The newest exhibit at our museum – dedicated to the evolution of cabin seating – is starting to take shape! We’ve had the World Business Class seats professionally moved from our Eden Prairie archive over to Bloomington, lifted up to the third floor and through the fire doors. We also moved over original wicker chairs from the Ford Tri-Motor that we’ve had in storage. Our Finance Director, Jeff Schwalen, constructed plywood boxes to set our seats upon, and several volunteers came in last month to rearrange display cases and our famous gong to make room.
These seats were original equipment on the Ford Tri-Motor aircraft flown by Northwest Airways from 1928 to 1935. The wicker seats looked more like patio furniture to promote a calming effect. Later seats used aluminum frames.
Please note the actual seat assignment numbers on an aluminum tag affixed to the lower leg next to the aisle. See if you can spot it!
Each seat weighed 10 pounds (4.5 kilograms). There were two seats in each row and seven rows in the aircraft. Each seat had its own window and reading light.
The Tri-Motor typically seated 11 to 14 passengers. Northwest’s aircraft used three Wright J-6 engines, rated at 300 horsepower each, with a normal cruising speed of 105 mph (170 kph) and a typical range of 575 miles (925 km.)These First Class seats were original when the 727 was introduced in 1966. The fleet type remained in NWA’s fleet through 2003.
Amenities included padded cushions, reclining backs, fold-out tray tables, a center arm rest, foot rest, and cigarette ash tray. They weigh 100 lbs. (49 kg) for the pair, which is 5 times the weight of the Ford Tri-Motor seats.
First Class seating was a 2 x 2 configuration with 4 to 6 rows, while coach seating was 3 x 3 across with 14 – 25 rows, depending on the original 727-100 or stretched 727-200 used, respectively.
Powered by three Pratt & Whitney JT8 engines, the 727 flew with 7 or 8 crewmembers: pilot, co-pilot, flight engineer, and 3-4 flight attendants. It cruised at 540 mph (870 kph) with a range of 2,500 miles (4,000 km.)Notice how large and complex these seats are, in comparison to the Ford Tri-Motor and Boeing 727 seats. They weigh 400 lbs. (181 kg) for the pair, which is 18 times the weight of the chairs in the Tri-Motor.
For its A330 fleet, Northwest placed 6 rows of these seats in a 2 x 2 x 2 configuration, for 18 WBC seats total. The shorter A330-200 held 228 coach seats, while the A330-333 held 382 coach seats, both in a 2 x 4 x 2 arrangement.
NWA’s A330s were flown from 2003 onward and continued service with Delta after the 2009 merger. Note the back shell which provided privacy in its lie-flat mode, the 10-inch (25 cm) video screen for inflight entertainment, and leg rests.
The A330-300 typically had a crew of 10: pilot, co-pilot, and 8 flight attendants. Powered by two Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines, it cruised at 530 mph (850 kph) with a range of 6,500 miles (10,400 km.)
Above each seat pair we are also hanging a model of the corresponding aircraft in the colors it was flying while these seats were in use.
Professional museum exhibit designers are being contacted to request quotes for a fully-realized backdrop with signage, flooring, and lighting, but while that process plays out you can see our volunteer-led, week-by-week tweaks and enhancements to the display.
