RayinMaui

Well put! ^

catwings01

And they seem to be flexible about their interpretation. On a recent JFK-DFW flight I was in 17C, my husband in 17 D. Seated next to him in the middle of that exit row was the mother of two young (both looked to be under 12) children who were seated IN THE EXIT row behind her - the youngest, a very slight girl was next to the exit. Their father was seated in the middle of the exit row behind me. The FA's walked past the children several times during the boarding process but didn't say anything until the doors were closed. One agent then spoke to them - the parents identified themselves and said the GA gave them all their boarding passes. The FA's solution was that the children could sit in those seats except for take off and landing, and had two people from the row behind change seats with them for those times. I was a bit surprised and did ask the FA about the policy, which is written on the exit row information card - her response was priceless. She said that it only applies to take off and landing, because once you are in the air - and I quote - "nothing could happen". To top it off, the woman seated next to me spoke not one word of English - which was also known to this same FA as she couldn't understand when asked if she was willing and able to follow instructions and help in the event of an emergency.

ijgordon

LMAO. That is priceless. So when the plane goes in a steep dive, the kids are supposed to switch with the adults behind them so that when the plane does finally crash (g-d forbid) everyone will be apropriately situated to assist with the evacuation? !

jerry a. laska

I agree the FAA does give the certificate holder some leeway in interpreting the rule but I don't necessarily agree with your interpretation of "might" as the operative word. Actually the certificate holder must find it "likely" that the person's condition or responsibility will affect the person's ability to perform exit row duties.

The FAA rule is clear that a certificate holder may not seat a person in an exit row seat if the certificate holder finds it likely that a person has a condition or responsibility that might prevent the person from performing the duties. The condition or responsibility can be something that "might" affect the person's ability to perform exit row duties but the certificate holder still has to find it likely that the responsibility that the person might have will affect their ability to perform the duties. And that is how we get the variation among the carriers in interpreting the rule.

To me the rule is clear that having the responsibility for small children seated in another row is a condition or responsibility the carrier is required to weigh. As you know it is less certain whether that responsibility requires AA to find that that responsibility is likely to affect a parent sitting in an exit row in the manner that AA has.

JDiver

Yeah, well, that's MY life that can be at risk if I am on the aircraft, and that ain't good enough for this person. If the FA insists, and they have the law about interfering etc. on their side, I will write AA about that kind of (in)action (e.g. the UIO-MIA flight I took where the male FAs did not secure the cabins at any time - handcarries on the floor in exit rows, etc. at takeoff and landing.)

I have lost a good friend and colleague, and a good friend / cousin from aircraft accidents - both of them due to "human factors." Meaning airline employees were responsible for the carnage (127 dead onboard, 7 dead, 9 injured and 22 dwellings damaged or destroyed on the gound on the first, and 99 dead onbaord in the second.) I don't think I am paranoid - I have flown over 50 years in manmy countries and was a licensed pilot, and I don't think I am on a mission or a vendetta - but IMO that is clearly unacceptable.

Aircraft incidents can be sudden and not allow the luxury of repositioning people into other seats, and the idea of someone in the exit row who can not understand basic instructions to boot... (Ask pax on AQ 243 or UA 811 if they had time to check for people who were able and willing to move into exit rows and trade seats with the kiddos and the non-English speaker after the aircraft lost pieces of their fuselage and were subject to explosive decompression... )

Yes, fortunately the odds are very slight, and I have the utmost respect for most cabin crew and their comprehensive safety training and regular testing, but when these kinds of things happen, I firmly believe it is time to write AA with the details. The life you save may be your own... [/RANT]

21A

Last time I encountered this situation, there was one child (actually 15, but I suppose designated incorrectly at booking time) on the PNR, who was allowed to select an exit seat on AA.com, but one of the adults wasn't ("Child cannot select exit row," I believe was the error). Phone agent fixed it so that all were assigned to exit rows. No objections from online check-in or the gate agents.

CVV

When our party of 11, including 2 small children, was traveling together, FA would not allow anyone in our group to sit in an exit row.

TrishBOS

So true!

PDX-PLT

It wasn't the case of wanting more comfortable seats, but rather getting seat assignments to ensure we'd get on the plane in the first place. For me, I'd find it much more comfortable to sit next to a family member in "normal" seats than to sit next to strangers in an exit row. On all the flights, there were only one or two non-exits avaiable for pre-assignment, but all the exit row seats were open. I was on a separate PNR, so I was able to reserve an exit row seat. Once on the plane, I changed seats with the pax assigned the seat next to one of the kids; an easy swap to sell.