Originally Posted by
nmarco2
If you lift the thingy (sorry not technical but it is a bulge above the vacancy status display) and push the switch, under the bulge (which lifts up) to the right, it usually unlocks the door. Please watch the lav for a bit though, because you never know if it is really occupied and you just forgot! But 6 hours into a 15 hour flight I finally realized that's why the lav had been occupied this whole time! ^
I would always ask FA to do this. May not be a good idea to do it yourself.
This reminded me of a UA FA I meet in Rio a couple of years ago. She had travelled there for free from NRT. On the transpacific segment she had been sitting in (and blocking) a lavatory for the entire flight. (Slightly disturbing for a number of reasons).
Flight was full, but she was allowed on, as she could sit in the crew rest seats during takeoff and landing... then the lavatory the rest of the way.