One of the most satisfying aspects of my job is to work alongside my colleagues to plan and execute exciting major companywide strategic initiatives. I’m pleased to report significant progress that we’ve made recently on one of these, which is a fleet modernization plan to ensure that we maintain a safe, efficient, and Customer-friendly fleet. Last month, we made a huge announcement regarding the evolution of our planes with the 737 MAX expected to join the Southwest fleet in 2017. Today, we have more big news regarding the interior of our Boeing 737-700s. Allow me to introduce you to EVOLVE: The New Southwest Interior, an eco-friendly, cost-efficient new look for our cabin with an emphasis on
comfort and personal space.
We will begin retro-fitting our Boeing 737-700 aircraft with the new interior this March, and we expect to have that done by the end of next year (2013).
EVOLVE will maximize the space inside our planes, and grants us the opportunity to increase the number of seats on board from 137 to 143, without sacrificing the Customers' personal space. In fact, sleeker seats will provide additional space under each seat for carryon luggage and approved pet carriers. To be clear, it was never our objective to add a row of seats, and the extra row isn't the main reason for this redesign. Once we examined how much space would be saved, it was determined we could accommodate the increase, without sacrificing comfort.
Remember the Green Plane? The materials tested on the Green Plane are being incorporated into the Evolve interior. Each seat is lighter by nearly six pounds, which adds up to a savings of 635 pounds per aircraft (even with the extra row) and is expected to result in more than $10 million in ongoing annual cost savings. The new seats are made using E-Leather, an eco-friendly, lightweight, and scuff resistant alternative to traditional leather. E-Leather is made from natural leather fiber that is upgraded and combined with a high performance core utilizing eco-friendly technology. The seat cover is manufactured by Irvin Automotive of Pontiac, MI, and they produce high quality covers quickly and at a much lower cost than our current manufacturer.
The new design also makes the bottom cushion lighter and more comfortable. These seats are better for your back, and provide better lumbar support.
We're also installing a fixed wing headrest on each seat that will provide for a more relaxing experience, especially if you decide to take a snooze.
We've replaced the seatback pocket with a netted pocket that's not only more form-fitting to the seat which allows for more knee room, but also makes it easier to see what items have been stowed in it.
Additionally, we're rolling out some new carpet… well, quite the opposite actually. Completely recyclable, carbon-neutral carpet will be laid in squares, rather than rolls, which eliminates the need for total carpet replacement. The new carpet will reduce labor and material costs and is fully recyclable at the end of its life-cycle.
Under the seat, we're replacing our current life vest pouches with lighter, more environmentally-friendly pouches. This is also one of the main reasons you'll have more space under your seat: each pouch is smaller and about one pound lighter.
As you can see, the redesign is inspired by Southwest's past with a nod to its future (and our commitment to being a Green Company). Natural, earthy tones combined with our Canyon blue and clean, aluminum accents give our Red Bellies a more modern, fresh appeal.
So about those extra seats: we hope to start making those additional seats for sale on southwest.com here by the end of the first quarter, for travel in the second quarter. Of course, this isn't as easy as flipping a switch; we will gradually introduce those extra seats into the system as newly retro-fitted planes come online. Needless to say, we’re excited to EVOLVE our cabin experience!
Hope you enjoy this 360-degree tour of EVOLVE:
As always, thanks for flying on Southwest!
Comments
I am a long time fan of Southwest using it for business and personal travel whenever I can. The fact that Southwest had adequate space between seats was the KEY factor in my choice of airlines. It was a unique advantage that Southwest had. This past week, I flew the new 700 design. Despite the clever advertising, it is simply a more crowded plane with an extra row of seats. I am baffled as to why Southwest would permanently damage its long established reputation by doing this.
I strongly urge Southwest leadership to reconsider this move. Given all the competitive advantages that Southwest has, raise ticket prices slightly but keep the planes comfortable.
