Free Republic

With airlines squeezing more seats onto planes and flights more crowded than ever, some nasty battles are brewing, pitting passengers who recline their seats against the squished travelers sitting behind them... Most U.S. airlines still allow seats to tip as far back as four or five inches....But now Southwest Airlines is doing something to reduce the threat of bruised knees and spilled drinks. The carrier is reducing the maximum recline in many of its seats so that customers can use laptop computers, for example, when the person in front of them wants to lean back. ...The airline decided to standardize...

DaimlerChrysler's smart brand has, at long last, ripped the relatively small cover off its new fortwo minicar. The new smart, which will come to theU.S. next year as a 2008 model through the UnitedAutoGroup chain, has been revamped for more safety features and for a little more room. Styling has been updated as well, and the new smart offers either a three-cylinder engine with 61, 71, or 84 horsepower or a diesel with 45 hp. All engine variants come with a five-speed transmission. Smart says that the new version will earn four stars in the European safety tests and...

SINGAPORE, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Airlines are choosing to cram more seats into Boeing's hot-selling new 787 Dreamliner than the company expected, giving the plane a potentially decisive advantage over its Airbus rival. Senior Boeing (BA.N: Quote, Profile, Research) sales executive Randy Baseler said typical seating in the 787-9 version of the aicraft would rise to about 280 from 259 if airlines switched to having nine seats per row in economy class rather than eight as Boeing had expected. Two-thirds of 787 buyers have decided to fit nine seats in each row in economy, executives from the Chicago-based manufacturer said...