Schumer says FAA study on legroom, seat width late - calls for mandates

NEW YORK (WABC) -- A study on whether to mandate additional legroom and seat width on airplanes is late on arrival.

Senator Charles Schumer says results of the study by the FAA were due this past October, but the agency hasn't submitted anything yet.

Schumer is demanding that the federal report be comprehensive and says that the airlines have been stuffing passengers into seats as if they were sardines for far too long.

"It was at one point 25 inches for legroom, it is now 21, it was 18 and a half inches for seat width and it's now 17," Sen. Schumer said. "That's the average."

The senator added that current tests don't cover the impact that seat size has on the disabled, children, and pets and there could be safety concerns during an evacuation.