Episode 028: Seats, Lies and early window Videotape - a podcast by Runway Girl Network

Southwest Airlines is the latest in a growing list of publicly traded companies appearing to stretch the truth in their comments to the press about #PaxEx improvements. The carrier recently revealed a new seat for its new 737NGs and 737 MAXs but the seat doesn’t seem to live up to prior claims about being wider. John has observed this story play out since the initial announcement at the Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg. He explains why he's very concerned over Southwest's obfuscation. Southwest is not alone in its PR shenanigans. During the recent APEX Expo in Portland, Oregon, defense contractor BAE Systems also played loose with its message to press. Co-host Mary Kirby details what transpired when BAE made the claim that it had received clearance from two Hollywood studios - including one of the 'big six' major studios - to stream early window movie content to passengers' own devices. Are we in new media territory, where corporations are not held to their word by the press?

Next, it would be hard not to miss the recent news that Airbus has filed a patent for a ‘flying bunk bed’; in fact virtually every major media title has covered the story. But this application follows a long litany of wacky patent applications for aircraft seats. In this episode, we discuss the viability of the design, how the patent process is being used for publicity, and how Airbus' application is in fact part of a broader Intellectual Property strategy being pursued by aircraft airframers and seatmakers. John also makes the case for why the click-bait articles about these patent applications are creating a harmful narrative that feeds into the notion that airlines and airframers don't care about economy class passengers.

And last but not least, we’d like to talk to John about his recent trip to Iceland, where he uncovered a compelling story about how Icelandair is using sensors and connectivity to put itself on the forefront of weather forecasting. We look at how the IoT of aviation is actually becoming a reality. And John shares a report about his overall travel experience in the gorgeous country of Iceland.

Further episodes of #PaxEx Podcast

Further podcasts by Runway Girl Network

Website of Runway Girl Network