A new 'standing up seat' could be the future of air travel

You’d think airlines couldn’t take anymore away from their passengers, what with Ryanair axing the right to bring a cabin bag on without a priority ticket and British Airways now charging people for an in-flight snack and seat reservations, but perhaps that’s just the beginning.

An Italian seating manufacturer, Aviointeriors, has unveiled the “Sky Rider 2.0”, which would see people stand for the duration of their flight - a move that would see airlines be able to fit 20% more people on each trip.

Revealed at Aircraft Interiors Expo 2018 in Hamburg, the seats will technically allow as much leg room as you like and will feature a perch you could rest your bum on, if you felt you needed to, but ultimately the design is to allow an “ultra-high density” of people on each flight.

Doesn't sound anything like fresh hell, does it?

Originally launched in 2010, the first seat design resembled a saddle that (shockingly) never took off but with the updated design featuring more padding, who knows?

A spokesperson for Aviointeriors said: “The seats ensure an increased upright passenger position, allowing installation of the seat at a reduced pitch, while maintaining an adequate comfort.

"The design of this seat enables [us] to increase the passenger number by 20 per cent allowing increasing profits for airline companies.

"Furthermore, Sky Rider 2.0 weighs per cent less than standard economy class seats and the reduced number of components enable minimum maintenance costs."