Rude Seat Swapping Stories from '10
 

I realize this thread has been run a million different ways, but I really enjoy reading the outrageous stories of rudeness by other passengers assuming the seat swap or getting angry because the favor was refused. It's where I get my drama now that Grey's Anatomy has become annoying to me.

One of my favorites is from a David Sedaris book where he points out that he'd rather not be bullied into doing someone a favor.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/20513228/D...urday-s-Puzzle

I wonder if there are any other good stories in the past year?

Cheers,

Cocaine

PS I hope to hear stories rather then get into do you swap seats or not. If this thread be too incendiary then just close it, but I thought it would make for good reading. The only similar thread I found was in AC (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/air-c...-swappers.html) and there have been no updates since January. Figured I'd see how the UA crowd fared in 2010 as I have not been hit with a seat swap request in many years.

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I see my thread has been moved, so I guess I'll see how everyone (not just UA) fared in 2010! Looking forward to some good stories! UA of course makes you pay for E+ and also has the UDU (Unlimited Domestic Upgrade) so seat swaps may be quite quiet on UA.

Funny stuff!

“He’s sitting up there. In the bulkhead.”
You learned that word from me, I thought.

Did a seat swap last week.. it was weird. We had tickets to 9D, 9E, and 9F. We arrived with my two small kids, and there are two adults sitting in our seats. They had to move out to 9A, 9B, and 9C, together with a single individual. They did not look happy.. but we had a seat assignment, and with two small children we needed to sit together.

I have a good one from November.

One of my very tall high school students was in the Exit Window seat and I was in the aisle. A young woman is assigned the middle of exit row and her boyfriend (I assume since they were all over each other at the gate) asks my student and I if we will move to his non-reclining middle in front of the Exit row on the other side of the plane.

We both say no politely. They don't ask the people in his row to move.

She proceeds to be as obnoxious as possible, pushing and shoving both of us and shouting across the plane to him throughout the flight. They continually get up to make out on the plane. The FAs send them back to their seats multiple times. When we finally land the people in all of the seats around us are making comments about government mandated birth control. By the end of the flight I am glad neither of us moved or the other might have been seated next to their own live adult entertainment.

While we are waiting for the rest of my students the guy detours to our group and slams the back of my knees with his duffle bag and then keeps walking and laughs. After explaining to my high school students that no, you can't just go beat someone in an airport for doing that, we watched the strap on his bag break and his personal items fall out.

I don't think we were in the wrong by not giving up our seats and am not sure how we could have better handled it. The FAs attempted to quiet and control them but it was a full flight so moving her wasn't an option and instead we got lots of apologies.

I'd have probably have been proactive on that one, and asked the person in the boyfriend's row nearest me if he wanted to swop with the lady so she could be with her boyfriend, explaining you have to sit with your student! Ok, middle seats suck, but middle exit row might be better, depending on the aircraft. Female passenger could hardly turn down such a 'kind' offer after making a big deal about it, and she loses her exit row seat to boot :) Passive aggressive? Moi??? ;)

Karma!

Way to be a good role model! I know a bunch of teacher friends that do not have the self control you do. Bravo sir or Maam!

Being the jerk
 

Sometime in early 2010, I had booked a flight with 2 segments, and booked a window seat in the E+ on both flights. On my first leg I was asked by the FA if I would mind swapping with "mom flying with multiple kids" and basically my choice was "swap to a middle seat" , or "window seat by the kid." I chose "swap to the middle" as the lesser of two evils. However, not being able to lean on anything I was unable to sleep.

Enter the second flight. I board as soon as I can, tuck myself into my lovely 7A window seat (I think it was 7A anyway) buckle in, and try to get some sleep. A bit later a couple comes in and sits in B and C. The male of the party makes a joke to me about how he would really like the window seat and I told him that I had given up my window seat on a previous flight and had no intention of giving up the window seat on this flight.

I keep my eyes closed trying to get some sleep and hear a couple of times "nah - he already said he won't move." I'm wondering why it's such a big deal to this guy that I won't give up my seat to him - I mean WTH!?!? it's MY seat!!

Then the guy with 7C shows up and asks the guy already sitting in 7C to move. The guy in 7C, who is holding a 7A boarding pass explains that the jerk sitting in the window seat (me) won't move.

At this point, confident that the airline had screwed us all over, I pull out my boarding pass with 7E in big letters on it and suddenly it's all in perspective. A quick move and profuse apologies seemed to smooth things over, but I bet I have been the villain in some retellings of this particular "Rude Seat Swapping Story."

In 2003 I was vacationing in Austrialia. I had a flight from Sydney to Gold Coast with a window seat. When I boarded there was a couple already in my row, all over each other, and in my window seat and the middle seat. I told him he was in my seat and he didn't care and wasn't going to move. I pushed and he asked why I needed the window so badly. I was about to call the FA, but instead I just told him if I didn't have the window I'd get sick and barf on him. They relented. When I first started flying, I did need the window seat for that reason, but now I'm good. ;)

FA's have little ability to do anything unless you actually make a complaint. Should someone be shoving you and disobeying their orders be sure to ask if the captain has been notified and that you're afraid for your safety. You could also ask to have the police involved. If you complain, they have to do something. If you all just make passive aggressive comments about government birth control, the FA's have no win situation. Nothing positive is going to happen to them by making an issue of it.

