to wonder why person in front on plane always puts their fucking seat back the minute we take off

[madmn52]

Im not talking long haul or night flights. Im talking day flights of a few hours duration. Theres precious enough leg room and the airlines cram us in like sardines - and I have 32ins legs meaning I practically get knee-capped by the seat in front as it is. But thats not bad enough - oh no - I get the only person on the plane - and I know this cos Ive looked round and checked !! who absolutely has to put their seat back the minute we take off. So now I've got cramp, I'm starting to lose all feeling in my legs - I cant reach down to get some light entertainment or pain relief !! out of my bag without cricking my neck - the inflight movie is pointing towards my pelvic area because of the angle of the seat in front and to cap it all Ive got some fucking complete ignorant arsehole strangers head in my lap for the entire flight.

It is also one of my pet hates as have 36" legs.
Flew Ryanair for the first time last week and not only did the seats not recline,there were no annoying elasticated pockets crammed with stuff on the back of the seat in front.
Everything else about them was pretty rubbish but for a 2hr flight with DD,for me,it was refreshingly pleasant.

whoosh - any advance on 36" anyone - am getting a complex now - I felt really tall when I started this post with my 32" pins

Anyone tried this - Put your legs up on top of their headrest - feet resting on top of their head- when they turn round and say something just say -'well you started it'

Herb-when physically possible and financially feasible,I do book extra legroom.However,this is not available on all flights and on many are only available at emergency exits.As a single parent who is always travelling with my 5yr old DD,we are not allowed to occupy these seats.

The airlines should make all the seats so they don't recline. When we flew to miami we were in the back row which didn't recline and the person in front reclined then fell asleep. DH is 6'2 and couldn't sit in his seat and the air hostess refused to do anything about it.

herbie tea- I think we ve all established that asking politely doesnt always work and sounds like you wouldnt put yours up anyway because of your problems - if you called the stewardess I would ask her to tell you to stop infringing on what little space I have and causing me physical discomfort. I have sympathy for anyone with back problems etc and I have never kicked the back of someones seat - only ever pushed my knees against the back to prevent them squashing me any further. With the greatest respect if you have back and pelvic problems then that is your problem and it is grossly unfair to think this gives you the right to compromise the comfort of the person behind

well said madman52

I agree with pinkyme. The seats recline so it is entirely reasonable to use it in this way, other than when landing taking off, meal times, or when not in seat.

That said, I usually fly long haul, where everyone seems to recline their seat to get some sleep.

Either way, it's incredibly rude and childish to kick the back of the seat in front of you. I don't mean you here OP as you never suggested doing this. Be grown up and politely ask the passenger in front to put their seat up if it's really inconveniencing you.

YANBU to not like people reclining their seats, but YABU for expecting people not to

I was on a flight once when the person behind me put her seat back then put her feet up on the back of my chair. She refused to put her feet down. The person in front then put their seat back. Spent the the flight trying to lean forward and pull my legs back at the same time. I fell over when I tried to get up after landing. lucky there wasn't much room to fall far

xstitch - dont know if Im getting giddy cos its way past my bedtime but that had me howling - that is so funny. I often wonder what the airlines policies are with regard to their stewardesses cos its obviously a common issue - I think they're told to ignore it as several posts have commented they wont do anything which is what Ive found unless you re really assertive - demand an emergency landing - while you get feeling back in your legs etc etc!!

DP is 6' 4" and also has back problems, so flying is a bit of a nightmare for him. We book extra leg room seats when we can, but this is not always possible, e.g. with a late booking. If someone in front reclines their seat a long way back, he is trapped. Even when he politely points out his predicament to the person in front, he sometimes gets - errm - impolite replies (even from people reclining seats during mealtimes). I'm talking shorthaul flights here, btw.

On one memorably cramped journey (4 and half hours), the man in front of DP was very tall indeed (6'7"?). He didn't recline his seat, but the (not very tall) woman in front of him did. The man politely asked her a few times if she would mind not doing so. She refused, and indeed on about the fourth time he asked (always politely) she just told the man to fuck off . (The woman was not drunk, was just nasty.) Man asked the stewardess to help; she asked the woman to be considerate; got similar response. Stewardess moved man and his partner to first class.

