so is the main theme here about people who planned travel in advance vs. those who, for reasons we can never really know, could not do this? What if she and the kids are headed to a funeral of their dad? airlines hardly accomodate for those fares now even, and in their eyes, sadly for us FTers with experience, they LET you use your miles cuz you booked way in advance. That lady probably had to pay $800 per ticket and could not use any rewards. Is it right? no. in the airline's eyes, all 3 seats in econ are worth the same. I'd say your beaf is with their mentality/policy, not some flustered lady who has to drag her kids around on planes, which, by the way, is foreign for her world. You try grade school and playdates someday. good luck mates!

I have also been on united planes, which I bring up because of how they treat "classes" where they just bump people from their booked seating even in econ because some traveler with status requested that seat for an accompanying friend. ok, cool for them but is that so right too?