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An entry in an international student design competition is getting a lot of attention from travelers, but will it fly? Here’s a round-up of three unusual airlines seats that have been proposed in recent years. We begin with AirGo.

Seat too tight? Blame your airline snacks

Unusual Airline Seats

Malaysia’s Alireza Yaghoubi describes his airplane seat design Airgo as “a low-cost yet highly ergonomic approach to economy class cabin design” though some who’ve viewed the set-up think it could be a little claustrophobic.

1. The AirGo

See for yourself: note the dedicated overhead bins for each seat, as well as the adjustable screens and tray tables.

Forget the seats, what about screaming kids on planes?

Airlines will have an issue with the Airgo though because the seats take up about 16% more room than regular economy seats. Passengers probably won’t be all that thrilled either when the airlines solve the problem by charging higher fares.

2. The SkyRider

A few years back, FareCompare reported on another innovative seat called the SkyRider, which resembled a saddle that left passengers half-seated, half-standing. As one volunteer who tried it reported (see Associated Press video below), it was even more uncomfortable than it looked. Which may explain why you haven’t run across the SkyRider in your cabin.

3. The Non-Seat aka Sardine Syndrome

But the worst seat-we-never-had honors has to go to Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary who famously proposed ‘standing room only’ on his European discount carrier, but said he would price it accordingly. “The standing cabin would be [priced at] one euro, the sitting cabin would be 25 euros,” said O’Leary, adding “I guarantee you, the one-euro cabin will fill first.” Call this ‘sardine syndrome’ – you know, as in ‘pack ‘em in!’

If these seats ever do become a reality, you wouldn’t be in this uncomfortable position for long. Ryanair does not yet have any trans-Atlantic flights. And no standing-room-only seats, either – yet.