Share your inconsiderate people on planes tales…

[LittleTalkingMan]

I flew today for the first time since lockdown and I think I can safely say that lockdown has definitely made people less considerate of others.

We had a kid with a slide whistle. Both parents had headphones on!!

And a father and son who kept play fighting behind us. Why do grown ass dads insist on riling up kids play fighting!

Hair over seat similar to this. Passenger behind trapped it in the table. Big row kicked off.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10125649/Mid-hair-collision-Plane-passenger-sparks-fury-draping-long-hair-seat.html

My take is that you can recline after the in-flight service has concluded (I.e. you have eaten). Dropping your seat back 30 seconds after wheels up is a bit of a dick move.

A tall man behind me tried to stop me reclining my seat for an entire flight. Eventually, the flight attendant gave him a telling off and told him to buy extra leg room next time.

Child behind me kept poking their head between the seats. I don't blame the child, they were only little. I blame the parents who were engrossed in their tablets.

Someone refusing to sit down for virtually the whole flight as they hadn't been seated with their family. The poor crew had a mare trying to do service!

Personally I'm of the opinion you should only recline seats on a long haul or nighttime flight. Two hours jolly to Spain, there's absolutely no need.

You were trying to recline your seat for the entire flight? Or just certain parts eg nighttime?

Reclining seats: my rules:

Reclining is OK on a long flight, especially a night one. Upright during meal times.

Don’t recline on a short flight (under five hours)

I suggest we put this into legislation after the election.

5 hours is very long short haul/short long haul flight

Not reclining <5 hours might just work on a jolly holiday flight leaving mid AM onwards with everybody wide awake.

OTOH such a rule sure as heck won’t be popular on many an oh dark thirty departure where folks have got out of bed early..

It certainly won’t be popular places such as the legacy/networked airlines who carry a lot of connecting passengers, for those passengers the shorthaul sector is often linked to a Long Haul sector…

Stopping someone reclining on, say, a London-Cairo when they’ve connected from an Eastern Seaboard-London isn’t going to be very popular and would drive passengers into the arms of the opposition.

Outside of meal times at many airlines I suspect the use of recline in a considerate manner will continue to be an option..

I have read the whole of this thread and come to the conclusion i am the luckiest traveller ever!

The only issue i have ever had is when a man thought i was in his seat but i wasn't

Im flying long haul again in a couple of months, and have a family trip to Turkey in a few weeks... i really hope i havent talked it up 😅

Can’t believe you would poke holes in my robust policy!

How about instead we ask people on planes ‘don’t be a cunt’? I feel like that would probably cover all eventualities nicely. Happy to define ‘cunt’ for the legislative drafters to include in the Schedule.

Next money spinner for airlines... paying for a reclining seat (back section of the plane).

@Wonkypictureframe

Can’t believe you would poke holes in my robust policy!

Yeah, sorry to do that but what you suggested seemed a bit ambitious..😉

How about instead we ask people on planes ‘don’t be a cunt’? I feel like that would probably cover all eventualities nicely.

Ah, that’s it in a nutshell, like it,..how the heck you codify it????

I look at some of the incidents described above and 🙄..(hair over the seat back, foot up on armrest of seat in front etc) and wonder just what are some people thinking….

Then I realize they probably aren’t or don’t care..

Maybe issuing “Cattle prods, Cabin Crew, For the Use of” might stop some of the nonsense…..too extreme……..??????

@myladybelle So a woman who is asked not to recline her seat as she's actually bruising my DHs kneecaps is fine but my DH is "awful". I can only conclude you are the sort of person who participates in this sort of selfish behaviour on planes.
We have never encountered such a small amount of space between seats before, nor indeed such selfish passengers - I guess we've just been lucky on the last one given some of the comments on here! Thankfully this airline has since gone bust so we won't need to fly with them again.
As a PP has said, middle of the day, 2 hr flight, no need for anyone to recline their seat (exception made if they are ill)

@notimagain I’d be in favour of allowing cabin crew to issue fines and/or custodial sentences in some circumstances. Seems reasonable.

@ohtowinthelottery

As a PP has said, middle of the day, 2 hr flight, no need for anyone to recline their seat (exception made if they are ill)

“No need”….says who?

