Aisle
The passage between seat rows where service and passenger movement happen — one on a narrow-body, two on a wide-body.
Definition
The aisle is the longitudinal passage through the cabin between the seat blocks, kept clear by regulation as the evacuation route to the exits. Narrow-bodies have one, wide-bodies two. In crew working positions, aisle crew are those who serve passengers from the trolley and manage the cabin, as opposed to the galley position that prepares the service. Aisle width is certified and is why cabin bags may never be left in it.
What it means for you
You will spend most of your working life in an aisle: service, cabin checks and the reason your feet hurt. Keeping it clear is a safety duty, not tidiness — a bag or a foot in the aisle is an evacuation hazard and a trolley obstacle. Aisle position is also where you absorb the cabin's mood and the complaints, and where turbulence catches you standing.
In practice
A Wizz Air crew member in the single aisle of an A321 has 230 passengers to serve on a Luton-Budapest sector and a trolley that can only pass a standing passenger by asking them to sit.
Related terms
4 terms- GalleyAircraft & cabinThe aircraft's kitchen and service preparation area, and by extension the working position of the crew member who runs it.
- TrolleyAircraft & cabinThe wheeled galley cart crew push through the aisle for meals, bar and duty-free — heavy, braked and the source of most crew back injuries.
- Narrow-bodyFlight operationsA single-aisle aircraft such as the A320 family or 737, the workhorse of short-haul and low-cost flying.
- Twin-aisleFlight operationsAnother name for a wide-body aircraft, describing the cabin from the crew's side: two aisles, two service flows.