Boeing’s ‘Space Bins’ could ease carry-on crush
Jetmaker adds option to popular 737s, says overhead storage capacity will increase up to 50%
Tired of battling your fellow travelers for overhead bin space for your carry-on bags? Help is on the way. It will come in the form of new “Space Bins,” an option Boeing is adding to its best-selling 737 airplanes that will soon be flying on at least three U.S. airlines. The bins will increase carry-on capacity by up to 50%.
Alaska Airlines will be the world’s first airline to fly with the new bins, taking delivery of the inaugural Space Bin 737 on Friday. Delta will be next, taking its first Space Bin 737s in early 2016. United also is among the seven global airlines that already have committed to the bins.
Boeing’s new bin design comes as more travelers try to bring their bags onboard instead of paying checkedbag fees now in place at nearly every big airline in North America. That has led to a carry-on crunch inside the cabin, with overhead bins often filling to capacity even as passengers are still boarding the plane.
Brent Walton, Boeing’s new features manager for 737 interiors, acknowledges the development of new bins was spurred largely by the uptick in fliers with carry-ons, something that has created headaches both for fliers and airlines.
“It’s twofold,” Walton says. “Passengers will have room to stow their carry-on when they get onboard. It’s less stressful. It also eliminates the need for the airlines to have to gatecheck bags when the plane is too full. The airlines think it may help them reduce their workload and also lead to faster turn times.”
Alaska Airlines believes shifting to the Space Bins will have a dramatic impact on its flights.
On the carrier’s Boeing 737-900s — the largest model of the plane in the Alaska Airlines’ fleet— the Space Bins will allow the 181-seat jet to hold 174 bags. By comparison, the current bins on Alaska Airlines’ 737900s have a capacity of just 117 bags.
“Virtually everyone can carry on a bag, which is fantastic,” says Sangita Woerner, vice president, marketing at Alaska Airlines.
For new 737s, Boeing is offering the extra-spacious bins as an option for airlines willing to pay more — though Boeing would not divulge howmuch more.
Southwest, the world’s largest operator of the 737, told USA TODAY it currently has no plans to add Space Bins to its existing 737 orders. It’s perhaps no coincidence, however, that the airline is the last major holdout to allow customers to check bags for free.
Henry Harteveldt, travel industry analyst and founder of the Atmosphere Research Group, predicts that if Boeing’s Space Bin concept proves popular, “we may see Boeing adapt it to its wide-body aircraft.”