elitetraveler

Unfortunately this perspective is going to provide you personal frustration as you are going to believe there are more rude people out there than there are.

PTravel

So what? Do the same thing as an obese person, or a parent traveling with a young child: book a seat that accommodates your special needs, and if none are available book another flight or another airline. Your special need does not equate to an entitlement to my seat.

The airline provides me with a seat that reclines. What do you call it when you take something that belongs to me without my consent?

No, because the space is not yours, whether or not, "in effect." It's no different than if you stowed your carry-on under your seat instead of the seat in front of you. That space belongs to the person behind you. And the space within the arc of the seat recline belongs to the person in front of you.

On the contrary, according to the airline, it is my right to recline my seat. It is not, however, your right to tell people that they must forgo using their seat as the airline intends because you have a special need and must therefore claim space that belongs to someone else for your own comfort.

Given that everyone here thinks you're wrong about this, perhaps you should reconsider what it is that you realize.

Not according to the airline. Otherwise the recline button would be one seat behind and we would all have to ask the permission of the person behind us to recline. And, of course, Knee Defenders would be permitted on all airlines . . . which they're not.

If you can sit in your allotted space without interfering with the person in front of you, that is one thing.

If your knees are in my back, then you are usurping space allotted to me, so don't do it.

DFW_Airwolf

What we may have to come up with is what is called a COH (Customer of Height). The same as a COS (Customer of Size) has to purchase a 2nd adjacent seat, you may be required to purchase the seat in front of you. It will then be blocked & no one will be allowed to sit there. No Recline, No Fuss, No Muss.

Dave Noble

person in front reclines... you recline ....personal space stays the same

Upgraded!

That's really only true if tray tables are out. Otherwise, unless you are obscenely tall, it shouldn't limit your legroom terribly if you extend your legs under the seat in front of you (when that's possible). If you want stuff out on your tray table that's your choice, and shouldn't be of concern to those in front of you, the exception being meal time (on flights w/airline-provided food) when for the 20min or so you're eating I think it's fine to ask someone in front of you to put their seat up.

In domestic F I once even witnessed a FA tell someone something to the effect of "during meal time it's airline policy to put seats in the upright position" (her way of tactfully getting this one guy to put his seat up so the morbidly obese guy behind him could actually open his tray table w/o calling attention to the guy). Regardless of my feeling that this guy could probably skip a meal or two I think that in general asking people to right their seats when pretty much everyone is eating (unless they're already asleep) isn't out of the question.

Upgraded!

Not to get too OT, but I'd love to see an airline do this and offer seats that can be released to fold flat and collapse so you can buy the seat in front of you and extend your legs as far as you wish. Would be a great way to theoretically sell every seat but still only have a 50% load factor.

Dave Noble

I agree that it is cool and ok to *ask* someone to put seat up for meals but to try dictating it by inventing their own airline policies is another.

Upgraded!

Agreed for the most part, though I see both sides here.

I typically have little sympathy for those who have such little regard for their own health they can't open the tray table in domestic F w/the seat in front of them reclined; you really have to have let yourself go. However I do have sympathy for the position the FA was in: either ask the guy to put his seat up, potentially have him say "no" and then have to explain she's asking so a morbidly obese guy can eat an oh-so-healthy airline meal or tell him it's policy to avoid a debate and being the one to call attention to a customer who is probably (or at least should be) self conscious enough as it is and likely paid a lot for F since he couldn't fit in Y (which if true, I respect).

My "understanding" here is for the FA and her position, not for the guy unable to open the tray.

Dave Noble

If she asks and the person says no, that is not very amenable by the passenger but if it happens then the FA should accept this , not try to force it. I doubt that there are many people who will say no to a polite request, but there are those that would say yes if asked. Trying to issue orders in order to avoid having to explain why the request is being made is not acceptable

It is equally possible that the person in front is a paid business/1st passenger and that the obese person is using an upgrade

swajames

While I'm not normally much of a recliner myself, I've no problem with those that do with just the one caveat.

That caveat is the discourteous recliner who slams his or her seat back, often at lightning speed, without any indication that they're going to recline. It's really not too much to ask to at least take a quick look over your shoulder and give the person behind a little notice or visual hint about what's about to happen. It's really not cool to recline hard without at least the courtesy of a quick check to make sure the coast is clear. To do otherwise is the onboard equivalent of pulling out at a junction without is clear. I'm sure we'd see far fewer complaints about reclining - and I absolutely agree it is the recliner's right to recline - if just a few common courtesies were extended to our fellow passengers when doing so.

global happy traveller

How is it rude? Think of the other passenger, if you are merely reclining your seat obliviously (because you mind your own business) and the person behind keeps on kicking or pushing it?

There are two perspectives to the story..............

My two cents worth are............

1. Airlines, if you are going to play around with the pitch of the seats, please go hardshell or not permit recline in the chair design. You will most likely save staff/customer aggravation and some money too, because you dont have to adjust the recliners.

2. Pax, if you are really locked in the seat because of a seat recline....... ask the person ahead 'nicely' if they could accommodate you......... Most of the time, when I talk to people nicely they are willing to adjust for mutual beneficial comfort.

isle-hawg

I am fortunate in that I usually get an exit row seat, so not an issue for me.

isle-hawg

Except for the folks sitting in front of exit row seats who can't recline.

isle-hawg

Kicking, pushing, pulling on the seat in front of you (or any) are also rude reclined or not IMHO. I could not agree more with your other comments.

Upgraded!

That's all true and there really isn't anything I can argue with. I guess I was thinking along these lines: if the FA just asked me to put my seat up during the meal, without qualifying the request and without my having seen who was behind me, I may well have declined, thinking it an odd request and one without purpose (sort of like my mother telling me not to slouch at the table). However, if she then said "there's a really fat guy behind you who can't get his tray table out" I would have moved up to accommodate and felt awkward not doing so.

That scenario, though, is very awkward for the FA. The ideal situation, for the FA, is one in which the person reclining feels obligated to move up for dinner without the FA having to explain. Again, I'm thinking about what was comfortable for the FA.