Tendências: zonas sem crianças!

By Raymond Kollau, airlinetrends.com

2 September 2012 | Two recent surveys conducted by TripAdvisor found that 40 percent of U.S. travellers said they would pay extra to sit in a designated quiet section of the plane, while nearly 80 percent of Britons agreed there should be child-free zones on board, and a third of of respondents would pay more for their flight if there were no children on board.

Quiet Zone: Following a controversial decision by Malaysia Airlines to introduce a ‘child-free cabin’ on the upper deck of its new A380 superjumbo (Business and Economy), Malaysia-based long-haul low-cost carrier AirAsia X has announced it will be launching a so-called ‘Quiet Zone’ on its fleet of Airbus A330s.

Starting in February 2013, the airline will create a “Quiet Zone” in the front section of its widebody aircraft, located between the airline’s Premium Class section and the front galley. Children younger than 12 years old will not be able to book seats in the Quiet Zone, and passengers opting for the zone will be asked to keep noise to a minimum, while there will also be special ambient lighting in the cabin. Passenger will also be among the first to disembark.

The dedicated zone will consist of the first eight rows of the Economy section (rows 7 to 14), and as the front area already houses the airline’s Premium Class, turning this part of the aircraft into a Quiet Zone will also be appreciated by AirAsia X’s premium passengers.

Fonte: airlinetrends.com.

Comentários: um lado nada silencioso do crescimento nacional e internacional do tráfego aéreo, com mais pessoas viajando, inclusive das novas classes médias mundiais, tem trazido um ruído a mais para as cabines dos aviões: o choro das crianças! Sem dúvida, em voos de longo duração, é difícil e estressante aturar uma criança que não para de chorar e uma mãe que não sabe o que fazer. Nada mais nada menos que 40% dos viajantes nos Estados Unidos disseram "pago até a mais para viajar tranquilo". Creio que em breve, o serviço que ainda é gratuito, provavelmente será cobrado.