody
I guess you've never flown on a 9 abrest 777. I much rather fly on a narrow-body because meal service takes less time to complete, WAY higher likelihood of getting a window seat, or aisle seat, and usually the seats and pitch are very similar if not identical to widebodies. Why the number of aisles determines your comfort, I do not know.
It’s actually very simple…a class 2 rest seat can be a lay flat first class seat that is curtained off. Since most A321XLRs will have a Lay flat seats a curtain around on of them will suffice for crew rest. Most 767s today have a similar arrangement. There is greater duty time availability if there is a crew bunk seat up but that well exceeds the range of the aircraft.
The XLR seems like an adequately hellish experience. Although the 737MAX does have the same shortcomings, it doesn't have near the range. 3300 nmi vs 4700 nmi for similar pax count. 3300nm barely makes it across the Atlantic from NYC. 4700 takes in all Europe as far as IST and Northern Africa. 3300nm won't get you across the pacific at all, but 4700 will get you from SEA or YVR to Japan and Seoul. I would prefer not to fly trans-Atlantic in a narrow body and definitely wouldn't want to fly trans-Pacific. These planes weren't built for comfort, that's for sure.
Personnally, I don't really think long haul narrow body will be as good as advertised, the fact, as mentionned of smaller galleys, smaller cabins etc might be a huge drawback on this new travel type. I might be criticising because I'm not a fan flying narrow body but still... Airline might need to use two flights for the same route, being unefficient. We'll let time tell us if I was right or wrong. I'd love to hear your point of views to see wether you agre or disagree with me.
@@MarcusNesbitt4 Absolutely, but I think they also can compete with the wide bodies on the established routes on pure economics. I envision low cost carriers offering this as a new type of economy seats. Now you not only get less comfortable seating etc on the same plane, but on a less comfortable plane altogether. There is always a market for cheap. And especially on long distance travel, which is usually an expensive proposition
@@MarcusNesbitt4 Correct me if I'm wrong but does that mean that for example AirFrance will not replace their 787 between Paris and Boston with a A321XLR but more to open a route that would be to Baltimore (just a random East coast city)?
As an economy flyer, I love narrowbodies because I have a much higher likelihood of getting a window seat. In terms of comfort there is very rarely any difference from economy in widebodies. It entirely depends on the airline. As for the idea itself, it is a very good idea as it allows airlines to have a higher profit margin with a lower risk by opening new routes that have demand but not enough to justify using a widebody. Using more small planes instead of a single big plane makes more economic sense and is more versatile; look at how the 787 revolutionized the point to point travel that essentially killed the A380 and 748i.
I would think that those planes used for long haul flights, would have a special area somewhere on the plane to rest. Maybe at the front of Business/First class. Otherwise, not having an enclosed secure area for crew to rest, would be asking for trouble. To make up for the crew areas and extra crew on the longer flights, small increases in ticket prices may be needed. Or use wide body aircraft that have those crew rest areas already built in. But that might need to be a wide body that can fly those routes with engines that are state of the art in fuel savings. Another words, new model aircraft might need to be designed with the latest engines and extra fuel tanks. Crew comfort is a safety issue that has to be taken in hand.
@Boeing 737 MAX 8 yep, totally uncomfotable already with 3+3+3 config! Understood first designs of A350 & B787 were based on 2+4+2 = 8 abreast. But that was phased out at light speed by airlines "valueing customer feedback"..... [searching for wall to bang head to]
As an airline pilot I struggle to find that the crew rest is a regular passenger seat, even if it is business class. Talking passengers, random cabin noises, screaming kids/babies, and when airlines offer meal service with real glass and cutlery that are constantly tinging together during meals will take away from min rest period of a crew member. I would imagine, and hope that they take on the same approach as large cabin business jet that have the crew rest in the galley and can be completely enclosed. I think this would be the best option.
How about blocking a small portion of cargo section at the front or at the back and use that for crew rest just like Lufthansa a340-600 does with the toilets?
As an A320 pilot flying in Europe we are used to duty periods of 10+ hours, 4 or 5 days in a row. There are not dedicated areas for the cabin crew to rest but the jumpseats, I don’t see the difference flying across the Atlantic for 7-9 hours.
I believe this aircraft does not rely so much on cargo on board. There might be enough space to build two beds in cargo designated area, which can be pressurized along the passenger cabin. Most of the flights anyhow will be shorter than 10 hours. Most will fly medium-demand shorter routes, where crew rest areas are not needed.
It may well be that a new breed of long haul narrow bodies are required to comply with regulations. If dedicated rest areas are required, and these have to be within the main passenger compartment, I could see them more likely to be behind the cockpit with the possibility of the passenger doors being re-located aftwards rather than at the rear where they would interfere with the location of toilet facilities. Alternatively, if these aircraft are to be used for much longer flights, we may see the introduction of an intermediate stop for a crew change and possibly additional fuel, although this may well move the economic argument towards the use of a conventional wide body, or perhaps the introduction of a efficient, but much smaller twin aisle for those long moderately subscribes routes.
The quality of the rest must be far better when there are crew rest bunks in an area totally separate from the passengers, for example on the A380. Even if they cannot sleep you are resting on a bed instead of a seat surrounded by passengers.
It all depends on what is in the union contracts. For example, United will require first class seats to be available for pilots, the seat next to them will have to be blocked. This usually comes up on 737 routes with multiple stops between bases.
I prefer wide body aircraft. Been on flights in the past where the crew cordened off a few seats with some sort of coverage for privateaty. It wasn't great i must admit. Could not imagine how it will be done in long flights.
As crew, so many times I operate really long flights, crossing the pond with a 737 max and no crew rest were available for us, disgusting. It's a ICAO law!!!!
