Kacee

I wonder if there was alcohol involved. That would explain repeated poaching attempts after being told no. That also might explain why UA would allow them to fly on a different flight the next morning.

Cruss74

The article says they moved to row 21, which is the exit row (and E+) on all UA narrowbody aircraft.

MSPeconomist

Someone reported finding some website or Facebook page about their impending wedding.

Usually there are wedding guests traveling to the destination, surely more than one couple other than the bride and groom on average for destination or cruise weddings.

BF263533

The poached seats were 21B & 21C, and there is an E + label for this last exit row with extra extra leg room where you can recline.

And if they were drinking too much, that is if --- , then another reason you don't want them in the emergency exit row.

GUWonder

The announcement is usually something akin to being "free to move about the cabin" at least in implication. That same-cabin empty emergency row seats aren't included under that would be rather unexpected for most.

LTBoston

I've never seen a self-upgrader slink back to E- without first challenging the flight attendant. Usually something along the lines of, "What difference does it make? No one's sitting here anyway!" or "I fly this airline all the time and I've always been allowed to do this!"

Beckles

The only assertion I find blatantly dubious or questionable is that a 'marshall' removed them after they complied with the FA's instructions to move back to their seat.

UA1K_no_more

Well, the difference between E- and E+ cabins can be vague is you're on B739 that has E- seat rows between the E+ rows at the front of the economy cabin and the exit row seats. So if you're sitting in row 25 (E-), row 14 would be "within the ticketed [E-] cabin", but row 11 or row 20 wouldn't. I wouldn't expect regular E- travelers to understand that rows 14-15 and 12DEF are okay, but row 11 or 12ABC are off-limits since they're not "within the ticketed cabin".

Kacee

No. The announcement on UA is always that if a pax wants to move to seat that's designated as E+, they need to talk to the FA about paying for an upgrade.

GUWonder

Even on larger aircraft the perceived difference between E- and E+ can be limited to being the same kind of seats except for legroom. The lack of a distinction in the type of seats used and the lack of a physical divider like a wall or curtain may make the difference between E- and E+ seem akin to just there being a difference in legroom but still being the same seats in the same cabin.

isle-hawg

This happened to me once on a UA redeye flight a few years ago from LIH to LAX. SO and I were on different PNRs and not co-seated together. The plane had quite a few empty seats available when the door closed. The FA made that announcement, the SO and I moved to two open seats together in coach and was quickly told that the seats we choose were E+ therefore we had to pay or move back at least a row.

I am not a rookie at air travel, but it was certainly not intuitive to me on this particular flight that the seats we choose at first to move to were E+ as I did not notice anything special about them or the pitch to make me think their were in a different "cabin".

But I completely get the rules, quickly complied without comment to the FA and moved to two seats next to one another a row or two back.

But for those who rarely travel or spend time on FT, I could see one's perspective of asking what the big deal is?

GUWonder

It's not always. We both know UA's not so operationally perfect to always be perfect in even this limited regard.

Did this seat issue for the flight to Costa Rica even come up after the plane doors were closed? Or was it before the plane doors were closed? And when was that "always" General announcement made? You do know that the removed passengers said they were the last passengers to board? If that statement about being the last passengers to board is true, then their story sounds more credible than it would otherwise be to me.

knit-in

If the FAs are required to call moving within the cabin an "upgrade", then management is making their jobs really hard. The only movement within the cabin they should be required to monitor is for an exit row being occupied with someone who isn't ready, willing and able to help during an emergency.

MSPeconomist

I find it puzzling too as FAM SOP is not to out themselves except for something very serious.

What other marshalls would be around the airport, or is a Marshall in Texas (old TV show?) sort of like a sheriff?

Still, to me the mystery is how UA was able to get some sort of Marshall other than a FAM to the aircraft within a few minutes of the FA telling the couple to move back to their own seats.

ADDED: Sorry, I was thinking of a Texas Ranger, not Marshall.

BTW, don't marshalls lead parades and commencement ceremony marches?

drewguy

Uncertainty is understandable, at least until the FA says "sorry, pay or move back".