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.

Sarf it sounds reasonable to say that a company should pay for their employees to fly business if they have to go straight to a meeting or whatever but the costs would be astronomical for a lot of organisations. Whether they fly business or economy they have paid for their seats and can recline them if they want. I have to say it doesn't bother me at all. They only thing that bothers me is badly behaved kids.

Ywnbu.

I thought that some airlines make you pay more for the bulk head or emergency exit seats so the passengers in those seats may well have paid for their extra 'space'

Some of the worse onboard incidents I've seen have begun as a simple seat recline situation....

I'm an academic. Universities din't pay for business class for academics just senior admin, PVCs, etc and I bet the VC travels First

Omg sparkling my dh came home on a long haul flight yesterday and said he woke up during the flight from a nightmare that the airplane was plummeting from the sky! He said his heart was pounding.

OMG lem that's terrifying. I often have the dream but in bed at home thankfully.

work is VERY unreasonable to fly you in cattle and expect you to work the next morning, though

As Pirate says, if you work in a university, this is normal. And you don't get time off in lieu for travelling, nor any sort of per diem usually.

I always feel sorry for Japanese academic colleagues. Their institutions don't even let them have an extra day of recovery, so they walk into meetings off long haul flights with a ten hour time difference. I don't see how tgey're expected to function!

Really soontobesix? I was sat in a medical assitance seat because I am disabled. My disability affects my back and pelvis severely, I needed to recline my seat otherwise I would have been in a lot more agony than I was. I didn't recline through the meals or drinks, so I disagree that I was being selfish.

I think it is not unreasonable to recline at night but during the day?!?! And into someone with a child on their lap?!?! Bring it on- I would rise to the challenge of teaching my toddler how to play the drums on their seat and put sticky fingers in their hair!

I don't understand how many people are saying they travel with infants on their laps and have people sitting in front of them. I have three dcs and travelled with all of them on airplanes. We were always allocated the front row. I wouldn't have dreamt of flying on an airline which wouldn't give me the front row.

What if there were lots of people with children on the plane? Everyone couldn't sit in the front row.

I think this is a mumsnet thing. I have never thought twice about reclining seats on a plane, even when I've had a toddler on my knee.

I seem to recall not being prioritised for bulkhead seats once DS was over 12 months. It was fine, even long haul, even with him on my knee.

It's the toddler on the person behind you's knee that you need to think about lancaster.

economy long haul is normal now for most organisations. I used to always fly business, now always economy. Same for many other perks that have fallen by over the years. Life was much better for perks 15 years ago.

Worst was travelling to NZ, arriving to a hotel at 5am, presenting all day from 9am. V poorly...

YANBU on a night flight as long as the cabin lights were dimmed at the time and you put it up for meal service (you said you did).

I think it's a MN thing too. Also, with how many of you non-recliners would your first reaction be to be loudly RUDE to the person who'd just reclined in front of you? My money is on you asking them nicely whether they would mind not reclining, or not saying anything and suffering in silence unless it was during a meal when everyone knows you're not suppised to recline.

Who will own up to their FIRST reaction being loud and hostile?

That was my point. Never had major issue with the person in front of me reclining, even with a toddler on my knee.

There should be a 'reclining sleepers' section at the back somewhere.

Some people can't sit upright for 4, 6, or 9 hours. It's not because they are being difficult or selfish it is because it is the only way they can travel.

FYI: still think the woman was totally out of line.

If one takes off during UK daylight hours there is NO need to recline. You'd usually be awake. Why be a selfish twunt?

Oh right lancaster, sounds like you are very accepting of having zero space in that case.

I always recline on long haul flights. But I always recline slowly and always put my seat back up for meals.

Everyone reclines - it's a domino effect that starts the minute the seatbelt sign goes off.

i fly a lot, and only ever had 1 person get shitty and he was an older gent who insisted on holding his hand against the back of seat so I thought it might not recline. The kind gent across the aisle from me kindly told me what twatface was up to.

So I got the stewardess and ooh suddenly my seat appeared to work.

But everyone reclines - so it's a domino affect. Why should I be uncomfortable so the person behind me is comfortable??? If everyone reclines,everyone has the same space surely???

I accept it is part of flying.