The reality is this that’s one of those “it depends”…not everybody travelling is doing so for leisure purposes, or has had a full nights sleep before boarding or even has a body clock running on (your) local time.

I used to routinely hop on a <2 hour day flight post a night shift and try and grab an hours sleep.

It also just so happened the destination was a primarily a business destination and plenty of connecting passengers coming off Long Haul overnights from heaven knows where heading for the same destination used to do the same, reason being often as not they would be heading into work/meetings on arrival - try telling them there was no need……..

I accept that 2 hours no recline might work on some services on some routes out of some airports but it’s not universally appropriate.

I feel if the seats recline, people aren’t being unreasonable to use them whatever time of day.

My flight from hell was an overnight long haul though. The seatbelt sign went off and the seats flipped back like domino’s, apart from mine. The tall guy behind me wedged himself so mine couldn’t recline. I politely asked him to move but he just shrugged and ignored me.

I couldn’t get comfortable to sleep, I didn’t have enough room to easily read and it was way before personal tech was a thing. Fortunately our plane had the latest seat back entertainment technology…unfortunately mine was broken. Cabin crew were unable to move me because the flight was full.

I spent the whole night bolt upright, knackered, bored and miserable but I was a martyr in those days so refused DH offer to swap seats before he snored the journey away. It never occurred to me to think the person in front was unreasonable for reclining and even if it was a short haul daytime flight, I’d have felt the same. The broken tech was annoying but I was also pissed off with the guy behind. It’s not his fault for having long legs but he should have booked extra leg room or at least tried to shift a bit (we were both in aisle seats) rather than being a dick about letting me lay back.

We flew back from Turkey and the lovely young woman thought me son would like her filthy socked foot next to him in his seat

I sort of feel that people who recline just because they can and think everyone else should pay for extra legroom are the people this thread is about.

My husband is 6ft 7 and we were on a short Europe flight, plane was quite crammed in and no legroom available when we went to book. Woman in front trying to recline fully but it physically wouldn't let her comfortably because his legs were in her back and so she started shouting at him and so I called the air staff and then she started shouting at them about needing her space eyc but they at least had sense to point out it wasn't his fault and in so many words to get a grip. It was a 2 hour flight ffs, if she hadn't been such a dick about it and spoken properly to begin with I would have swapped with him so she could have reclined. Im of the belief that if you aren't sleeping then you have no need to recline and should only really be on longhaul

I was on a flight going to Tenerife. My DS was Breastfeeding so his ears didn't pop (he didn't much like sweets at that age to suck on).

The woman next to me, as soon as we were in the air. She handed over, snatched my boob out of his mouth and said 'That's enough now. We are in the air'

She said it so breezy and friendly! I was so shocked and genuinely didn't even say anything in protest. Luckily he was asleep on landing

@Blueberry40 I'd have said to crew VERY loudly that the man was watching porn and demanded he be moved.

I have never once reclined a seat unless it was at least a 5 hour flight and then we pay more up front to back onto the bulkhead if it's available - short haul I pay up every time for emergency exit or up front - appreciate if we all did it I wouldn't ever get it

@Wonkypictureframe I'm with you!!

I was travelling with my toddler, and we were stuck on the tarmac delayed and I had a total creep beside me, he kept on trying to airdrop me pictures (obvliously I declined them but clearly he was trying to frighten and intimidate me), it was clearly him as he was trying to shield his phone and I could feel him staring at me each time the notification popped up on my phone, he stank of booze and kept on knocking back miniatures. He was in the aisle seat and I was quite terrified as was a full flight and I was hemmed in.

I meant whenever I tried to recline. I didn't immediately sit down and slam the seat into reverse! Like, we'd eaten, time for a snooze. Every time I attempted it.

For the sake of anyone reading this who finds themselves in a similar position, you can tell a member of airline crew this is happening and ask that this person is removed or you are moved to a different seat - they can put a man in that seat if the flight is full. It’s totally unacceptable. As is someone watching porn next to you. And anything that constitutes harassment or abuse - laws aren’t suspended because you’re in a plane.

@ANiceCuppaTeaandBiscuit I’m so sorry that happened to you.