"The question I've never been able to get answered regarding seat kickers is this one: Does the person behind you have a right to demand that you not put your seat back?" asks Ron Lieber, a magazine writer who lives in Brooklyn. "Whose space is it, anyway?"
http://www.cnn.com/2000/TRAVEL/VIEWS.../26/index.html

I'm not that tall (5'8" or so) but I'm of the opinion that unless it's a trans-oceanic flight with the possibility of sleep or someone has medical problems with it, they shouldn't be allowed to recline. Ever.

Heck, there are some Delta configurations where my knees are digging into the seatback in front of me even when the person ahead of me has their seat full and upright. (I have long legs for someone my height) And I am quick to mention my kneecaps to anyone in front of me who digs their seat into my ACLs.

Just wanted to emphasize a point I made in a similar thread (regarding armrests) -- we all simply need to be cognizant of those around us!!!

As someone who is 6'1"/285, I can sympathize with tall individuals as well as wide individuals. However, as large as I am, I try my best not to intrude on others. I've had smaller people recline their seats with no regard to the fact that I'm crammed into the seat behind them. Now, I am not suggesting "kicking them in the back", even though I have been berated (literally with looks of disgust or rude comments) time after time for simply asking someone politely if they'd mind sitting upright.

At 6'1", believe me, I understand taller people wanting to recline their seats. Do they have the "air rights" above my lap? Perhaps... perhaps not...

After all, if someone uses the argument that the person in front of them is reclined, so what are you saying -- you want everyone behind you to recline their seat all the way to the rear of the aircraft? How does that effect the person in the emergency aisle or last row?! They cannot recline their seat even if they wanted to.

My point is this -- if you are taller, and notice the person behind you is also tall or large, to take notice of this. If you are smaller, again, take notice of the person behind you. Perhaps even some seat changes are the remedy...

Regardless, the simple solution is this -- Be cognizant of your fellow passengers!

I don't mind reclining, I am 6 ft, but once on an AA flight, I was eating dinner and the person in front decided to jerk back and spill some of my food, and almost force the tray into my stomach.. Now that's a problem.

I think all seats should have trays and video systems and what not, located in the armrests, so something you need is not attached on the back of someone else's seat.

I think the reclinability of seats should be linked to seat pitch. With any configuration where seat pitch is less than 34", seats should be blocked from reclining, as they are in front of exit rows. As the seat pitch increases, the amount of reclinability could be increased an equivalent amount. It is a simple adjustment. Thus, the new AA configuration could have some reclinability while the old one would not. And on UA, Y+ seating could have reclinability while the rest of coach would not.

If I do lean, I do it as stealthly as possable.

Freefaller12k

You betcha. I like waiting until they go to the lav and then when they get back - surprise!

i always turn around to see who is sitting behind me before reclining... if his/her knees are touching the seats, then i won�t push the button....

Ordinary common sense and consideration seem to be what is required, and what everyone here is recommending. On some planes that have trays in the arms it is impossible to get a tray out when the seat in front is reclined more than an inch.

There is hardly any instance where reclining as far as the seat goes is not a serious inconvenience to the person sitting behind. Therefore, it shouldn't be done. And when it is done, I think we shouldn't hesitate to point out the inconvenience.

I am 6'4" and almost never have a problem with people reclining (when the tray table is out it can be a bit of a problem if they move their seat up and down allot). However, I fly almost exclusively BA biz and coach. In BA coach I am easily able to extend my legs under the reclining seat back so that my knees are not up against it(only problem sometimes is the pax in front has stuffed a huge carry on way back under the seat in front of me AND is reclining leaving my legs no escape). In this situation I just don't feel that I am seriously inconveniencing anyone by reclining all the way as my own legs are not up against the seat in front of me (assuming they are not 7' tall or something and ofcourse the tray table caveat). Obviously when I am packed in tighter than any sardine deserves it is a different story.

For transat flights for the big and tall I recommend BA whole heatedly (at least an aisle or window seat at any rate, center seats are killers). Also I hear that they are coming out with premium economy for people who want that bit more room but can't afford Biz class fares, still they are more expensive than regular coach. Any airline suggestions for the big and tall for domestic coach travel? Wasn't an airline recently running ads where they were throwing rows of seats out of their plane to promote the extra space they were adding?

I always keep my knees wedged right against he seat in front of me for the first 20-30 minutes of the flight. That way, when the person in front of me tries to recline, their seat won't move. They usually fiddle with their button for a few seconds and then give up, thinking that their seat is broken or doesn't recline. They rarely try again throughout the flight.

Sneaky maybe, but it seems to work like a champ!

In my experience, seat kickers tend to be male, adult, and short--and only seem to do it when my seat is in its fully upright position.

A few months ago, about halfway through a completely full UA Sh*ttle flight (all 31" seat pitch in Y), the woman behind me asked if I would move my seat forward so she could feed her infant. OK, that's reasonable.


My height isn't in my legs, and UA's seatback-mounted tray tables, when lowered, move very little, despite what the seat does.

Excuse me, person-in-front, would you mind reclining so my in-seat video screen will be positioned at a better viewing angle?

I always look to see who's behind me. If it's a big fella, I almost never recline. If it's not, then I might. I do try to avoid going all the way back, and most of the time I don't do it at all.

That's in coach. FC is a different story. There, all the rules are off. I wouldn't mind seeing coach seats not recline.

I think that on red-eye flights, we can all accept fully reclined seats. Particularly as there is no meal service in Y, and many people intend to sleep for the whole five or six hours. I for one have already taken my sleeping pill in the lounge, and am barely conscious by take-off. The last thing I do as we lift off is recline the seat until I am awoken by an FA during final approach.

dude, I have no idea how you sleep on a plane... I've only ever flown Economy, and I've NEVER been able to "fall" asleep... I'll get 20 minute naps, but I always wake up and my neck always hurts like heck... dunno abonut sleeping in Biz or First... might be a lot easier...


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