Flying The Gendered Skies, Should Airplanes Have Separate Bathrooms?

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed)
Feb 26th 2010 at 3:01AM

Should airlines have his and hers bathrooms? All Nippon Airways has announced that it will roll out women-only lavatories starting March 1 on all ANA Group international routes excluding Air Bus 320 and Boeing B737 aircraft. The airline said that it has had many requests for this service and so one women-only lavatory will be designated in the aft section of the passenger cabin and will be available for use by women passengers in all classes of service.

The special bathrooms will have a sign on the door. Men may be allowed to use the lavatories if there is a personal emergency or if there are few female passengers and the women-only designation has been lifted for the flight. Korean Air and Japan Airlines have already introduced these restrooms.