Aviation

What’s the world’s cheapest international airline?

According to the rome2rio Survey The topic of airline pricing never gets old. The last 12 months has brought numerous changes to the airline scene, from Norwegian Air’s new star status to British Airway’s recent foray into the budget scene. You can now research your flights screen-free through Amazon Alexa or Google Home as airlines jump into the AI space. And the gap between the front and the back of the plane is ever-growing, with major airlines rolling out a ‘basic economy’ class (that we think is closer to cattle class) and adding fees on everything from luggage to seat assignments. What’s certain is that getting from A to B has never been so full of choice, confusion and chaos – and comparing flight prices has never been more difficult.

To better understand the value for customers offered by the world’s airlines, we’ve gone back to what we love most: hard data. Just like in our oh-so-popular reports from 2012 and 2016, our data science team analysed economy-class airfares displayed by Rome2rio over a two month period, totalling some 1.5 million price points, to provide a snapshot of global pricing (in US$ per km) across international and domestic carriers. We wanted to get a sense of the world’s most affordable airlines, and the cheapest – and most expensive – countries to travel in right now. For the full details of the analysis

(Report : rome2rio)

Top 25 airlines by average price (US$) per kilometre on international flight searches

AirAsia X- 0.07
Air India Express- 0.08
Indonesia AirAsia-0.08
Primera Air-0.09
IndiGo Airlines-0.10
Etihad-0.10
Ryanair-0.10
Qantas-0.10
WOW air-0.10
Virgin Australia-0.10
Oman Air-0.10
Jet Airways-0.10
Air India Limited-0.10
SriLankan Airlines-0.11
Qatar Airways-0.11
Hainan-0.11
Kuwait Airways-0.11
AirAsia Philippines-0.11
Royal Brunei Airlines-0.11
China Southern Airlines-0.11
Lion Mentari Airlines-0.11
Jetstar-0.11
Gulf Air Bahrain-0.11
Cebu Pacific-0.11
Emirates-0.11

https://jetlinemarvel.net/2018/05/16/wow-air-introduces-first-ever-flight-india/

Aviation

Airbus Enhances A350 Cabin with 10-Abreast Seating

Airbus has announced a new partnership with Jiatai Aircraft Equipment, a Chinese aircraft seating manufacturer, to supply upgraded economy-class seats for the A350 widebody series.

This collaboration, unveiled at the 2024 Airshow China, focuses on developing a newly designed economy seat tailored for the A350‘s New Production Standard (NPS) cabin.

One of the key features of the NPS cabin is the ability to accommodate 17-inch wide economy seats, compared to the previous 16.5-inch wide seats that airlines were limited to in the A350’s earlier configurations.

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This change is made possible by the expanded space in the NPS cabin, which is 35 inches longer and 4 inches wider than the previous version. This extra space is achieved by slightly moving the cockpit wall forward and shifting the rear pressure bulkhead back by one frame.

The wider cabin allows airlines to add up to 30 extra economy seats without compromising comfort. For airlines opting for a 3-4-3 seating layout, the 17-inch wide seats are an excellent choice for a more comfortable passenger experience. However, some airlines, such as Iberia, may choose to retain a 9-abreast layout with wider seats for added comfort.

The NPS cabin also offers enhanced flexibility for airline operators. One major advantage is the ability to easily switch between a 9-abreast and 10-abreast seating configuration without requiring significant downtime for aircraft reconfiguration. Airlines can use the same seat rails, tracks, and IFE interfaces, making the transition smoother and quicker.

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In addition, the design of the floor attachments and air-conditioning systems has been optimized for 10-abreast seating, meaning airlines can upgrade their cabins without needing to make substantial modifications to the aircraft’s structure.

Though it’s still unclear when Jiatai’s economy-class seats will be officially added to the A350’s Buyer Furnished Equipment (BFE) catalogue, the collaboration marks a significant step toward enhancing the A350’s cabin offerings.

With this partnership, Airbus is providing more seating options for airlines, ensuring that they can meet diverse customer needs while improving overall operational efficiency.