silver-tls

Wow - never thought I'd get such a 'great' offer

Flying home FRA-SFO last week after 2 days in Frankfurt so dead tired at this point. Upgrade didn't clear C --> F but fine with anything where I can get some sleep. Upper deck 16A and 16B already settled in. As soon as I showed up at the seat, he flashes the used car salesman smile and tries to start up a conversation. Too tired at this point I barely acknowledge what he's saying.

Then he gets to the point: Swapping seats. He goes "hey buddy, would you do me and my new wife a HUGE favor and swap seats so we can sit together? I know its a stretch given how I hate it when people ask to switch but you seem like a very nice guy."

Me: Fine. I just want to sleep. Where is she sitting? (looking around the UD for this guy's wife since usually when the seat swapping convo starts the other person is looking to see how its going)

Other guy: GREAT! She's actually on the lower deck in a window seat.

Me: What seat?

Other guy: I can't remember exactly but its a window...I'll let the FA know you were so kind to switch.

Me: Hold on...what is her seat?

Other guy: umm...i think its row 20 something K

Me: Wait - that is a economy plus seat, not C

Other guy: Yea, but you agreed and a gentleman never goes back on his word. At least not where I'm from. Tell you what - I'll give you back a SWU for your troubles. My wife's upgrade just didn't clear but it should have. That way we'll be square.

Me: Mine is a paid C ticket and there's no way in h%ll that I'm switching C for Y.

Other guy: Nobody is crazy enough to pay for a C ticket. Everyone upgrades. You, me, the guys in front and the guys downstairs.

Me: Well my company did. (big mistake)

Other guy (see's my bag with corp logo from old firm): Oh - you work for (***) do you? Well me and my wife's tax dollars bailed you out so you don't deserve to sit in C. You guys should be sitting in Y instead of paying for expensive tickets. This is ridiculous. I'm writing to my congressman.

Me: Good for you. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to take my seat.

Other guy (moves aside to let me get to my seat): I hope you enjoy your flight because its going to be the last in C. I guarentee you that. Not only do you people steal from the hardworking folks, you have no manners letting a lady sit in coach by herself.

He mumbles some more stuff but settles into his seat. Of course in this 30-45 second exchange everyone on the UD is staring to see what is going on and just rolled their eyes.

dearbee

wow!!! such a great story. i'd like to see how far the other guy gets in seeing to it that no more trips in C are in store for you.

TechnoPagan

Wow, just WOW!

No good deed goes unpunished.

SEA1K4EVR

This story is just too outrageous to be true.

WineCountryUA

Did he let his wife sit in Y??
Did he switch with the person next to his wife, and go back to Y?

true life events tend to out do fiction

UA-NYC

Why not? Lot of residual anger out there at a lot of these institutions. Totally believable.

Not like this is post #1 for the OP either

ryan182

holly crap that's over the top. Unbelievable if that "gentleman" was so concerned about his wife sitting in coach he could have fixed that real quick by giving her his seat. What a douche.

fastair

I believe it could be true. Maybe it's the same guy that freaked out on me when his ORD-DAY leg didn't clear on a midcon connection. I told him F was full. He refused to believe that his UG wouldn't clear. I told him F was SOLD out. He said that is impossible, as no one buys F. Nobody! F was full with revenue...most as part of Intl C tickets, but sold out as A and F.

There are people out there that don't realize that F is sold, that Intl C and Intl F get domestic F on 2 cabin planes, and it is sold to them as such. There are people too, that buy domestic F. But this guy, insisted I was wrong.

I mean the guy really threw a 10 min temper tantrum...for what, maybe an hour or so block to block? UDU...it has it's downsides. He actually wrote in to complain, as I had to explain the situation to my superiors. The evidence was right there in UA computers, so the explanation was accepted by mgmt.

Winecountry has it on the head. People tall me all the time "You have to be kidding!" I always tell them, that at the airport, true life situations are far more entertaining than anything I could make up. Allegedly (I wasn't there, but heard from managers that were) a passenger stripped butt naked upon landing on a flight at ORD last week, ran off the plane before being arrested...and I mean butt naked...nothing on. I tried to google it, but can't find any story in the press.

ORD-LIH

That ORD-DAY flight is 50 minutes tops. Barely enough time to finish my Gin & Tonic on the way home when I lived in Cincy. People forget that the foreign auto plants just across the border in Indiana and in Kentucky get a ton of Japanese business travel. Nothing like hearing Japanese and a Kentucky drawl coming from the row behind you.

As for the ORD story, would have been a heck of a sight on the moving walk-ways if they landed at the C gates.

silver-tls

You have no idea. I'm glad I was so tired so I didn't even attempt to give more than a few word replies. I closed my eyes as soon as I settled in, and put the seat into flat mode and turned the other way. He didn't say anything to me again but when getting out to use the lav, he made no attempts to make it easier for me to get in/out of my seat into the aisle.

He obviously thought that it was a fair deal because he was going to 'give' me a SWU back. I will say that he was very slick with his pitch and paints a nice picture before trying to make you seem like a total douche for not 'honoring a gentleman's agreement' when its really the other way around. I'm sure he's sweet-talked his way many times.

Most corp travel guidelines state if a flight is over 6 hours, you're allowed to fly C, otherwise its Y and upgrade on your own dime/miles/UDU. I tend to ignore comments similar about how 'his tax dollar is paying for my seat' but will not give up my C seat for Y regardless of what you offer or say.

warreng24

the guy, because should have told you where his wife was sitting.

to you, since you should have asked where the wife was sitting BEFORE you agreed.

Agree that the guy was a total tool for not being upfront, but you should have known better.

kevinsac

To which your response should have been .... "Why don't you ask the person sitting next to her to switch with you?"

fastair

I don't think he made it that far before having the police cover him with a blanket and take him away, but it was the C gates.

AFJon

At least he asked to swap (in a slimy way) versus just taking your seat for his wife...

silver-tls

I agree it was my fault for not insisting to know where her seat was. I figured most people with common sense would know that the chances of aa C for Y swap voluntarily would be zero. Also dead tired so not on top of my game. Just wanted to sit down and get some sleep.

Alot of times I don't even remember exactly where i'm sitting until I board and look at the BP. I just tend to remember the class and whether its an aisle/window.

I doubt if he absolutely needed to sit next to her. He was probably in his 50s and just didn't want to hear the nagging from his wife when they got home about how he sat in C while she slummed it in Y.

I have sympathy for alot of people who had their retirement nest egg wiped out but I wasn't responsible for it so don't channel your anger at me buddy.

It was a pretty smooth approach that was perfected with years of practice probably. Starts with some chit-chat, makes it seem like he's a nice guy and then comes the catch.

At least he didn't throw a temper tantrum or try to instigate something - probably enough common sense to know he would have gotten removed from the flight if he did.