I don't see why this needs a thread. I had this happen yesterday. Someone was in my seat. I actually sat one row back from my seat as I wasn't paying attention and just saw the open seat. I realized my mistake before someone showed up.

I asked the person in my seat, are you XXB? She said oh no, I'm one row in front but I wanted to sit next to my friend. I had a choice of saying yes or no and if they didn't move I could get the FA. No thread needed.

I quite enjoy these threads!!

My story.....

I was flying back from AMS to LGW in BA's Club Europe last June. I checked in online at T-24 as soon as it opened and had the choice of virtually every seat in the Club Europe Cabin (Only 1A&B had gone) - so I bagged 1E.

Got on the plane and settled in, and was stuck into my book while waiting for boarding to finish. I was dimly aware of the arrival of the passenger in 1C when they chucked their bag on the seat... and a couple of minutes later heard a loud voice say "I'm sure she'll move for you dear!" I looked up to see two dragons glaring at me - one was obviously my seat mate, the other her travelling companion who clearly (from the comment and the fact that she hadn't moved down the cabin) wanted to sit together.

I looked back and said politely, "If that comment was directed at me, I'm afraid I don't want to move - when I checked in I had the choice of just about every seat in the cabin and this is the one I wanted to sit in the most, so Sorry - but no!" The ladies then had one of those private conversations that are loud enough for everyone else to hear about inconsiderate young people with no respect for their elders (nice of them to describe a 53 year old as young!!), and then I realised that seatmate was proposing to get her friend to sit in the middle (blocked) seat between us.

At that point I caught the eye of the stewardess and she came over to see what was going on.... and told them in no uncertain terms, that the middle seat was blocked off for passengers comfort - and could only be used if both the aisle and window passengers agreed to it.. The dragons then looked at me expectantly again - and as they had been so rude - I said no again - explaining that if I wanted to sit 3 abreast i wouldn't have bothered paying to travel in Club!

The stewardess then sugggested that they ask the companion' seat mate if he was prepared to swap seats (he was in in 6E), but they said that my seatmate didn't want to sit all the way back there... (neither did I honeybunch!!)

Anyway companion was told to go and take her seat, and dragon 1 threw herself into her seat - and proceeed to glower at me for the rest of the trip as well as fill up the middle seat with her bag, and tutted and glowered at me when I asked the steward serving us for drinks and responded to his questions.

As we were leaving the plane - I couldn't resist saying to her that had they actually asked me directly to change in a pleasant tone - I might have considered it if they had a good reason for sitting together in the front row, but the way they had gone about it had ensured that there was no way on God's earth that I was moving out of that seat!!

And all this drama for an approximately 42-minute flight. :) Goodness.

I'm quite willing to swap to accommodate couples or families as long as I'm asked first and the result doesn't land me in a middle seat. I grow completely unwilling when a swap is performed pre-emptively (e.g., I find someone in my seat) or the other party assumes I'll be willing to compromise my comfort to enhance theirs.

I was sitting in an Aisle seat on an AS flight (SEA-ANC) when an FA asked if myself or the guy sitting in the window would mind switching to the middle seat in the row behind us so a mother and child (8-10ish) could sit together. The guy in the window wanted nothing to do with it, so I bit. I ended up sitting between a pretty nice older couple.

Would I ever choose to sit in a middle seat given the choice? Of course not. But I honestly don't understand why so many people make such a big deal about switching seats. Granted, I completely understand switching an aisle for aisle, window for window etc. I flew LHR-DFW with my SO in AA J and we both had Aisle seats. (My SO having a "middle row" aisle) and neither of the people sitting next to us were willing to switch seats. My SO was about 3 rows ahead of me on the aisle side away from my row. (I apologize for not having these seat numbers and making this slightly more complicated than it needs to be) Did either of us cause a scene? Of course not, 1 request to each person is all we asked and let it go.

Personally I'll almost always give up my seat so people can sit together. Do I really want to sit next to someone knowing they have someone special on the plane elsewhere? Not really. However, I understand if someone who is 6'7" doesn't want that bulkhead seat, but situations like that aside, sometimes I just wonder...

(And yes I do have preferences on seat selection on my flights depending on carrier, aircraft, etc. but I don't mind giving up some/all of those preferences as long as you don't downgrade my class of service ;-) )

I'm quite claustrophobic, and really get quite anxious if I am 'trapped' in a middle or a window seat. I have no qualms about switching between e.g. row 21 and row 22 aisle seats (provided the person in the middle seat isn't 65 stone and encroaching - another story for another time!) but I won't swop to a middle or window (and will explain why if pressed). However, I am with the 'you had better ask nicely tho!' crowd - be rude or presumptive, and you will be met with an altogether different approach!

Thanks, this made me laugh. The irony of you denigrating this thread and its contributors while simultaneously joining them is hilarious. I think I will add here that I don't see why someone needs to post comments in a thread for which they don't see the need.

OTOH: +1 ^:)

I also agree that somewhere approaching 100% of my willingness to help in situations like this depend on the way I'm asked.

I'm with emma69 (well, not with her, but I agree with her). And if it's a short flight (less than 2 hours) where good views are expected then I'll even consider a swap to a window.

Bit if I'm not asked politely (and so far I always have been) then forget it!