The new EVOLE seating is terrible. The seat pocket in front of you is big enough to hold only the inflight magazine, the Sky Mall magazine & the emergecy information card. Forget about putting a newspaper or a book in the pocket...it won't fit. Seat comfort is rotten--I flew from DEN to MHT (Manchester, NH) for 5:45 hours in total DIScomfort. Oh and by the way, God forbid if you ever had to reach down under your seat for a life jacket...there's no way an average American of normal stature can bend down that far with the EVOLVE seat configuration in an emergency. (I wonder if the NTSB and/or FAA would approve) I suggest finding a new favorite airline as SWA is packing you in like sardines AND asking you to to pay for the discomfort.
I now have had the opportunity to fly on 5 flights with the new planes, mostly between Chicago to PHX, here are my thoughts:
1) The planes look great!
2) I congratulate SWA, for the time spent to improve the design, environment, and storage features
but...the solutions fails for me and the many other passengers on the flight. The space has gone from tight to very comfortable. I am 6' tall, 188 lbs, with a 35 inch inseam, and the space is to short for my femur to fit without sitting sideways, and if the middle seat is taken, that is not possible.
Not to sound alarmist, but this is such an issue, if all the planes go this way, I will need to change airlines, ugh...
I was most elite level status at American and switched to SWA, great services, easy to process, good systems, etc,,,and have enjoyed the switch. These new seats sizes makes my 3.4 to 4 hours trips beyond uncomfortable. Please let me you will reconsider the size.
I think it's called seat pitch... basically the space between seats. We flew 737s on SW from MCI to Tucson and return. Each way there was one stop with a plane change. So, I experienced four SW 737s. Each leg was 90 minutes.
Three of the four legs were on older 737s. The final leg was a new 737-700 with the new EVOLVE interior. Now, SW says they added 6 seats (1 row) by saving space in other areas of the plane. Maybe they did, but I'm only 5'10" and my knees had plenty of room on the un-EVOLVED planes.
On the final leg into MCI we had the new EVOLVE seating. I feel like I had LESS room... my knees were frequently pressing the seat ahead of me. The passenger who shared my row agreed that the new seats seemed to have less space.
For the 737-700 the seat pitch is 32" except for rows 1-10 on the right which get 33". None of the three websites that rate seating have info on the new 700 series interior yet. They still show 137 seats where as the new EVOLVE interior has 143 seats.
Yesterday I flew on the Maryland decor plane from PHX to BUR on my way home. It had the new interior. Room is about the same between seats. And it has that "new car" smell! Nice improvement!
I have flown in the renovated interior 737s three times in the last four weeks. Although it is nice, I am not happy with the personal comfort. The thing that is not mentioned is there is less space from seat back to seat back on the new design. In a world where people are getting larger and not smaller, it makes no sense to reduce space. I am a fairly large guy (6'1" and 260 lbs) but by no means the largest male or female that flies on Southwest. My knees are now closer to the seat in front of me by 1-2 inches and I cannot put the tray down without first leaning my seat all the way back or lifting my stomach up, lowering the tray and then resting my stomach on the tray. In the older interiors I can comfortably lower the tray without any problem. My hope is that Southwest uses their new interior design with the modification that they remove the 24th row and reinstate the old knee and belly room that I have been use to for years.
I just flew on a new EVOLVE equipped plane yesterday. As of today, I am STILL experiencing back pain as a result of these new seats.
This is a terrible move for Southwest, and I hope they quickly decide to reconsider.
Flew on this today. Seats feel a bit narrower and the tray hits me pretty close to the gut ( and I am not a big guy). Add a decline and I can no longer work on the tray with my computer. The colors are nice and so was the new plane smell - but I want my inch back that you took above the knees
Agreed. The tray now hits you in the gut. Where is that new personal comfort space they keep telling us about?
This new EVOLVE plan is terrible. Less space... tray table in the gut... back pain...
Come on Southwest!!! Your passengers LUV you, and made you the most profitable airline. Why are you doing this to us?
I sure hope that these new thinner seats are not the same type or comfort level as the Air Tran 717 seats. These are like sitting on a metal sheet and are a numbing experience if you know what I mean. We will all know in about 1 year if thinner is better....