German flag carrier Lufthansa has come up with a simple, albeit head-scratching solution to a design problem that should probably have been obvious all along but was likely dictated by financial reward and nothing else.
Like a growing number of airlines operating the popular Airbus A320neo single-aisle aircraft, Lufthansa decided to install a much smaller galley at the rear of the plane, which in turn makes way for 12 additional passenger seats to be installed onboard.
Traditionally, the Airbus A320 had a rear galley that took up the entire width of the fuselage behind the second set of doors and two lavatories located immediately forward of the doors, one on either side of the cabin.
Back in 2013, however, Airbus started developing a new interior package for its A320 range, dubbed ‘Space-Flex,’ which not only looked at ways to improve the passenger experience with larger overhead bins and LED mood lighting but also ways that airlines could squeeze more passenger seats onboard.
One of the primary ‘innovations’ was the creation of a rear Smart-Flex galley with Smart-Lav lavatory. Instead of having a full-width galley at the rear of the plane, the Smart-Flex galley takes up just half the width of the fuselage, while the other 50% is fitted out with two lavatories.
The lavatories that used to be positioned forward of the second set of doors are then replaced with an additional one or two rows of seats, depending on how airlines configure the seat pitch across the rest of the plane.
The concept initially proved popular with low-cost carriers like Wizz Air and EasyJet, but it wasn’t long before traditional full-service operators of the Airbus A320 range caught onto the idea.
There are now two competing versions of Space-Flex Smart-Lav galley combos, and it appears that the one Lufthansa has chosen presents some interesting challenges.
The most common version is made by the French aerospace company Safran, which claims to have fitted more than 1,900 SpaceFlex V2 galleys worldwide. This iteration positions the two lavatories on the left-hand side of the cabin (facing forwards), with the galley on the right-hand side.
The other version is made by the German company Diehl, where the two lavatories are positioned on the right-hand side of the aircraft. This might seem inconsequential, but Airbus configured its A320 aircraft to have two rear-facing flight attendant jump seats on the right-hand side of the rear galley.
As a result, when passengers are trying to use the Diehl-produced Space-Flex lavatories on Lufthansa’s A320neos, flight attendants can’t sit down because access to the lavatories would be completely blocked.
Airlines can’t simply swap the flight attendant jumpseats to the opposite side due to certification issues.
The solution? Lufthansa has started equipping its A320neos with foldaway camping seats so that flight attendants can sit down on longer-range flights in the cramped galley area.
This solution, of course, presents its own risks, especially in terms of sudden turbulence, given that the camping seats aren’t strapped down, and there are no seatbelts fitted to them.
Thankfully, as reported by the German publication Aero Telegraph, Lufthansa plans to install a reinforced cabin divider on older Airbus A320 planes that will soon be refitted with the new space-saving galley and lavatory combo. If certified, the flight attendant jumpseats will be swapped to the left-hand side of the aircraft, allowing crew members to sit down safely without blocking access to the lavatories.
Whether or not Lufthansa plans to install the same reinforced cabin divider on the A320neo that already has the Space-Flex galley installed remains to be seen, although staff unions are pushing the airline to make the investment.
Interestingly, this isn’t the first time that airlines have provided foldaway camping chairs for flight attendants, with both Lufthansa and Dutch airline KLM deploying the seats on their now-retired Boeing 747-400s.
Your journalism is soooo bad!
These light foldable seats exist with other companies for years (more the 20 with my airline)
These new galleys are no Lufthansa specifications but introduced by many airlines worldwide.
This tentative LH bashing is ridiculous and unprofessional.
Where is your ethics?
Bashing LH? Unethical? You must have read an entirely different article. LH is by all means looking at a brighter future. Their new cabin is both elegant and refined.
Thanks for clicking on the absolute cheapest ticket, everyone! That’s how we all got here. #profitabovesafety
Thx for article. Based on the configuration picture I bet that last year I had the misfortune to get one of those extra seats they could put in with this new configuration.
I was asigned to a seat by the window in the last row on British Airways. I am 180 cm tall, my knees were pushing the back of the seat ahead, 1 ” less legroom than other “cattle” seats,my shoulder touched the wall as it was narrower space and the wall is aready significantly angeled by that location , no window. Wouldn’t have been able to wiggle my legs even by 1/2″. Would have had to fly in one exact position for 3 hrs. I have bad back and knees, but even if it wouldn’t have been the case physically wouldn’t have been able to fly that way. I was lucky that even as the plain was fully booked someone did not show up and I could move to a normal “cattle “seat. I wonder would I have been arrested if I would have wanted to get off the plane due to the torturous circumstances,? I wish that the management of the airlines would take longhaul trips and sit on these extra seats before their companies approve these so called innovations.
If a flight attendant is sitting he/she should be strapped in or ready to in case of sudden turbulence isn’t? Otherwise they should be working.
This is putting them in arm way IMO.
Next move – airlines no longer have galleys in cattle class as there’s no use for them
anymore