What’s the Protocol For Letting the Window Seat Deplane?

Traveling can be a tricky business, one that’s often complicated by unexpected, misery-inducing difficulties. You’ve got tightened airport security to deal with, not to mention delayed flights, discourteous strangers and maybe even a screaming child to top it all off. Sometimes it feels like the whole ordeal isn’t worth the hassle, but fear not! Mile High Manners is here to lend a helping hand and guide you through the polite “do’s and don’ts” of flight etiquette, regardless of the class you’re seated in and situations you come up against. 

Have you ever faced an in-flight encounter or unexpected situation at the airport which you were unsure of how to handle properly? Send your dilemmas to us at [email protected] and check back every Wednesday as we endeavor make the travel experience more enjoyable for everyone.

 

Q: Is there a rule on sick passengers? FlyerTalk user lucycan raised this question here in the forums, and even though it wasn’t emailed to him directly, Miles felt it warranted a reply.

Is there a rule on sick passengers?

A first for me today. A woman in the waiting area for DL 2096 (MSP to LGA) this morning was alternating between laying on the floor and throwing up in the garbage can. She boards and sits in front of me (2C) much to the dismay of the first class cabin. She vomits 4 more times before push back and the FAs just give her more puke bags and some paper towels.

Many of the people around her look surprised she is flying as do I. I won’t judge her as I don’t know her situation.

In the air now and the smell of vomit is in the cabin. Just as they roll out breakfast. Most people have the vents at full open. Fun!

Just wondering if there is any policy / best practice on this type of situation.

 

A: An unfortunate situation to be placed in, lucycan. No one enjoys having vomit in their proximity, especially when they’re trapped in an inescapable environment and especially when they’re about to eat! One would imagine that within the luxury confines of the First Class such nauseating situations wouldn’t occur, but alas, this experience just reminds us that anything’s possible.

A good rule of thumb for airlines when dealing with passengers who are obviously very sick is to not let them board in the first place, and most airlines are good about this. Flying while you’re seriously ill not only puts your health at greater risk, it also puts everyone else onboard at risk.

It’s also possible that the woman in your situation was intoxicated and that’s why she was sick, in which case, again, the airline should’ve caught on before she boarded the flight.

If you see some who you think might be too sick or too drunk to fly, my best would be to make the airline staff aware of them. Once you’re in the air, there’s nothing you can do but wait for the flight to be over, even if “over” entails diverting to offload the vomiting individual.

 

Q: Letting the window seat deplane – what’s the protocol? FlyerTalk user soxfanndc raised this question here in the forums, and even though it wasn’t emailed to him directly, Miles felt it warranted a reply.

Letting the window seat deplane – what’s the protocol….

…b/c I almost lost a leg last night….. thanks dude! 

so I like to sit in a window seat, I admit. Last night deplaning from DTW-BWI, I was in 2D. There were three rows of FC behind me. The nice gentleman in 2C handed me my luggage from the OHB and then cleared the aisle. I was the next one to “go”, right? WRONG. the moron behind me nearly knocked me back into my seat attempting to brush past me. Had I not been holding on to the seat I truly would have fallen. Luckily, I was able to get my bag in the aisle and deplane before him and I don’t think I delayed him for more then about 3 seconds before he needed to rush off to the brain surgery he was leading…….. (it was 11:20PM, Sunday night)

what the heck? This has happened enough recently that I’m wondering, is it the expectation that those in the window should deplane last OR should deplaning happen by row number (unless one needs to “swim upstream” to retrieve their bag then it makes more sense to let others pass, first?) Thoughts?

and one final note, the flight was not delayed, we were supposed to get in at this time, in fact we were a bit early in case someone wonders if the moron was “making up lost time” or something…………

 

A: Seat politics, dear soxfanndc, it feels sometimes that they are as old as time itself. Everyone seems to have a slightly different view on what appropriate seat behavior is and things can get messy when a long flight finally arrives and you just want to get off as quickly and as humanly as is possible.

The curse of having the window seat and enjoying that nice view of fluffy clouds is the inevitable come down of trying to get off the bloody plane in a dignified manner. I generally agree with your view of deplaning and believe the most effective and fair way to go about it is by row number.

Once the aisle and middle seat numbers have departed then by logic yes the window seat occupant should be allowed to gracefully exit next. Though as you found out unfortunately not everyone shares this view. It is annoying when someone behind you tries to jump ahead, and in your case almost knocking you off your feet in the process.

Once you throw in swimming ‘upstream’ to retrieve luggage then things do get a little more complicated but at heart the same rule should apply 9 times out of 10.

Common sense should prevail at the end of the day, for example if there is a pregnant woman or elderly person behind you then by all means show some courtesy and let them go ahead of you.

 

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