hammythehammer

I don't have a 'comfort problem' unless someone reclines . Reclining my own seat wouldn't alleviate my leg problems.
Thank the Lord I only travel (for the moment) in J on Long Haul.

awestphal

Back to the question: When are you happy w/ your flight?

For me, it comes down to getting from A to B, somewhat on time, not picking up diseases on the way and generally being in the company of civilized human beings reflecting the culture of the airline's origin and purpose. And generating sufficient TP and miles to requalify, of course.


/Begin Rant
I do not consider neither the OP's fellow pax nor a 200kg-I-could-not-help-it-the-marshmellows-were-just-too-good-individual to be a decent company of an intraeuropean BMI flight (you'd expect those individuals more on a AAEx ATR7 AMA-DFW or on an FR DUB/STN-Bratislava stag run).
/End Rant

awestphal

+1

Not sure I could ever go back to WT. Maybe WT+. But not WT.

hammythehammer

I really can't answer for 6' 8" people or 300lb people .
In my own little 'Hammythehammer World', I (that's me personally) can sit in coach , Y , economy, reasonably comfortably, in a normal sitting position.
Do you really think that I should move my legs into an uncomfortable position to facilitate someone reclining their seat ?
Bizarrely you seem to suggest that to avoid problems I should buy an extra seat .
Run it by me again....
I'm sat comfortably ,totally within the small zone of personal space that I have . My knees aren't touching the back of the seat in front of me, then someone tries to recline, but can't because my knees physically stop it happening, or it causes them discomfort.

The problem is mine ??????????????

pinkcat

Had the guy in the front row in CE on a 3hr flight turn nasty once, he had the seat fully reclined, hands behind head, feet up the bulkhead, I didnt particularly mind even the speed of recline 30secs after take off didnt damage anything as I hadnt got it out yet. when it came time to eat I asked if he would mind raising the seat a little so I could eat my dinner, torrent of abuse, laughter and abuse from the girlfriend beside him, most unexpected given how polite I hand been. Shame really as the dinner looked nice but I couldnt eat it and take the risk of spilling any on his arms or hair.
not nearly as bad as the OPs experience, in that situation I would have gone and sat in the galley and told them I was afraid to sit in my seat

BAAZ

Well, one could argue that the person in front should be able to recline his seat as that's his personal space too, in the same way as he would expect to be able to have his armrests down whatever the size of the pax in the adjacent seat.

I've been lucky enough not to have flown Y overnight since I was a student, but if I did, not being able to recline would seriously impede my ability to sleep. (Not that I'd go so far as suing the airline for A$x00,000 for having to sit in an upright seat, as referenced in an earlier post.)

If you always had the option to book an exit row seat (with more legroom and with the seat in front not being reclinable), BA could request or require someone of your stature to do so, maybe at a small extra cost, i.e. not having to pay hundreds or thousands more to travel in a higher class. This would only work if there were more exit row-type seats on a typical aircraft.

@:-) Now that BA have decided to charge extra for exit row (extra legroom) seats in Y, they could gauge the popularity of these seats. If more people want to pay the Ł50 (or whatever) to book them than there are seats available, might it be worth taking a row of Y out in order to produce a few more rows of exit-row-pitch Y seats? Then you'd be ok. Would work on shorthaul as well.

ajax

Excellent suggestion ^ although I couldn't actually get into the galley - there were trolleys both ahead of me and behind me!

hammythehammer

I should just re-affirm

1. I can sit in comfort in economy .
2. The person in the seat in front, can press their recline button no problem.
3. Sometimes with me behind it will recline OK for them.
Other times it won't move because my knees are against a solid part
of the seat.
Occasionally my knees will be in their back because that's how the seat
is designed.
4. If a person wishes to guarantee having a seat that reclines, they should pay the extra for another seat /extra seat/different class (add whichever nonsense applies).
5. It's no different to a 400lb man , listening to his Ipod, with cr*p headphones ,which lets you hear some of the tune , while spilling over into your side of the armrest and more annoyingly blocking the sunlight (as an alternative to a window blind) .....blah ...continue as necessary blah.

HIDDY

Why on earth did you not tell the crew you couldn't have your meal because the low life in front of you wouldn't budge?

PTravel

I think that you should book seats that would not result in your discomfort if someone elects to use the recline.

Well, you could buy the seat in front of you. It would be easier (and cheaper) to book exit row or bulkhead.

That's right. Because you are proceeding from the assumption that all of the space between the upright seat in front of you and your seat back is "your space." It is not. The airline intends that space through which a seat reclines to be used by the person whose seat it is.

hammythehammer

You haven't read my post properly . The discomfort for me would come from moving my legs into an unnatural position.
You are confusing it with the discomfort, possibly suffered by the person who has reclined, having my knees in their back.
I'm quite happy to leave my legs in the same position I started with.

I'll ask you again "do you think I should move my legs (from a perfectly normal and reasonable position) just to facilitate the 'recliner' not being uncomfortable ?

I've yet to come across an airline that will sell you an extra seat in front of you . Do you get the extra baggage allowance as well ?

