( CNN ) -- It 's already capable of carrying more passengers than any other commercial aircraft , but the Airbus A380 could be about to squeeze in a few extra . In a move that adds a dose of economic reality to airline dreams of luxuriously pimped superjumbos , the plane 's manufacturer says that next week it will unveil a new 11-seat-row economy-class configuration . By raising the three seats next to each window a few inches to take advantage of extra fuselage space , Airbus says it will create enough room to accommodate five people in the middle of the plane . While the prospect of spending a long haul flight stuck in the middle seat might be unappealing for passengers , Airbus says it makes sense for airline revenues . `` Several customers are saying they are interested in looking at ways of making the aircraft more productive , '' Airbus spokesman Justin Dubon tells CNN . Murdo Morrison , editor of Flightglobal magazine , says the new configuration indicates that financial realities are catching up with airlines , which once promised to fill their A380s with casinos and double beds . He says sales of the European manufacturer 's flagship have been disappointing since the plane was launched in October 2007 . `` With the price of fuel going up so much , the focus for airlines is economizing and trying to get as many passengers as possible into an aircraft , '' he tells CNN . Raised capacity . Dubon says the extra seats , which wo n't compromise on the existing 18-inch width of current chairs , would raise economy-class capacity by 7 % . This would mean 30 more seats in a standard cabin layout , but even when full would put the A380 well short of its maximum load capacity . `` The middle seats will be the last ones filled , '' he says , adding that the center seats could prove popular with families . Airbus declined to reveal which airlines were pushing for increased capacity , but says 11-seat mockups will go on display at the Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg , Germany , from April 8-10 . Morrison says that while few passengers will rush to claim the center seats , there will be no significant increase in discomfort . `` The drawback of any five-seat block is , if you are in the middle , you 've always got two people to climb over , but you 've already got that if you 're in the window seat of a block of three , '' he says . `` Ultimately it is the airline 's decision -- they have to get the balance between adding seat capacity and what the passengers will put up with . `` If you pack in too many it becomes claustrophobic and that could have a detrimental affect on the airline . ''
Airbus says it will unveil new economy class seating configuration that puts 11 seats in a row of its A380 superjumbo . Extra seats will be added by partially raising the floor of the cabin to maximize fuselage width . Analyst says extra seats show economic realities have caught up with luxury plans for the huge aircraft .