Top or bottom — you might finding yourself asking this question when booking a plane seat in future.

If airlines adopt this double-decker seat design, that is.

Alejandro Núñez Vicente, a 23-year-old Spanish man, went viral last year for his space-saving seat design for those travelling in economy class. 

This week, his design has come under the spotlight once again following his showcase at the Aircraft Interiors Expo 2023 in Germany.

Started as a university project in November 2019, Vicente shared with CNN that his experience travelling across Europe partially inspired the idea.

At 1.88m, Vicente experienced many flights with minimal leg room. He then came up with the  idea of elevating the seat row in front, so as to provide more leg space for passengers. 

Doing away with overhead compartments in the plane, his design involves storing luggage under the seats, allowing for more space in the higher row seats.

“The lower row has the advantage of passengers having the lounge experience of a couch by stretching the legs, whilst the upper row provides an SUV experience, making it possible for instance to cross the legs due to the increased leg room and overall living space," he said.

While his design won the Muse Design Awards last year, not all appear to be on board with his novel idea.

Some said the double-decker seats made them feel claustrophobia. Others were amused and cracked jokes such as “If that girl farts, it’s going right into that guy’s face”.

There were also some who looked forward to having more leg room.

Aware of the criticisms on his design, Vicente told CNN: “To be honest, there’s no such thing as bad publicity."

“People can talk and they always hate innovation in some ways,” he said. “Most of the times when they show you something new, everyone hates it at first, they’re scared of change. But the more you show it, and the more you develop it, and the more they see it, the more they get used to it.”

Vicente also welcomes feedback given both online and by those who have tried the prototype: “We do try to adapt to every single constructive feedback that we get,” he says. “That’s how we move forward.”

Although the prototype has been out for some time and many airline companies have shown interest in the design, Vicente says that it would take time for his vision to come into fruition. 

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