Stressed about taking your next flight with the kids? RKS, a California-based design firm feels your pain and wants to help. Enter cAir (pronounced “care”), a new concept for a family-friendly airline.
Though still in the envisioning stages, cAir has successfully imagined an airline that will address and attempt to alleviate many of the stresses of family travel making the entire experience much more enjoyable for everyone – including the childless traveler who cringes when they see a stroller in the boarding line-up (we’ve all been there!).
In their promotional video, they look at common complaints about kids on planes – crying, boredom, discomfort and find ways to fix them. Some interesting ideas include a toy-lending system where kids can borrow toys from a collection housed on the plane that can be returned at the end of the flight. This takes the stress off parents who may forget to pack extra stuff to entertain the kids on the plane. There are also some ideas on seating and larger, family-friendly bathrooms. Probably my favourite concept is the privacy/sound barrier curtain that can be used for crying babies. There’s nothing worse than trying to sleep on a long overhaul flight and having a screaming child wailing behind you. RKS has come up with a sound barrier curtain that can be pulled down to muffle the noise and to give breast-feeding women a little privacy. Win-win!
Though the firm has yet to sell this idea to an airline, it definitely provides an alternate solution to banning children on planes and may reduce glares and snickering towards parents who choose to bring the whole family along.
For more on cAir, visit http://rksdesign.com/project#cair
