Not to have given up my seat on plane

[Rainbowgoldover]

Just wondering ....

I flew home last night from holiday with a friend.

BA flights , flight out was dreadful, cramped seats , allocated at check in so we had last row next to the toilets ...

On the way back we learnt our lesson so paid to book seats, I booked an aisle seat, friend booked a window seat, flight about 70 per cent full.

The person in the middle seat , asked me if I would move so she could have the aisle seat.

I refused and said no I booked aisle and don't want to sit in middle seat. She said but I want to be near my family in the row opposite. I still politely refued to move.

Cue lots of aggro, she finally got the flight attendants to move her accusing me and my friend of talking over her , we absolutely were not, both had headphones on watching netflix.

If you really want to sit somewhere why can't you pay 23.99 and pre reserve a seat, don't make others feel bad for not giving up theirs ?

I completely understand you and your friend booking the seats you wanted. I would not get on a plane if you paid me but I would pay for an aisle if i had to
I don't understand people saying it's weird to leave a gap . The passengers who haven't reserved get this all the time from the airline . What are you all thinking 🧐🤷 it happens all the time sometimes miles apart too . Not as if you have to spend weeks like that . A few hours 🙈, even really long haul you get to see them at the other end FFS.
Totally with you not giving up your seat and she was rude and entitled to start getting narky when you said no, you paid extra for that seat.

Or do as I do. which is to set my phone to remind me to check in on the first day check in opens. Then you usually get seated together and decent seats too. I would only pay for extra leg room.

In January I broke my ankle (open fracture) and had to stay to have it pinned. When I was fit yo fly my insurance company paid for an escort and 3 seats for me to put my leg up during the flight. Before take off a woman sat in my aisle seat! Even when my paramedic escort explained we had paid for 3 seats because I needed 3 seats she still insisted that didn't matter! Eventually before take off she moved 3 rows down, we did need the in flight steward to intervene. The entitled walk among us!

You weren’t unreasonable to refuse to swap, although it would have been a nice thing to do, but you were unreasonable to book in such a way that there was an empty seat between you.

If lots of passengers booked seats in this way then it would make it almost impossible for other groups and families to sit together on a flight.

I think the ticketing systems need to make it impossible to leave empty seats between others on a single booking. Some theatres and similar venues already have this built into their systems.

Why?
Since when has this been a social expectation?
Just don't talk across the middle seater

I’m absolutely fine to be asked…but people have to respect my response. Their lack of organisational skills isn’t my responsibility. I have no moral or legal obligation to move for people who are entitled

I’m BA crew, you are absolutely NBU. You paid for the aisle seat so it was yours. If she wanted seats with her family she should have paid too. I would always try to help out and move people if I can but if someone didn’t want to move (especially if they paid) I would not make them.

Bet you book a seat next time 🤣

The cheeky bitch! I hope BA also reimbursed your money. I'm seriously annoyed on your behalf.

YANBU, but I must admit to being heartily sick of endless stories like this on social media. I’ve been the victim of this too (I booked a window seat, and a hysterical parent wanted me to swap with her and her teenage daughter so the latter could have a (free) window seat). She also spent most of the flight slagging me off and telling anyone who would listen that it was ‘absolutely disgusting’.

I always pay for a seat now. Learned my lesson the hard way a few years ago

i thought all families knew the score by now

I basically think yanbu, but were you travelling with the window seat psgr?

In which case you were clearly disapointed your 'Cunning plan' didn't work, with someone allocated 'Your' middle seat.

What you and your DH do is perfectly reasonable, and you leave 2 seats each side potentially for couples who wish to sit next to each other. Not sure any airline shows the sex of passengers already booked, so we can avoid sitting next to a man!

Ironically I was supposed to be in a window seat, but the cabin crew made me move because two orthodox Jewish men objected to sitting next to me...

Not being unreasonable! It’s not just the paying its the thinking it through and planning in advance that you bothered to do to make sure you were comfortable and she didn’t bother but then expects to be accommodated. We are already booked for Christmas holidays booked front row of economy aisle because that’s what I have found is most comfortable for me. When I’ve gone to the bother to pay and plan this much in advance I don’t see why someone who didn’t bother should take my seat!

Always book an aisle seat and refuse to move if asked. I didchange once for someone who was sat on the front row (plenty of leg room) but that's because it was nearer the toilet (why I book an aisle seat near the front). Some of the flights I've been on cost lest than £30 & still people don't want to add an extra few £sss to sit together and get aggressive/rude/upset if they can't sit next to friend/partner/child/relative etc. If I was cabin crew and folks whingedabout their random allocated seat and wanted to move I would let them but be charging twice what it would have cost when booking. It would stop all this entitled crap.🙄

Curious how the other passenger knew they were travelling together if they really were just watching netflix

Where does it say in OP that the other passengers knew they were friends?

I get your point. But her friend wanted a window one, she wanted an aisle. I remembered once I was flying with my husband and our lap infant and I booked us same. (I did hope nobody will book that middle seat so we would be able to put our 1 year old down, but plane was packed and seat was taken). The guy did ask us if we wanted to sit together, but my husband wanted a window(and he's tall, sitting in the middle doesn't suit him) and I fly aisle for ages and always pay for it as don't want to be squashed in the middle. It was 2hrs flight though and the guy in the middle was very patient when we joggle our baby from one to another. But unfortunately, I am not comfortable in the middle or even window seat. I will never swap, unless like for like- different row, same seat.

Wow, that poor guy must have had the patience of a saint. Did you really think it was OK to refuse to swap seats and then pass a baby back and forth over the top of him!?

YANBU at all. And especially for short(ish) flights (not intercontinental en limited in flight hours) adults should be capable of sitting alone, like maybe 1.2 meters away from their friends/family, quietly minding their own businesses and not making a nuisance of themselves.

@Deepf60 This happened to me - leg injury abroad and flying back with being given three seats.

I was told by the insurance company that it is a "legal" requirement (not the 'law' as in statute but required by insurance and airline as a lawful condition of flight) if you have a full leg injury to have three seats because you can't have anyone else in the row for their safety and yours in the event of an emergency, you might block them in (if you are closer to the aisle and can't walk unaided) or they might block access to your assistance and because you need to elevate your leg due to risk of thrombosis if you can't walk around.

At the time I thought it was all a bit excessive but having read about that air turbulance stuff recently and people without seat belts flying up and hitting their head on the ceiling, I can now see how it's realistically possible for a healthy and mobile person on the end to be injured /killed/knocked out seriously obstructing or preventing access to help for a person with a full length leg injury.

My husband and I always do this if we can. I hate the middle and window - I’m tall and my husband hates the aisle. We don’t talk with each other during flights so if someone has to sit between us, they won’t be disturbed by us. And if they didn’t want a middle seat, they should have paid to have their preferred seat - like we do.

Quite! 2 friends watching Netflix sounds bliss by comparison!

If you don’t talk, have you thought of booking separate rows? The only people who would actually want a middle seat are those who want to sit next to their travelling companion, and, by doing this you would leave that option for one more couple.

If it’s permitted, this is exactly what my husband and I do. Sometimes it’s not so we suck it up but I hate the middle and window and am willing to pay to have the seat I want. I do not talk with my husband over the middle person.
When you book your flights, book your seats - simple!