(CNN) — There are some secret areas on widebody aircraft, where the pilots and cabin crew go to rest during long flights. Passengers can’t access them under any circumstance and they’re well hidden from view.
They’re called Crew Rest Compartments and their location on the plane varies.
On newer aircraft, such as the Boeing 787 or the Airbus A350, they are located above the main cabin, in the upper fuselage. But on older aircraft, they can also be in the cargo hold or simply in the main cabin.
They come in pairs: one for the pilots, which usually sits above the cockpit and often includes two bunks and a recliner seat, and another for the cabin crew, usually containing six bunks or more and placed above the aft galley, the section at the back of the plane where food and drinks are prepared and stored.
Like a capsule hotel
Airlines have a say in the configuration of the crew rest areas when they purchase a plane, but the main parameters are set by regulators such as the Federal Aviation Administration. It mandates, for example, that the crew rest areas should be “in a location where intrusive noise, odors and vibration have minimum effect on sleep,” and that they must be temperature-controlled and allow the crew to adjust lighting.
The bunks (“or other surface that allows for a flat sleeping position”) have to be 78 by 30 inches (198 by 76 centimeters) in size — tall people beware — and have at least 35 cubic feet, or one cubic meter, of space around them. There also has to be a communal area for changing, entering and exiting that provides at least 65 cubic feet of space.
The crew rest area on a Boeing 777 passenger jet.
Boeing
The end result is somewhat similar to a Japanese capsule hotel: a windowless, cramped, but cozy sleeping space, with power outlets and a light — as well as all of the required safety equipment such as oxygen masks, seat belt lights and an intercom, among others.
“They can be quite comfortable,” says Susannah Carr, a flight attendant with United Airlines who works on Boeing aircraft including the 787, 777 and 767.
“They have a padded mattress, an air vent to keep the air circulating and temperature controls so you can keep it cooler or warmer, and we’re…
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