In this situation would you offer to switch seats on a flight?

[Flightquandry]

Me and my husband took a flight today that was 10 hours long.

The cabin formation was
2 seats together / aisle / 3 seats together / aisle / 2 seats together.

Unfortunately, by the time we booked we couldn’t sit together. My DH was in a set of 2 seats with another woman and I was on the end of a row of three.

As soon as we took our seats the woman next to my DH went into full on chatty mode. When they were talking he mentioned he was travelling with his wife and she questioned why we weren’t seated together. He explained that we’d only been able to book what was available. She shrugged this off and then chatted to him incessantly for about 2 hours. I was seated across and behind so could see this and it stung (my problem entirely!)

I fully appreciate that she was in the seat that she booked! But in all honesty in her shoes I would have offered to swap seats with me. All seats were of the same value monetary wise. She even waved at me and then poured herself more drinks and chatted to my husband.

what would you do in her shoes? I would have offered to swap? Weirdly as well as we left the plane she followed by husband off and didn’t let me get in behind him to exit.

kindly, get over it. You do not own him.

In his shoes I'd have put in earphones and closed my eyes to get her to shut up.

But now you know that you have a bit of a jealous streak: book earlier so you can sit together.

I’d be keeping my window seat on a 10-hr flight, sorry OP. I like to lean against the wall to sleep.

Swap a window seat for a middle aisle seat? No way.
Book your tickets earlier if this is a big issue.

In this instance I don't think anybody has done anything wrong!

The OP and her husband sat in their allocated seats, he struck up conversation with the woman next to her, she didn't want to give up her allocated seat that she'd paid for.

OP is unhappy her husband was talking to another woman. End of story.

Yes - a few of us quickly deduced the ‘other woman’ had a window seat.

You sound entitled and insecure

Grow up.

She'd be better spending the money on therapy.

No if your husband wants to sit next to you he asks her to swap. Or the person sitting next to you. It's not her duty to offer.

Why didn't you ask the one next to you if they could swap with him?

This. Or possibly invest in a taser or some blinkers like a caged animal.

Assuming that your DH was in the aisle seat and OW was by the window, why didn’t he wait until you had made your way towards him and let you go in front of him? That would have been the chivalrous thing to do. If their seating was the opposite way, he could still have given you priority.

This OW was clearly taking delight in the fact that you and DH were seated separately, she had the upper hand and was playing it for all it was worth.

Let this go OP, unless they swapped numbers discretely what is there to worry about but maybe give DH a lesson in how a gentleman behaves.

Well, this is the biggest work of fiction I've seen on MN yet!

A female passenger unintentionally sat next to someone else's husband not out of choice is now an "other woman?!" and "taking delight" in the married couple not being sat together simply because she dared talk to the man? I really have heard it all on here now! 😂

2 hours chatting out of 10 hours isn't much. I can do better!

If you’d had a window seat two rows apart then yes, I’d switch. However your middle of the plane aisle seat does not equate to her window seat seat

……..and your point is????

She probably wasn't annoying. The OP said her husband was chatting away so presumably he was happy to talk to this woman.

Me and DH don't always pay for seats next to each other on a plane (depends how long the flight is) and yes, shock horror, sometimes we make conversation with a stranger OF THE OPPOSITE SEX who is sitting next to us 😱

To date neither of us have had an affair with our plane companions but I will make sure I glare at him from a distance keep an eye on things in future just in case!

I'm amazed your DH tolerated chatting to this unknown woman for 10 hours tbh!

I would have exchanged pleasantries then plugged in to a movie ...

This OW was clearly taking delight in the fact that you and DH were seated separately, she had the upper hand and was playing it for all it was worth.

What the actual fuck?!?!?! 😂

No. Other people’s poor planning isn’t my problem

No, I don’t think they actually got around to a fuck! 🤣🤣🤣

Maybe they got on well?! It is completely possible to meet a stranger and have stuff in common you know!

All of this "why didn't he just put his headphones in".. If you are having a nice conversation with someone then I would take that any day over being on my phone / listening to music for the sake of it.

And not everyone takes headphones on a flight / long journey!

Yes — but OP made it clear that by the time they booked, there were no seats together. In that situation I wouldn’t (of course) expect someone to swap, but equally, I’d happily swap to enable a couple to sit together — especially if it meant I got an aisle seat! (TBF, though, I’m not sure I’d swap if I felt I’d be getting a much worse seat…)

I think you're being silly about the order in which you all got off the plane.
But if I were her I'd offer to let a couple/two friends sit together.

I dont get your reasoning about “being happy to chat to another woman’s husband”.

What does that mean?

Your DH is your husband but he is also a human being. Do you expect chatty people to segregate / discriminate in who they chat to based on marital status? I think chatty people are just chatty with anyone.

I am not a chatty person at all btw - especially on a 10 hour flight!

I don’t get why you have marked this woman down as though she has done something wrong.

She was in her booked and allocated seat. She was chatty, it seemed your husband was happy to chat back.

Why on earth do you think she should have offered you her seat - especially if your DH didn't even ask her to consider a swap?

See I think this is click bait, who pays for seats if you’ve booked last minute and can’t sit together. You just sit where you’ve been assigned and save yourself £200.