AIBU to book these seats on a flight?

[Deekaytwo]

We've got row 7A&C seats booked on our upcoming 4hr flight, the middle seat is blocked off and we always use it to put our DS(nearly 2) in after take-off and before landing.

We often get the first row and it really makes a massive difference when travelling with DS: the extra space at the bulkhead is invaluable for him, and to keep him contained to not bother other passengers.

We didn't manage to book early enough this time, however according to the seat map 1C&F are empty (usually just blocked for the comfort of the Gold member seated in the other seat), these usually open up just before the flight.

So: am I being unreasonable to move us to the empty seats in the front row and hope/expect 1A or 1D to move so that we can sit together? They'll still have their aisle/window and won't have to sit next to a baby, so I think it's win-win..

Not to drip feed, I'm also 5 months pregnant, so anything to make things more comfortable really.

YABU: Stay in you're current seats and let the fancy Gold members keep the empty seat next to them!

YANBU: It doesn't make any difference to them and will make your journey more comfortable (and probably everyone elses as DS will have more room to be contained)

But that's just not true. She isn't getting anything she isn't paying for. Nor is anyone else losing anything. They'd still have a window seat (if that's what they had) on the same front row with the same legroom. The middle seat is blocked out in Club to give the passengers at either side more room but if it's two parents wanting to put a child there what's the big deal? She wouldn't do that if it was a random person sitting next to her.

Give me one good reason why one window seat on row 1 is better than the other window seat and I'll say I'm wrong.

They both have the same legroom! It's the same row!

I would happily swap from one aisle seat to another in the same row. Why wouldn’t I? I really don’t understand the ire on this. Same row, same leg room, I cannot see an issue.

It would barely be an minor inconvenience to do as the OP is proposing, and chuntering about “I booked and paid for THIS seat” marks you out as an absolute weirdo - it’s not like moving from a window to a middle seat in economy. In OPs example I am getting exactly the same seat, in the same row, with the same leg room, with the same service and amenities, but on the right hand side of the plane, not the left (or vice versa). It’s a complete non issue unless you have some niche phobia of not wanting to be on the left or right hand side of the plane, and I would judge massively anyone kicking off and refusing to move if I saw it playing out in real time on the plane.

The only way to not be unreasonable here is to keep your mouth totally shut and do not ask any other passenger to move. You can arrive on the plane and brightly say to DH "that's your seat there, me and DC are over here". And sit down and get yourself sorted for a flight separated a little.

IF either of the people next to you didn't have any reason to book the specific seats they are in, they will offer to swap as soon as they see there's a young family separated.

We travelled recently as a group of 3 sat in seats across the aisle from eachother and one on the aisle seat behind because all 3 of us needed an aisle seat. We had numerous kind offers to swap from people who assumed we would want to be together, which we politely declined. People are generally kind if they can be.

What's unreasonable is asking. Whether they say yes or say no you will upset their journey if you instigate their decision by asking. They don't need to be asked, they will be perfectly capable of seeing that things would be easier for you if you were sat together. They will offer if it genuinely doesn't matter to them where they sit but for a lot of people it matters hugely. DH specifically needs an aisle seat on the left of the plane as his right knee is dodgy and he needs to be able to stretch his right leg out into the aisle periodically during the flight. If asked to move he would say no but would be upset and stressed by being asked.

@WestEndWindy Give me one good reason why one window seat on row 1 is better than the other window seat and I'll say I'm wrong.

Only one of my eyes works well. I always sit on the right hand side in cinemas, theatres etc because if I sit on the left I have to crane my head to a really awkward angle to see what's happening in the middle. I don't like window seats for other reasons but if I did choose a window seat it would make a huge difference whether I could see in that direction or not.

That is a good reason and I can understand why you would not want to move though quite specific. I was really meaning if someone could tell me why one side of the aisle is better than the other.

On almost every flight I’ve been on in the last 5 years people have nabbed other peoples seats, asked people to enter into complicated swapping arrangements, tried to convince people that seat A is just as good as seat B but they themselves must sit in seat B because of reasons and I’ll tell you something for nothing - people are much less likely to swap than they were a few years ago. People want to be able to book their seat and sit in it and not have some woman going “oh but this other seat is just the same” and “but my little one needs to go there even though I’ve not bought a ticket”. People are done with it. I was on a 50 min flight between 2 European cities last year and someone instigated a multi row multi passenger swap around so she could sit with her ds. It involved my ds moving away from his 12 yo brother (not next to each other but in the same row) only to find out that the woman’s ds was a fully grown man. Who asks kids to move away from each other so a 20+ bloke can sit with his mum on a 50minute flight? Wankers, that’s who. People don’t care if one side of the aisle is better or worse than the other. They are just sick of the faff of it all and the entitlement and the awkwardness.

I had this on my last flight, I'd booked two aisle seats opposite each other, specifically because I need an aisle seat (disability) and DD didn't want to be in the middle seat squashed next to a stranger in the window seat.

This left two pairs of seats. Two couples travelling together arrived and the man who was first, immediately tried to get dd to move to the window seat, maybe assuming she was travelling alone, announcing to her, I think this must be your seat and gesturing to the window seat, I informed him nicely that dd was in her own seat.

The two women arrived and the first was asked which seat she wanted, at which she announced she wanted the aisle (I'd stood up at this point to let them in, the man informed her that their seats were the middle and window and she looked horrified. They knew very well which were their seats but had assumed the aisle seat passengers would swap, these were extra leg room seats. You could have cut the air with a knife. The two women who wanted to sit next to their partners but also next to each other proceeded to talk over us loudly and start passing things between them.