When we got off the plane and came through Customs, the only person having her suitcase rifled by staff was this same woman. I've often wondered if this was a) coincidence; b) karma; c) a result of stewardess phoning ahead to describe this horrible woman and suggest they give her the hassle that she obviously deserved.

tbh, i don't think those seats recline back so far that it makes a huge amount of difference - the angle they go at means that the recline is above where your knees are, but it does stop you leaning forwards to get things from under their seat. when i fly at night, the recline seems so little that i haven't a hope of sleeping anyway, unless i learn to sleep upright.

sadly, if you fly 'cattle class' you know it's going to be grim.

The seats are designed to be reclined. If you don't like that, complain to the airline - don't blame the person using the seat as it was intended.

As for kicking the back of the seat and pushing against it

I'm with Pinkyme and Threeinthebed. I can't believe so many people think that the person in front of you doesn't have the right to use the seat that they paid for, as it's intended to be used! Yes it is uncomfortable to be the person behind, but that's the airline's fault, not the other passenger's. I would hope that if you asked a flight attendant to tell another passenger that he or she must sit upright because you say so, the flight attendant would politely refuse and would remind you that if you want more room, your seat reclines too.

cross posted, chippingin! great minds...

I am really surprised by some comments suggesting it's ok to recline your seat without checking on the possible discomfort of the person behind you. Though - please be clear - I am not talking about a slight recline; rather, I am talking about someone who reclines their seat as far as it will go. I am also talking about shorthaul flights. And on some airlines, this really does mean that "those seats recline back so far that it makes a huge amount of difference". I have seen people (not just my tall DP) uncomfortably scrunched up because of this, and also unable to bring down their food/drink tray because of this.

I agree that it's the airine's fault for cramming in as many seats as possible.

But many of us fly 'cattle class' because we can't afford to do otherwise.

"airline's fault", obviously

PrincessFlorimonde - I fail to see why I need to check before I do something the seat is designed to do? The person in front of me is entitled to recline their seat, even though it means I have no/less access to my footwell and my tray wont fold down - yes, I'd rather they didn't recline the seat, but it would never occur to me to ask them to put it up - they are entitled to recline it 'all the way' if they so wish.

I don't understand the sense of entitlement on this thread - what makes people feel that their desire to have the seat in front upright (to the point of kicking the seat ) is more important than the person in front doing what the seat is designed to do?

I'm with chippingin. If seats are designed to be reclined. If you're not prepared to fly with the seat in front of you reclined then don't fly or stump up the extra for business. Or book a seat for your infant if that's causing the problem. That is your choice. Plane travel is very rarely a necessity!

If I'm planning on sleeping (which I often am even on relatively short flights) I will recline my seat for the entire journey. Sorry, in my opinion that's life.

If you asked me politely on a short haul I wouldn't recline my seat (I've had this happen) but I wouldn't be particularly impressed. That said I would never complain about someone reclining the seat in front of me. And I have been in the non-reclining back row on long-haul and oh well bad luck for me.

That said I would normally make my seat upright for meals. Have just realised I forgot on a recent flight and am a bit mortified.

Also, madmn - how is herbie having back problems that make it uncomfortable not to recline her seat any different from you having long legs that makes it uncomfortable if the seat is reclined???

Interesting thread - I always feel terribly guilty about reclining my seat and rarely do so unless the person in fron of me has fully reclined their seat thus ensuring I have no space. I always assumed that was a wierd attitude to have so it is refreshing to learn their are so many considerate people out there.

chippingin the sense of entitlement works both ways though doesn't it? Everyone knows that if you recline your seat it makes for an uncomfortable journey for the person behind. So I am suprised how many people think it is ok to inflict that discomfort on another just beacause the system is designed so.

It's the same in every situation on Mumsnet, only a minority will:

A) actually give someone the opportunity to know there's a problem,be considerate and change their behaviour.

B) involve the right people to sort it out (airline staff)

The rest of you must go looking for situations where you can display your PA tendencies to the full. Why not try and be a little bit more assertive? Your life will be better, I promise you!

I've only ever flown long haul and so I do recline my seat all the way and without asking the person behind.

If the person behind me is uncomfortable then they need to point it out to me. I'm not going to know unless they say something and am jut going to think that they are incosiderate bastards for kicking the back of my seat in protest.

I am more than happy to put my seat back up if asked politely and the person is clearly uncomfortable.

Sleeping on a plane in "cattle class" is uncomfortable regardless of whether the seat is reclined or not so sitting the seat up for the comfort of the person behind is no big deal really is it!

The only time I may refuse to have seat upright is on an overnight flight.

I guess the solution is, if you want more room then you have to pay for it. If you can't afford it then either don't fly until you can or stop complaining!