An airline passenger has grumbled about being asked to give up their extra legroom seat they paid a premium for so a mother could sit with her child – others think he should have stood his ground
A disgruntled plane passenger’s nightmare journey has sparked debate around travel ettiquette as people are calling for child-free flights.
When it comes to travelling, usual etiquette generally follows the rules that you give up your seat for those less able than you, such as anyone with a disability, the elderly, pregnant women or those with young children.
However it seems the lines around this common courtesy are more blurred when it comes to airplanes. Premium and preferred seats often have more legroom, allowing you to stretch out and relax more on your journey. They are often near the exits as well, meaning you can disembark quicker and for these reasons a premium is often charged.
One man who had reserved himself a ‘preferred’ seat on his flight was hacked off after he had to move 15 rows back to an economy position so that a woman could sit with her child, who was about 10 years old.
He shared his story on Reddit to ask others if they knew if the airline would give him a refund or air miles as compensation. Admitting he sounded like a “giant baby”, he explained that he wanted the extra room to stretch out his legs but had put a lot of thought into choosing what side of the plane he would sit because he suffered from travel sickness.
“Especially picking the opposite side the sun will be on because I get motion sickness and hate being hot on a plane,” he wrote.
He understood that the mum would want to sit with her child but it still irked him and he believed it was down to the staff to sort out the problem: “Like I get it she needed to sit with her kid but still annoyed that this happens. It seems like gate agents should solve instead of putting passengers in uncomfortable positions,” he said.
Other users of the site were pretty unanimous in their replies, generally agreeing that the mother and child should have been asked to sit in the economy rows: “They should have moved them both to the sets 15 rows back and upgraded the person in the back of the plane. Asking somebody to down grade to benefit somebody else is not cool,” wrote one.
Another agreed: “Exactly this!” they stated. “It’s ALWAYS them asking the person to downgrade, so they can sit together, it’s never ‘hey let’s ask the person 15 rows back to swap to this better seat, so we can sit together’.”
A third, who was a parent themselves, backed them and said the upgrade wasn’t on: “Agreed. As someone who routinely travels with my kids (both under 5), I would never expect to be moved to the preferred seat if we were separated (this rarely happens though because I usually book well in advance and minimally pay for main cabin so we can select seats together),” they said.
A fourth thought the mother should have had to sit separately because she didn’t think ahead. “She can sit further up front of her kid so that child won’t leave plane without passing her,” they wrote.
Others thought the original poster should have stood his ground and refused to move: “OP didn’t have to move. It’s on the OP,” one stated.
A second said: “If you give up your seat they owe you nothing. If you are forced to move due to a threat of deplaning, then you are entitled a refund of the difference at minimum.” Another backed them: “Agreed. Have a spine or sit in back of the plane with the people who paid 1/2 of the ticket price,” they posted.
Do you think the man should have given up his premium seat for the mum? Let us know in the comments below.
