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.

IMO reclining is fine (as long as meals aren't being served), as long as you are able to recline yourself. I had a flight from Heathrow to San Diego with a woman holding a baby on her lap behind me. When the person in front of me reclined I couldn't. It was incredibly claustrophobic. I didn't say anything to the person in front though. It was just the luck of the draw that I was in that seat.

I am loving the reference to 'meals'. Does anyone actually eat them?

Yes, lots of people eat them :)

Really?

Of course.

I love fright meals!

But they are horrible, and weird. I never eat them, and the smell. I guess it fills ten minutes though.

at 'fright meals'. Sums it up.

Lol ipad fail. Why does my ipad keep changing words. In some places with all the reclining it is fright meals not flight meals....

Your iPad is very wise london.

Soup that is spot on. Well said.

I think it's interesting that most of the militant anti-recliners are talking about short haul. I'm a veteran of long-haul (think a commute between US, UK, and Australia several times a year, plus the usual UK-US short hops). Reclining is normal. You try to get as much rest as you can. It's not rude.

But if you've never done more than 8 hours at a time (I never call that long haul -- it's an easy flight), you probably don't realise that.

It's interesting how rude some of militatnt anti-recliners' posts are. It's why I cough up my own money on a work trip to upgrade to business class when I can afford it.

Lots of meals on flights are nice. The days of all plane food being awful are long gone.

If you want more space and to not be bothered by the seat in front reclining, pay to go up a class. The argument makes just as much sense as suggesting that those who wish to recline pay to go up a class

S[pot on. But I guess we have some quite inexperienced budget airline or package trip travelers complaining about reclining.

I think on a flight when I am worrying about not being able to sleep and the plane plummeting from the sky food isn't really a priority for me.
Tell me about the nice meals.....

The days of awful in flight meals are certainly long gone....

I once had a passenger grab another pax in front around the throat from a recline and whine incident. Never underestimate the determined anti recliner in my book....

Tell me about the lovely in flight meals.....

Reading through this thread it's very plain to see

Non-sleepers on a flight are concerned they'll trap their knee

Passenger in front needs sleep
To help pass time with travelling

But the wakeful resent this option
And seem happy for peace to be unravelling

Like breast versus formula, buggy versus sling

Perhaps best if we all let each other stick to our own preferred thing

So stop fighting when someone in front is surviving a flight

The only way they know how

And just be glad you don't need sleep
yourself

Remember it's only for 'now'.

If only it were that simple Beggars.

Beggars....

Charming ode....

Should be printed on the back of safety card and popped in seat pocket

You have to remember that in flight meals are mas prepared and reheated in cramped conditions on the flight - they are never going to be gourmet and they are never going to look like a restaurant meal. They look better in Business class but they aren't perfect.

Everybody wants bargain flights. What they need to remember is that to get a bargain flight, there need to be cuts in respect of things like space and catering.

Sparkling lovely in flight meals - 1. Chicken in creamy herb sauce with baby carrots and mashed potatoes; cheese & biscuits; pot of mint chocolate ice cream; coffee plus obligatory bread roll / solid butter / salad. 2. Cheese omelette with grilled tomatoes; bread roll; pot of melon/grape/pineapple; blueberry yoghurt; coffee (breakfast). On the other flight we had a beef casserole as the main (the alternative was madras & rice) with similar sides and I slept through breakfast.

That's economy, in business the food is much better and the bread rolls are warm with spreadable butter in its own china dish.

I love "recline and whine"!

Sparklingbrook, have you never been on a 12+ hour flight? You need to eat the food or starve.

Hic. I think it's me. On the ground at a dining table with dinner plates that all sounds ok TBF.

In the sky, in close confinement with everyone eating the same and my angst over it all it just turns my stomach. I just decline it, then get the smells.
I just save myself for something when I get there.

I believe you can buy a toddler their own seat. Then they can sit on your lap for take off, landing and turbulence but in their seat otherwise. Obviously more expensive but a possible solution.

Cabin crew on the thread will correct me if I'm wrong, no doubt!

Eurochick, did you go and sit in the spare seat next to him or send your DH to do so?!