Far from it . This is like Groundhog Day.
All I expect, is to be able to sit in a seat period. I sit in the seat just like any other adult (regardless of whether they are 5' 1" or 6' 4") .
Someone is more than entitled to press their recline button ....just in case it's missed again ...Someone is more than entitled to press their recline button.
Feel free , press the bl**dy recline button.
There's now four scenarios that can occur after they press the recline button with me sat behind. (did I mention feel free to press the button?)

1. The seat reclines OK dependant on the seat pitch.
2. The seat doesn't recline because it is OOS .
3. The seat doesn't recline because a solid part of it hits my knees and won't move any further.
4. The seat in effect does recline, but my knees are in the soft bit , thus my hard knees are making contact with the soft part of someone's back, this is probably more uncomfortable for them , than me.

I note that you haven't added any caveats for the seat reclining rules, with regards to meal times , drink times etc.

PTravel

And I'll answer again the same way: if an airline seat will not comfortably accommodate you, including when the person in front of you uses his seat as intended by the airline, then you should make your own arrangements so that your needs are met.

I don't know about BA, but there are airlines that will do this. You can, however, book an exit row or bulkhead, or buy a seat in J or F. It will cost you a bit more, but it is your need that must be accommodated.

Fine.

Okay.

Well, fine. As it happens, I do. And, as it happens, people in front of me frequently do as well.

Here's how I see it:

You are no different than an overweight passenger, a passenger traveling with a lapchild, or a passenger traveling with a pet. When I fly, I book seats that will recline, i.e. I will never willingly book or accept a seat in front of an exit row because those do not recline. I expect the integrity of my seat to be unimpeded, whether by an overweight passenger who can't fit in a single seat, a rambunctious child who thinks climbing on my seat is appropriate in-flight entertainment, a dog in a carrier so large that it occupies part of my foot space, or a person so tall that they will block the recline of my seat.

You are very tall. Congratulations. I'm sure you find that, in most situations, being very tall is an advantage. It is not when you fly coach. However, it is unreasonable to expect me to accommodate the fact that you are tall by forbearing use of my seat as permitted by the airline, particularly when you are perfectly capable of making arrangements for your own comfort that don't impose on anyone else.

I agree that seats should not be reclined during mealtimes as that does interfere with a passenger being able to use his meal tray for its intended purpose -- that is not a special requirement for an individual passenger but, rather, a universal accommodation that benefits everyone. Drink times? You can't be serious. As far as I'm concerned, it's drink time from the first beverage service to the final glass collection prior to landing. I certainly don't require the seat in front of me to be upright to enjoy my (multiple) beverages in-flight.

HIDDY

Just sums up my thoughts entirely.

I shall recline my seat no matter who is behind me......If I get told by a member of cabin crew not to recline I shall be demanding my money back.
This could end up another money spinner for BA at time of booking. Ł15 for the privilege of being allowed to recline ones seat.

FWIW - H&S/CAA etc should be demanding that long haul Y seats should have at least a 34" seat pitch anyway IMO.

sarahuk

For an hours flight how on earth can reclining your seat 3 " make your seat any more comfortable. Whilst I agree with other posters that the person behind was OTT, I think the suggestion that you should have sat in galley saying you were afraid is also way OTT.
Personally I would never recline my seat for an hours flight as I feel its needless for such a short flight and selfish but thats just my opinion and if the person in front of me did recline I would just put up with it.
I was flying shorthaul in CE when the idiot in front of my husband fully reclined his seat just before the meal was served. The thing that shocked me was that he was not even laid back against his seat. he was leaning forward doing something on his laptop. How selfish is that? My husband was too polite to say anything but the crew noticed it when serving the food and asked him to put his seat back up.
I wonder how many of you who recline your seats on short journeys would kick up a big fuss if the person in front of you reclined their seat

colmc

I'm fully of the "yay for FR" on this one. I've spent way too much time staring that back of someone's head for my own good. I hate reclining seats (especially on short haul).

That being said - they are there on most airlines, and people will use them if provided. I have no compunction about asking the cabin crew to make someone put their chair right for meal times, if they won't do it themselves when asked. I had a recent flight on EI where I was pretty hungry, so decided to get something from the BOB menu. I asked Mr-Recline-within-20-seconds-of-take-off to in front of me to put his seat back up so I could actually have my food and my drink. My word, I've rarely seem such amateur dramatics. I'm always glad when the crew do a PA annoucement before meals/food service reminding people to put their seats upright. Alas it only seems to happen now on long-haul flights - and not always! (Though it must be said my recent IB flight from GRU had some very proactive yet discreet crew serving the meals - myself and the two people next to me had been reclined into within seconds of take off, but the crew were making sure these people upped their seats pronto so we could eat, without making a scene!). Sometime, however, I'm going to either a) put my food sitting on the recliners head or b) start playing their head like a bongo drum..

The problem with the OP's flight scenario is that we weren't there. The guy was a berk, completely: but the cabin crew have to make a choice too - is it worth tackling an angry/irate guy, potentially pouring petrol on the flames or will the other party concede and everyone gets some peace. There isn't a perfect solution that works everytime, so choices have to be made. Nasty situation for OP and the crew to be in IMHO