Phlyer2

I booked an aisle seat last week - Eurotraveller so 3+3. As a Silver card holder, I could book seat on reservation which I did. When I got to my seat, the couple next to me had a small lap infant who wasn't loving being confined to a metal tube for a few hours.

I don't have a problem with infants or the challenges facing the parents - been there / done it and it is a struggle.

My question is, could / should the seat map have a little "I" or something to show where infants are reserved to allow others pre-selecting seats to choose an alternative, if they so wish? (I appreciate there are other passengers who can be equally annoying which one could end up next to).

EJetter

If you ever fly on a Cityflyer Embraer E190, you can avoid sitting immediately adjacent to an a lap infant by picking an A or B seat since infants can't be seated on that side of the plane.

firstlight

Exit rows will also be infant free although you may have them in front or behind you. I assume for data protection reasons infant bookings can't be shown and of course seats can change at the last moment in any case.

cbyrne92

Whilst I totally understand the sentiment, I personally feel that this would just add further complications and opportunities for disappointment / lack of expectations being met leading to more problems than solutions.

As has always been the case, the best way to avoid situations like this is to pay more, for CE at the bottom end of the scale, flying private at the top....

That said, under 12s aren't allowed in exit rows so if you have OWS, book one of those and you'll be safe!

CB

GM1985

Don�t the SH Airbus only have an extra emergency air mask for lap infants on every other row? I remember reading that on a previous thread but not sure if that only applies to the ceo aircraft or also covers the neo Airbus.

As for putting personal characteristics of fellow passengers on a seat map, I doubt it�s a path BA would want to go down. On a practical level, it could change often between selecting a seat and the day of the flight. On a moral level, it doesn�t sit right. What else could be asked for - wheelchair users? Overweight people?

frb98mf

People who practise certain faiths to an orthodox standard often don't want to sit next to people of the opposite sex (unless they're family members) - been on plenty of TLV flights where there's been a whole load of seat-swapping, usually in fairly good humour by pax and crew, to accommodate this (but not always).

GM1985

I get that there could be any number of sound reasons for someone to want to get that kind of detail about their seat mate in advance. Another could be passengers with allergies to dogs wanting advanced notice about a passenger travelling with an assistance dog. But given the question was partly phrased as a "should", my response is still no, the seat map should not give away any detail about those seated near you. Seat maps should simply indicate whether a seat is or is not available to select. If you and your neighbour can't sit together - for whatever reason - an on-the-day swap sounds like the right approach.

(Also, in your example, which I know wasn't the original ask of the thread and was about accommodating religious requirements, sadly we live in a world where if the seat map indicated there was a solo female traveller, that could potentially attract some unsavoury characters to select the adjacent seat).

GumshoeW12

Sadly there are also unsavoury characters who might be attracted to a seat shown as being next to an infant, irrespective of the presence of its parent(s).

So no, it�s never going to happen.

etiene

JAL already do this, with a cheerful little face on the seat map.

Munaf Nasser

I feel like this is so complicated when it comes to family seating. It would be nice to have designated seats and signs. Especially for family of 4. One is almost always separated

orbitmic

No it shouldn�t. The seat map should give information about seats, not about fellow passengers. What next?: obesity warning? Gender? Baec status?

alex67500

I'm curious now, is there any specific reason for this?

zaphod424

I don't think it would be appropriate to do this, and really on short haul flights it's not that bad to have an infant nearby, and someone is going to have to be sat there, just bring headphones (preferably noise cancelling) and it isn't that bad. At the end of the day you can choose your seat but you can't choose your neighbours, and that's the way it should remain.

That said on long haul flights having a screaming infant (or older loud or disruptive child) can completely ruin the experience and make it very unpleasant. Maybe an unpopular opinion, but I'd absolutely support not allowing under 12s in F and having the forward one or two (depending on the plane) J cabins being child free as well.

TTmex

The baec status bit technically gets given away by theoretical seating. While it doesn't confirm exactly who is who, it gives you a rough understanding of who has high status if you watch for a while.

As for showing other personal details, I believe that should be a massive no-no. Can't imagine how many ways that would be potentially abused.

HIDDY

Got to agree with the ''No''. It's a bit silly considering it's public transport.