February 21, 2016

Dorenda D. Baker

Director, Aircraft Certification Office

US Federal Aviation Administration Amended 2/22/16

800 Independence Ave. SW BY Email and FED EX and Regular Mail

Washington, DC 20591

Dear Ms. Baker, 

Thank you for responding to our rule making petition FAA-2015-4011 (copy 

enclosed) re seat standards within six months.

However, as we just received your letter (copy enclosed) last Wednesday, the docket 

stated that the petition was still pending decision and this decision was not posted on 

the docket, I would request that you withdraw your letter, provide more detail on 

your assertions that current seats do not pose a safety or health risk, and provide a 

formal revised decision that is properly posted on the docket as required.

Specifically, what studies or tests that you allude to but do not cite are you relying 

on for your conclusions that shrunken seats and leg room do not pose a safety or 

health risk?

I have been on the FAA Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee and the Occupant 

Safety (fka as the Emergency Evacuation Issue Group) since 1993. It is my 

understanding that the FAA has not conducted actual emergency evacuation tests for 

many years (instead relying on aircraft maker simulations), and has never conducted 

tests with test subjects who meet the profile of passengers as to weight, age, 

physical condition, etc. or with the current seat configuration. 

This was confirmed by testimony of FAA Principal Investigator Cynthia Corbett, a principal investigator for the 

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Civil Aerospace Medical Institute, before the DOT Advisory 

Committee for Aviation Consumer Protection who spoke about evacuation of aircraft in April 2015. 

She said, “The minimum we have tested is 31 inches, we have not looked up 28 yet. That may be 

something we do in the future.”

As to DVT, there have been various studies which we cite that are supportive of our 

petition, we request that you formally cite the study(ies) you are relying on. As you 

should be aware, legislation is pending that would require the FAA to mandate 

minimum seat sizes. Even Airbus has called for minimum seat sizes for long haul 

flights. 

Your letter decision also fails to address any of the 140 comments that have been 

filed and are overwhelming supportive begging the FAA to act. It also does not 

refute the fact that airlines are aggressively reducing passenger seat size, leg room 

for economy passengers. As this decision would give airlines a green light to 
accelerate passenger space reduction even further, I would expect that it could 

cause some airlines to reduce seat sizes further to the point that passengers over 

average size will be forced to pay more for seats that are the size of existing seats.

The DOT issues certificates of public convenience and necessity and the FAA for 

safety to airlines that offer air travel services to the general public. As such, the FAA 

and DOT cannot just focus on standards for safety and health. Otherwise airlines will 

be free to provide seats that are clearly inhumane and do not even meet the 

standards of transporting prisoners or animals.

The consolidation of US airlines into four major carriers largely eliminated

competition on domestic routes. This means that without minimum seat standards, 

airlines will be free to place passengers in steerage type conditions or offer 

inadequate seating for the body size of a large proportion of the traveling public by 

engaging in unfair seat shrinkage practices.

Given that this issue has risen to the top of passenger concerns, the establishment of 

an advisory committee as proposed to study the issue and make recommendations 

to the FAA would appear to be the least that should be done. 

Accordingly, we would request that your letter of February 1st, 2016 be withdrawn 

and that the FAA issue a formal decision that takes into account the above concerns 

and deficiencies. 

Respectfully submitted,

Paul Hudson, President

Flyersrights.org

4411 Bee Ridge Rd. #274

Sarasota, FL 34233

paul@flyersrights.org

240-391-1923 fax

800-662-1859

410-940-8934 cell

cc FAA Administrator Huerta

Lirio Liu, FAA Office of Rulemaking

Secretary Anthony Foxx, US DOT

Blane Workie, US DOT Asst. Counsel for Aviation Proceedings and Enforcement

Congressmen Cohen, De Fazio & Young