If that were my seat, the poacher would have been moved by the cabin crew. Their battle, not mine.

In this situation I would have left it to the FA after the initial exchange. I would have walked away from the seat. Any request for me to give up my seat would have to come from the FA. It is not my job to deal with passengers...I pay to be one, not manage them.

huh?! For what??

I witnessed a similar incident a few years ago. Fortunately, it was a UA mainline flight, and the purser wasn't as intimidated. She told the poacher he could go back to his assigned seat or leave the airplane altogether. He went back to his seat.

I don't believe you'd risk your connection over principle.

I'd like to say I would, but I'd have done exactly what the OP did, but notify the FA when she came around for drinks what happened, and that I'd expect she writes it up.

Like moving a poacher (which should not take that long), keeping the flight on schedule is not my job either. :p

No flaming from Lori_Q. She knew what she was doing. I wouldn't have given up my seat so easily. If the involuntary downgrade had to happen for the reasons you stated (tight connection, etc.) I would have insisted on talking to the gate agent, gotten his or her name, and insisted that this be taken care of. Nicely, with a smile, but insistent.

I've never encountered a seat poacher. But I could never imagine giving up my seat (in any class) for someone who had their OWN assigned seat somewhere else. If they don't like their seat, they need to take it up with UA...not me.

Sorry for the OP....but you messed up.

Indeed. No flight has ever missed its slot due to complications during boarding. The folks who are tasked with keeping to schedule always succeed.

How about asking the FAs to make sure the poacher paid for the seat and made it clear to the lady that she would be charged for it? Perhaps that is a language she would understand?

I am a mostly sympathetic person, but I did think you are too kind-hearted and was taken for a ride. This doesn't strike me as the first time the person has done it, and I wouldn't want to enable her to continue to take advantage of others given her likely success rate.

I suppose for a short ride, I wouldn't mind as much (under an hour or two), but if I've paid for first class, I'm expecting the seat that I paid for. If she really needs a better seat, she would either pay for it, arrange it with flight attendants, or as a last resort, wait and ask if anyone would be kind enough to swap instead of just sitting on your seat. I'm unsympathetic to those who just takes what is others without the courtesy of asking.

That said, I'd either firmly say no, or ask the flight attendants to sort it out. I once witness a teenager sitting in her seat, refusing to move. Her family members are asking her to move, but she was definitely throwing a tantrum. Finally, after much delay and the announcement for everyone to be seated (after all the commotion), she finally stomped off to her assigned seat. That was as bad as I've seen it in terms of people not sitting in their assigned seats, and even then it was all in the same cabin class (let alone a different one). Ironically, I couldn't figure it out (and still couldn't), but the seat that teenager was poaching was a middle seat. Go figure.

Karma is bull.

But if it existed then it would come back to bite that poaching old bag right in the ***.

+1, couldn't agree more with your statement.

Exactly. It's the excuse suckers use to make themselves feel better about being suckers.

a bit harsh perhaps, but that old thief knew exactly what she was doing.