To recline my seat on a long haul flight?

[PiratePanda]

Just thought I'd check I was not BU.

Long haul flight in economy, 9 hours, overnight. I had my seat up for take off and landing and for meals but for the rest of the flight I wanted and needed to sleep (travelling for work) so reclined my seat.

The woman sitting behind me made an enormous fuss about me reclining my seat at all, complaining rudely to me when I reclined it, tutting and sighing loudly whenever she got up to go to the loo, kneeing me in the back apparently with intent, and hitting me quite hard and insistently on the head and shaking the chair to make me wake up in the morning well before the breakfast came round.

IWNBU was I? You are entitled to recline your seat except for take off and landing and meals, no? Otherwise why provide a recline button?

God she was rude.

MrsCampbellBlack, why should i not be able to recline just because the person behind me has chosen to have a baby on their lap?

of course you recline the seat, except for take-off, landing and meals.

it is even more uncomfortable otherwise.

those too stupid to realise that long-haul economy is not spacious or comfortable should stay at home.

This thread has made me a little apprehensive about the flight I'll be taking in May. It's a daytime flight to Vancouver, and takes off at 10 am landing at 11.30 am (local time) I hope that because it's not a night flight people won't be reclining. I'm like Sparkling Brook and have never been able to sleep on a plane. Does anyone know what Air Canada are like to fly with?

Oh I don't know 850pro - just because of being a basically polite and courteous person perhaps?

But I thought that on short flights the recline option was being removed to make things easier for everyone.

even if you don't want to sleep, why can't you read or listen to music with your own seat reclined? I would guess a large majority of people find sitting several hours in a reclined seat more comfortable than bolt upright.

So if you cant sleep then no one should be able to?

Like a pp l fly [proper] long haul regularly between Australia and UK and not having a recline ability for the seats would be idiotic.

It's just about having manners and following the rules. Up right seats for take off and meals. Recline after that if you want. If the person in front has reclined, if you do too then you get your space back.

Night flight long haul absolutely fine.

I recliend my seat and the person behind me made me feel like a twat for doing so - same 8 hour long haul flight.

She woke me up twice to get out of her seat. I was fuming. She made such a fuss, it wasnt just me she disturbed. In fact the were a very unsettled family.

I would never assume being able to sleep on such a flight again (if we ever go away that far again) as i found it quite dangerous to drive. We had to stop several times on the way back home. I would never assume I would be ok to drive after such 'night time' flight again.

I find these threads unbelievable.

I fly regularly to Australia and everybody reclines during sleep times. Plenty of people will recline as soon as the first dinner service is over because they want to sleep. Every seat reclines including the back. Whilst you have less room if you are not reclined if the one in front is, it is still not too bad should you wish to be upright. On an A380 the seat in front not being reclined does not automatically give you a whole lot more leg space, if any - the seats seem to recline mainly from the middle upwards in terms of the angle.

There is no way I'd not recline nor expect anyone else not to when you are on a plane for 27 hours. And everyone does. Including the "whingeing poms" as they are affectionately known (fuck knows why)

I have never flown to Australia and can't see me doing so any time soon. That is way too long in the air for me, reclining/non reclining aside.

OP - of course you weren't being unreasonable.

Quite disappointed that you weren't doing something that might have attracted the 'YABU' response - eg reclining during take off or meal times.

YANBU at all - I really hate seat-kickers!

there are so many ways to be unreasonable when flying when you think about it. Luggage carousel anyone?

Gruntfuttock, Air Canada were really nice last time I flew with them (London - Montreal) and actually had decent legroom in economy, even if the people in front of me had reclined it wouldn't have made much difference.

I just never assume I'm going to be able to sleep on a night flight in economy - that I'll at best have a bit of a doze. Only time I've slept properly on planes have been a)when I've been so completely exhausted I'd probaby have fallen asleep anywhere and b)tasty tasty BA business class.

Do agree that some planes/seats seem to restrict the space of the person behind a lot more than others. Whatever BA were using for flights to/from South Africa in the last ten years was particularly squash-tastic.

I find the easiest way to counter jet lag is if you don't sleep on the plane.

I suspect you've never been to Australia or New Zealand?

Or done the 14 hours non-stop Sydney-LAX?

We flew on a daytime flight to Calgary last summer -taking off around lunchtime from LHR. There was a dinner type meal, then all the lights were dimmed and an expectation of reclining/sleeping took over. There were a few who stayed awake, and a small minority upright. But the expectation of the crew was that all would sleep. (It was a very rare business class seat for us, but we knew people in economy so did call back to see them during the rest time - as DD was awake and needed occupying, and I wasn't sleeping yet). So I actually saw the whole plane, and reckon over 80% were reclined, and about 2/3 asleep, about an hour after dinner finished. (We ourselves did sleep shortly after that, once the fidgets were gone and I could relax knowing someone else was asleep!).

I haven't read the whole thread but has anyone mentioned the devices you can buy on the internet which fit on the tray and prevent the person in front from reclining?

I am seriously thinking of ordering one. We are off to the Caribbean at the end of next week.

My view is that it is totally selfish to recline the seat and deprive the person behind of their precious space.

I wish the blasted reclining seat function had never been invented.

My view is that it is totally selfish to recline the seat and deprive the person behind of their precious space.

And yet you don't think that insisting they don't recline is equally selfish and that deliberately blocking their ability to do so is not at all twattish? Some saying about a pot and a kettle springs to mind

Go ahead and buy the Twatgadget. I wonder whether the cabin crew will let you leave it in place.

If you want to preserve your personal space, pay to upgrade or shut up and deal with it in a civilised manner.

Weird, I don't think I've ever been on a daytime flight where everyone was expected to go to sleep/recline (including 12 hours to Tokyo) - I mean, if it's 2 in the afternoon my time I'm not going to suddenly go to sleep just because I'm on a plane.

Are those little clips allowed?

Susannah, I expect cabin crew would ask you to remove that if they were called.

MrsCampbellBlack, being polite and courteous would involve the parents of said child booking a seat for the child and not expecting other people to have a worse journey just for them?

Thanks leedy

How do you get up from your seat without using the seat in front if that person has reclined it?