Video of the Day: Tiny overhead bins

We’ve all seen it: that guy who has crammed a large bag in the overhead bin of the airplane and then can’t seem to understand why the door won’t close. It’s aggravating for everyone witnessing it. Why do so many people lack such basic spacial relations? We were reminded of that frustration when we discovered this commercial for 1Time, a low-cost South African airline. Granted, the ad is a few years old, but it’s message is no less topical today: we either need larger overhead bins or we all need to pay more attention to what we’re trying to cram in there.

Budget Carrier Rents PSPs to Passengers

South Africa-based 1time Airlines is a low cost carrier. In order to keep their prices low, they decided against adding any built-in in-flight entertainment in their fleet. Not really a problem, because most of the flights are not lengthy. The bulk of their air time is between their hub in Johannesburg and other South African cities like Durban and Cape Town. 1time does have one longer route from Jo’burg to the Tanzanian city of Zanzibar (approximately 3.5 hours).

The airline has introduced a concept of offering portable entertainment on their planes for rent. On select flights, 1time will be offering PlayStation Portable devices for a nominal fee of 60 rand (about $4.80 US). The rental includes disposable earpieces and last for the duration of the flight. This isn’t the first gimmick for 1time. They also use their extra leg room and leather seats to differentiate themselves from the competition. A novel approach? Other carriers have offered video gaming devices in the past. But this time it is in lieu of in-flight entertainment, not in addition to it.

[Via Travelwires]