Airline Legroom: Boeing and Airbus Help Shrink It Even More

Steven Ekovich, a Tampa-based golf course broker, has devised some creative strategies to eke out a little extra space in coach during frequent business flights on Southwest Airlines, which has open seating. “I always try to grab a seat in the aisle or window,” says the 6-foot-1 managing director at real estate firm Marcus & Millichap’s. To fill the middle seat next to him, he says, “I always find the skinny woman in the crowd and invite her to sit down.”

Soon, that might not be enough to minimize Ekovich’s discomfort. In an industry where every square inch is mined for revenue, the big squeeze is on in the back of the plane. Carriers are changing the shape of lavatories, streamlining galley areas where they store drink carts, and adding “slimline” seats with thinner padding to shave centimeters off the distance between rows.