After Lufthansa, comes Swiss's turn: new Swiss Senses cabins weigh too much

Here we go again. After Allegris cabins by Lufthansa, now it is the turn of the Swiss Senses by Swiss: The new first-class seats are. too heavy and it is therefore necessary to install a ballast (of about 1.5 tons) in the tail of the aircraft. Translated: more weight, more fuel, more fuel consumption (and emissions) and more money. 

But let's go in order. A few months from now, in 2025, Swiss will finally introduce its new first and business class concept, called "Swiss Senses." Nearly identical to Lufthansa's Allegris, the cabins will be installed in the Airbus A350s just withdrawn from Toulouse as well as on the 'old' A330s and 777s. As mentioned, however, there is one problem: because of the new seats, the A330s have a major weight balance problem (the 777s and 350s, on the other hand, are not affected by these issues).

The Swiss carrier's A330s (-200 version), when retrofitted, will have a configuration in 4 classes of service: First (4 places), business (43), premium economy (21) and economy class (159). If, however, the new economy seats are lighter than before, the same cannot be said for those in first: the weight, of the plane is unbalanced forward and, therefore, it is necessary to install some lead plates of about 1361 kg in the rear part of the fuselage. 

Problem solved, then; or maybe not. "at the outset, only an estimate of weight is available: the final weight is determined only after the seats and cabin are installed in the aircraft." Swiss spokeswoman Meike Fuhlrott points out., questioned by the Keystone-ATS news agency. Fuhlrott, however, is keen to specify that the increased weight of the aircraft will not preclude the ability to reach certain destinations: "the accessibility of the current portfolio of destinations is still guaranteed," the spokeswoman reassured. 

• new cabins