A flight attendant arrived and asked me and dd if we would mind moving to an empty row of three seats on the wing for take off and said we were welcome to stay in them. They were better seats with no atmosphere.

I choose a left hand aisle seat so I can stretch my (dodgy) right knee out.
Stay in your (already very good) seats.

The OP currently has 7A & 7C reserved. Staying in these seats means they can be sure that they get the three seats for the three of them, and if there is a tray blocking the middle seat the crew will most likely remove it. And a bag with some emergency essentials for the infant can be kept under the seat in front. So if they keep currently reserved 7A & 7C they should have a pretty comfortable flight.

If they play the gamble and select 1C & 1F and one of the occupants of 1A or 1D do not want to move for whatever reason (I'm not going to debate the courtesy of that here just saying they might not move) then the OP has to keep the infant on their lap instead of having the middle seat for them. They won't have any of their hand luggage to hand because it will be in the overhead locker due to being a bulkhead row (and often the bins above tow 1 have cabin crew luggage in). Then it's a pain if you need your travel companion to pass you anything. So if the gamble that one of the other row 1 passengers is willing to move doesn't pay off you would have a much more uncomfortable flight than remaining in the already reserved seats. It's a gamble for just a tiny bit more space that will potentially impact other passengers.

I only gave you one reason because you claimed you would admit you are wrong if only one reason was given. I can think of a dozen more reasons that other people might legitimately have, any of which could apply. As well as a dozen reasons why people might be distressed by being asked. It's lovely that you honestly don't care where you sit on a plane and I am sure you are one of the kind people who proactively volunteer to swap when you see a family split up, but you are very unreasonable to therefore assume that everyone else has as few troubles and can be assumed to be just as flexible.

I book my flights on the basis that it works for my family and we are together. If one flight doesn't have those seats, i check other flights until i get the configuration i need.

Now imagine you walk on the plane and ask if i will move.

My response would be piss off.

I think people are less likely to move, even just directly across the aisle, due to a rise in what is seen as CFs. Just a blanket no.

@OpusGiemuJavlo no, I'm not especially kind but I'm definitely less aggy than you.

I am reading it that seats 1A (window) and 1D (aisle) are not available but seats 1C (aisle) and 1F (window are available.

So the op is asking if booking a window on one side of the aisle and an aisle on the other works. Because they can offer either the window or the aisle already booked to swop sides of the plane but still get their window/aisle preference, but their option is to sit beside a small DC or beside an empty seat.

Effectively only asking someone to swop side of the plane but for the same thing in the same row as booked. And everyone in the row needs to put everything overhead anyway so no great shuffling of bags at feet etc.

Nobody should be asking anyone to swap seats. Book what your family need or pick a different flight.

I'm not a fan of flying, so I make it as easy as possible for myself but budgeting and paying for my preference. Nobody needs to be guilt tripped, buy you your toddler or your pregnancy.

I'm just amazed to hear that on business class they apparently block out the middle seat for the use of those in the window and aisle seats to put their stuff on . DH and I tried booking aisle/window once in the hope that the third seat was less likely to remain unfilled but you had to pay a huge premium for that (ie above the labelled seat prices). We declined and booked our usual seats.

With the BA short haul config if you didn’t block the middle seat off in the Club rows to provide those who have paid Club fares some more room it would to all intents and purposes be economy seating…and you can’t charge business fares for that.

The seat design allows the number of Club Rows to be easily adjusted to tailor for the differences in Club loads on various routes (as mentioned by a pp).

YABU you need to book the seats you want and need.

The only issue I would have with you in this situation is if you ended up in the seats you booked - each next to the blocked off seat in the hope they become available - and they don’t and you can’t move then you’re going to be putting a toddler in the middle seat next to a stranger who has booked the business class with that empty seat next to them and not a toddler being put in it. So I’d be more inclined to book a pair together where no one is inconvenienced if you couldn’t move.

FWIW we travelled in this type of compartment recently (business) as the rest of the flight was full and these were the only seats and only flight we could do. There was only us and one other family in the whole of the business class bit (and we are talking peak summer holidays) and we could have easily all had a full row each. Lol.

I wasn’t not massively impressed with what we got for the extra money we paid on board - my kids are older so paid full price. The food we got which was better than a packet of mini cheddars offered in the main cabin was not really something any of us would eat. The kids did get a sandwich instead. The extra space in the middle seat was ok. The main bit was the business lounge. We really enjoyed that.

This! Absolutely this. Spot on.
(Gavel)

Don’t do it. The middle seat is unoccupied to provide more comfort and space for the passengers. Although you choose to sit your child in it (because you are sharing with another adult you know - and I have done the same) you cannot commandeer it for your sole use when sharing with a stranger - as you would be depriving them of their paid for extra space. Ergo your child would have to stay on your lap (if the passenger didn’t swap seats). Book seats together as a family where you are sure of having the middle seat for your sole use.

She did say if the other passenger stayed in their seat she wouldn't use the middle and it's unlikely the staff would remove the tray anyway.

Row 7 gives you everything you need OP
Row 1 will provide slightly more comfort but you will have to run the gambit of a stranger moving. If they don't you will be much more uncomfortable as you'll have to hold the child and be away from DH.

Row 7 therefore wins out for me everytime. So much less stress too.

There’s no guarantee those seats will open up - if club isn’t fully booked they’ll stay blocked.

just pick seats that are available now for you to sit together