Blocked middle seats are nice, but what if you want more space on board? India’s GoAir is taking the extra seat concept to extremes, launching Go Fly Private, an option for passengers to buy as many seats as they want to create a buffer zone on board.
You can book multiple seats even if you are not occupying them all, and keep a safe distance between you and everyone else. Book a couple of seat, or book entire rows. It`s your very own safety zone in the sky.
Passengers wishing to avail themselves of the product must send an email to a dedicated booking team indicating the flight details, including which specific seat numbers are desired. The Goair team will then generate a custom reservation including “Seat Plus” allocations for the empty seats. The fare quoted includes seat assignment fees as necessary. Travelers then have just 3 hours to confirm the booking or the PNR expires. The extra seats do not come with increased baggage allowance.
The process is a bit of a logistical mess, but overall it delivers on the desired results.
And, much like in the United States, at this point the goal for India’s airlines is delivering an option to restore consumer confidence. Whether the spacing is medically necessary or not, some travelers see it as a critical component of their return to the skies. And while selling that space rather than the airlines blocking seats has created some backlash (Frontier Airlines in particular took a hit earlier this year) the ability to scale it up to many seats blocked is certainly not something the airlines are going to give away.
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