Bolding mine. C'mon folks. We are going around the bend here. If a handful of nuts has been elevated to a NEED, we are losing perspective. We can debate all day long about the "right" way for her to have handled the situation, but putting a potential health risk at the same level as the "need" for a handful of nuts I think we have lost perspective.

Well, the FA clearly didn't show any concern for the people who pay her salary. What she did was completely wrong. I suspect it was her desire to sit in the F seat combined with a lack of concern for anyone else - including her coworkers on the flight and the paying customer next to her.

The correct action would have been to go to the back of the plane and sit there.

The 2nd-best action would have been to quietly talk to the lead FA prior to departure and explain the allergy. In that case, the (working) FA might have been able to arrange seating so she wasn't exposed...or simply not serve nuts that day at all.

I understand the seriousness of the allergy - just not the self-centered behavior of the nonrev FA.

For a handful of nuts a non-rev, who is otherwise entitled to sit where she is, should go to the back of the plane? Or not even get on the plane? Mentioning an serious allergy is self-centered? I don't think so.

OP was fine. I might be frustrated too and I have a food allergy. But people don't all communicate the same way. They may stumble over their words. And sometimes they just have a bad day. A little grace goes a long way.

So, flying in F for free is a valid need for the non-rev, but getting the nuts that you paid for when buying an F ticket is less valid?

Yes.

Nonrev.

Was that a trick question? :confused: I'm surprised this is even a discussion.

No. I never suggested that (and haven't read the whole thread to see if others have).

The way it was handled was incredibly self-centered.

Mentioning it to the working FA ahead of time would have been appropriate.

This isn't even about the allergy. It's about an airline employee grossly overstepping the bounds of courtesy and expecting a paying customer to comply with a request made in an extremely rude manner. :td:

If a fellow passenger politely informs me of a peanut allergy, then absolutely yes...I'm willing to show a little grace and not eat nuts. Really, the nuts themselves (and me giving them up) are not the issue.

Nutty person: "Don't eat what you want. DYKWIA?!??!

Non-Nutty person: "Could you kindly do me a favor, because I have a problem..."

Nutty person: "I think I'll get a job where I am exposed to pathogens all day long! I'll make sure everybody knows about my problem..."

Non-Nutty person: "I think I will isolate myself from environments which might be dangerous for me. When I can't, I'll plan properly and handle myself with grace."

You haven't traveled with me, then. Twice I have been sittting in 1B at the front of the F cabin and a passenger with a large (and I mean large) emotional support dog has arrived and sat down in 1F across the aisle, but with the dog lying on his feet and the feet of the person sitting in 1E (what a saint!) and breathing out halitosis, expelling bodily fumes and spreading allergen dander every time it got up to shake itself.

When I'm in paid F, I don't expect to be inconvenienced in this way, and certainly not have to deal with it on a flight lasting several hours. Nuts I am fine with, but not dogs. On both occasions I have had the person re-seated before the flight took off, but the way of doing that is not to confront the person but to speak quietly and calmly to a FA.

Can you kindly share what you say to the FA that so effectively gets the offender reseated rather than you? Thanks!

This.

Something alone the lines of "I'm very sorry, I have an allergy to dogs. If this one remains as close to me as it is now, I will be extremely ill, and I wouldn't want to put you to the inconvenience of taking care of me when that happens. I wonder if you'd mind very much asking the passenger in 1F to move to another seat further away from me?"

On both occasions, the FA has deftly managed to get passengers to trade seats so that I could be accommodated, and the dog ended up in 3F. I think the fact that I boarded the plane before the other guy arrived was helpful. I don't know what would happen if I arrived after the other guy had already taken his seat. Another reason for being one of the gate lice! ;)

Thanks. I applaud your success and the graceful way you approach the task!

I agree with you, except in the instances of health or safety. I remain astonished that people actually believe the OP should have demanded and/or eaten the nuts because he was a paying customer and she was an employee riding up front.

Did she handle it terribly? Absolutely. If she had asked him not to eat something because she didn't like the smell, or something otherwise less impactful than a serious health risk? Of course she'd be far out of line.

She obviously did not uphold her service responsibility, but that's irrelevant. OP had every right to be dissapointed, and she obviously did not handle the situation professionally. However, I suspect ALL that are siding with him do not have friends/relatives with a nut allergy. It's extremely serious, and I can fully comprehend her immediate reaction of fear.

She should have moved because an F passenger wanted to eat his 10 nuts in a tiny glass bowl? I guess I'm completely different up front. I complain a lot about service standards, attitudes, etc with UA. But if someone near me has an allergy to a non-essential snack, I simply believe it's proper to cede to their needs- regardless of whether I paid more. The thing lost here is that she had every right to be sitting where she was, regardless of what we may think.

I'm right with you if (a) it's any kind of paying customer (e.g., not an employee...I don't mean miles vs. upgrade vs. cash) and (b) the person is halfway courteous about it.

This entire post is nuts. :rolleyes: A FA that can not serve nuts due to an allergy. Good luck with that. Who at UA is doing the hiring? I guess it is not a brain surgeon. :confused: A FA is to provide service to PAX and that includes those that want nuts during the service. Period.

Everyone have a great Weekend. :) I just stubbed my toe and it hurts. :mad:

I shall survive. I think anyone looking to be a FA should be able to handle nuts during the flight. I mean nothing sarcastic with that statement. If you have a shellfish allergy, do not work in a seafood restaurant. If you do not like smoke, do not work in a Las Vegas Casino, etc, etc.