Air Canada to increase legroom on new premium & preferred seats

2026 is the year legroom takes the spotlight.

Following weeks of backlash aimed at WestJet’s densified economy seating – a problem the airline says it will fix – Air Canada is also reassessing legroom on its aircraft, except in the opposite direction.

Canada’s flag carrier is reconfiguring some planes to add more legroom to premium and preferred seats, the Toronto Star first reported.  

Air Canada spokesperson Peter Fitzpatrick confirmed the update in an email to PAX on Friday (Jan. 16), saying that “demand for premium travel is steady.”

“To accommodate this customer preference, we are reconfiguring certain aircraft to create additional premium and preferred seats with larger pitch, without affecting other economy customers,” he said.

READ MORE: WestJet reverses decision to cut legroom after customer feedback

Fitzpatrick clarified that Air Canada is not increasing the pitch on all premium seats – it’s just adding more.

He also said the initiative has been in the works for more than a year now – long before WestJet’s controversial fixed-recline Standard Economy seats started making headlines – and results from monitoring customers’ preferences.

“It pre-dates any recent media coverage,” he said. “Eventually the plan is to do this across our widebody fleet but there is no firm timeline due to aircraft availability etc. This round is only for nine aircraft.”

Seat pitch scoop

Air Canada commenting on the move, as reported in The Star, comes after a Reddit user flagged the change in a post online, noting that a row of 10 seats had disappeared from the forward economy cabin on certain Boeing 777-300ER aircraft scheduled to operate in the coming months.

The post added that while the cabin—excluding the first row—had been sold as standard seating through April 30, the entire forward section will be marketed as preferred seating starting in May.

Air Canada’s Preferred seating refers to standard economy-class seats that come with additional legroom and select perks, available for an added charge.

The option is complimentary for Aeroplan Elite members and passengers who purchased Latitude or Comfort fares.

Based on a maintenance alert shared in the Reddit post’s comments by a user identifying as an Air Canada aircraft maintenance engineer, the seat pitch in the reconfigured section appears set to increase from 31 inches to 34 inches.

WestJet reverses decision

The information also comes after a viral video highlighting cramped legroom on a newly-reconfigured WestJet plane sparked online backlash.

WestJet retrofitted 21 narrow-body aircraft, cutting seat pitch on most economy seats from 30 inches to 28 inches, to accommodate an additional row at the rear of the cabin.

The seats also feature a fixed-recline design (meaning they do not tilt back).

But the Calgary-based carrier has now reversed this strategy, announcing Friday (Jan. 16) that it will return to its prior seat pitch for economy cabins after listening to guest feedback.

"WestJet tried seat pitches that are popular with many airlines around the globe as they serve to provide affordable airfares," said Alexis von Hoensbroech, CEO of the WestJet Group, in a statement. "As an entrepreneurial airline founded on making air travel affordable to Canadians it's in our DNA to try new products. At the same time, it is just as important to react quickly if they don't meet the needs of our guests."

Once WestJet receives the required certification, it will begin to convert all 180-seat aircraft to 174-seat layouts, with timelines for completion still being determined.

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