A report on a long distance flight from the doctors of Vienna stated that only 10% in economy class could adopt the recommended brace position on the plane’s safety tips in case of emergency, and they were the smallest of the group. And 30% of their fellow passengers traveling in first class could adopt the position, which is internationally recognized as improving the chances of survival in the event of a crash. The authors of the report are now calling for greater space between seat rows to increase safety.

A spokesman for British Airways (BA), which is responsible for safety on all British planes, opposed the idea that small seating was a threat（威胁） to passengers. “We don’t think it is a safety matter,” he said, “We have high safety standards and all UK aircraft meet them.” In the past month, both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic introduced sleeper seats, stressing the outstanding comfort in the front of the planes. But that space gained is space lost in economy.

Until recently, economy class was at least “bearable”—with an 86-centimeter seat. Scheduled Airlines such as BA and KLM gave passengers enough leg room and comfortable seats. But the arrival of new, weight-saving seats caused economy class to take a turn for the worse. Extra rows have been put into the plane, with the result that the average seat now is 79 centimetres. Singapore Airlines has become the latest carrier to narrow down its seats. It announced free wine for economy passengers last September, but at the same time reduced leg room by 8 centimetres.

Economy class on Scheduled Airlines is now often little better than economy on Qatar Airways. Some Qatar Airways even offer the chance to upgrade—at a price—to seats which, at 89-91 centimetres, are roomier than those of most Scheduled Airlines.

【1】What can we learn from the passage?

A. Scheduled Airlines produced new comfortable seats for economy class.

B. Doctors from Vienna said less space between seats could cause danger.

C. Spokesman for BA declared that narrow seat space was a threat.

D. Qatar Airways offered larger seats with no more charge.

【2】What might be the author’s attitude towards reducing the space of economy seats?

A. Neutral.B. Sceptical.C. Supportive.D. Disapproving.

【3】 Where does the passage most probably come from?

A. A biography.B. A book review.

C. A magazine. D. A realistic novel.

【答案】

【1】B

【2】D

【3】C

【解析】

文章主要介绍了目前主要航空公司的飞机经济舱越来越狭小，这会给乘客的安全带来危险。

【1】B考查判断推理题。根据选项A中的关键词Scheduled Airlines找到文章的对应段落最后一段的第一句话的关键词little better排除A；根据选项C中的关键词Spokesman for BA找到文章的对应段落第三段的第一句话的关键词opposed排除C；根据选项D中的关键词Qatar Airways找到文章的对应段落最后一段的第二句话的关键词at a price排除D；根据选项B中的关键词Doctors from Vienna找到文章的对应段落第二段的第一句话的关键词safety，in case of emergency判断选B。

【2】D考查判断推理题。neutral中立的；sceptical怀疑的；supportive支持的；disapproving不支持的。根据题干关键词the author’s attitude找到文章的第一段，根据第一段的作者语气可推断作者对狭小的经济舱空间是不支持的。故选D。

【3】C考查细节辨认题。a biography传记；a book review书评；a magazine杂志；a realistic novel真实小说。通读全文，并根据全文介绍的是飞机经济舱越来越狭小的空间带来的危害，可知很有可能节选自一本关于生活的杂志文章中。故选C。