It is possible to build a crew rest area on the lower deck of the A3XLR. Perhaps a rest area for 2 people which will take a lil space in the baggage container area. On a 73MAX and A220 its should be possible too. Just have companies coming up with the best ideas and solutions
i'm a pilot and I think to give zero thought to crew rest(especially flight attendants)in the cabin is a disaster waiting to happen. With airlines it is profit profit profit
Asian carriers will design a cabin in A321XLR that can easily attract passengers especially when priced far lower than wide body premium class. I can see more all biz class aircrafts with flat seats like La Compagnie A321LR or biz + premium economy (skipping economy altogether) on several Asian carriers. Also one can fly direct to smaller cities where wide body couldn't fly due to smaller runways.
Maybe the XLR will be used by companies to avoid pilots and cabin crew leaving them behind at an outside station for 1 or 2 days, and 'rotate' with some extra employees on the out and inbound flight. Not only are passengers 'cattle' for companies, but crew members as well.
I am not understanding why an "air wall" couldn't be erected sectioning off an area for crew rest. (I am referring to air walls in a traditional building --- such as a conference room where only 1/2 of it is required for an event.
Narrow body or wide body the seats in coach are the same size and they’re crammed in the cabin in the same manner. Thank you, airlines you’ve made flying pure Hell. That said, the long haul narrow body craze will soon end when passenger numbers get back to normal and airlines will start using their wide bodies more.
Not necessarily. Long haul narrow bodies allow for many more direct flights thanks to their lower capacity not requiring a hub destination in order to fill the aircraft to profitable capacity
If required the airlines will seperate a part of the cabin for crew rest. Tried it before where the last row DEF seats were used on a 737. Other is just controlled rest as pilot in the cockpit, taking turns to nap on the NY to UK flights.
Let's face it an economy seat is an economy seat whether in a widebody or narrowbody. The a321 is about the same size and passenger capacity as the Boeing 707 which was used for some very long flights.
There will be so many problems with narrow body used for long haul. For easy example : water. In the end narrow body jets still need to transit for long haul flight which is inefficient.
This video misrepresents what the A321XLR is meant to be. It is not meant to fly 10h on every mission just because it theoretically can. It is meant to fly 7h+ reliably, with range to spare for safety and for network planning flexibility. Alternatively it can uplift more weight on 5-6h missions than the A321, due to its MTOW bump. The plane does not need overhead crew rests, same as the 757 did not. Cabin crew can have a row of economy with some extra legroom, separated from the rest of the cabin by a curtain. Works well on other aircraft already. Also: there are a lot of 'regional' configuration widebodies without dedicated off- cabin crew rest areas that regularly fly 8-9h missions.
Narrow body aircrafts are already very tight in most cases for domestic routes. If they are also incorporated for transatlantic ones it will just be a hell! I will never use an airline with narrow body jets for long flights.
On the normal A321 we only where using our jumpseats to rest. For 5-6 hours flights they blocked the last economy class row or sometimes the first row for us
If pilot unions demand it, the airline will create dedicated rest areas. I know some airlines that operate 757’s on long routes, dedicate a FC seat or a seat row in coach for rest. If we see 6+ hr 321 flights, I expect pilot unions will demand a dedicated rest area to be incorporated. Most likely the last few rows in coach will be removed a a rest facility installed. There may also be an option to add a module in the cargo area for pilot or crew rest.
this is actually a really good point, I'm cabin crew on the A321 and quite often we run out of water on flights as short as 4 hours, let alone 10. It would be interesting to see how they manage this...
I think they should definitely allot seats for crew in business class. I would imagine the cost for dedicated rest areas is more than offset if you traded it for business class seats.
The crew should have a front section set up solely for them. But my question about the use of these aircrafts for long flights is how safe will this be? Their fuel capacity for unexpected diversions or long holding from landings due to high unsafe winds or other reasons would need to be large enough to withstand extreme unanticipated conditions.
Regulations regarding the amount of extra fuel for emergences exist now. You would be surprised at the large amount of so called "extra" that is carried. It adds to the total fuel consumption because of the added weight, but that is calculated in the price of the flight.
@@peterdurand3098 Good to know. I was just trying to imagine one of those having to add 1-1/2 to 2 extra hours to a flight like some of my flights I have been on for various reasons. Thanks!
Isn't the 757 range with winglets 7600km. Not that much less than 321XLR. I do remember sitting in a 757 transatlantic flight years ago. Not a pleasant experience in economy class.
10 hours on a narrowbody sounds miserable. The most recent flight I've taken that's 10 hours is DUB (Dublin) to LAX. I've taken this flight twice and neither time has been enjoyable (sick the first, kicking and screaming child behind me the second (and I was sleep deprived)). Doing something close to that in a narrow body wouldn't go for me
Flew the AA Boeing 757 from edi to jfk and the crew blocked the last 2 or 3 rows in economy with blankets hanging down from the over head lockers to make a rest area.
The problem is demand, so in other words you don’t want to send an A350 with let’s say 150 passengers across the Atlantic when you can also send an A321LR or XLR!
Go back to the wide body for flights over 8 hours & just have a few less flights. The customer just need to accept less choice of flight times. With the industry in turmoil at present & the foreseeable future loadings need to be seriously addressed
The A321 and 757 aren’t intended to replace several widebodies, they’re meant to add capacity and flights to airports and cities which are too small for a widebody flight
Haven't 707s, 757s, DC-8s, Caravells, Comets, 880s, DC-7s, DC-6s, DC-4s, Connies, Electras, and lots of other narrow-body airliners flown trans atlantic for as long a they have existed? How is this suddenly some big issue now?