The etiquette of reclining seats on flights

Murphy_The_Cat

The etiquette of reclining seats on planes

I've just read this and had a chuckle. I'm a big bloke who cringes when the seat in front of me gets reclined backwards and I have 100% sympathy for anyone who uses a knee defender type product.

Please bring back the happy days when we had a bit more room in Cattle Class and having the seat in front of you reclined still left you with space !

whatmichaelsays

Murphy_The_Cat wrote: »

Please bring back the happy days when we had a bit more room in Cattle Class and having the seat in front of you reclined still left you with space !

Presumably you're prepared to pay for it?

Taking an inch here and there means airlines can add that priceless extra row of seats. Unless passengers are collectively prepared to pay for them to be removed (and the growth of low cost airlines suggests otherwise), they're not going anywhere.

As for reclining. I tend to avoid it on short haul but on long haul, it's very difficult not to. I wouldn't blame anyone for doing it.

Murphy_The_Cat

whatmichaelsays wrote: »

Presumably you're prepared to pay for it?

Taking an inch here and there means airlines can add that priceless extra row of seats. Unless passengers are collectively prepared to pay for them to be removed (and the growth of low cost airlines suggests otherwise), they're not going anywhere.

As for reclining. I tend to avoid it on short haul but on long haul, it's very difficult not to. I wouldn't blame anyone for doing it.

I liked the days of "more room in Coach" which was AA's marketing when they took out some seat rows to give the extra seating space.

IIRC, those were the times before the government started to treat airline passengers as cash cows.

The 'smallest' that I've travelled in is 31" seat pitch. I really wouldn't fancy the idea of anything smaller than that, so, yes, I suppose I am happy to pay for it.

Obviously_the_best

Being just over 6 foot, and having travelled for 5 hours in Thomson's 29" economy seat, with the one in front reclined, and still being fine, I personally think everyone's just being a little overdramatic.

Kedi_Yavrusu

The last flight I went on the seats were fixed. Problem solved as no-one can recline.

PeacefulWaters

Murphy_The_Cat wrote: »

I'm a big bloke who cringes when the seat in front of me gets reclined backwards

I always had you down as a petite middle-aged lady.

tamiami

To solve the problem why dont they have the reclined positon as the standard positon and if people want to sit upright they can!

Marmaduke123

I would much rather people in front of me didn't recline unless its night time, but I wouldn't complain if they did on a long haul flight. I think it's quite unnecessary on a short flight.

What really gets me is when people don't put their seats upright again when the food service arrives. It's virtually impossible to use the tray on the reclined seat and eat comfortably . On several occasions I've had to get the flight attendants to ask someone who is crouching forward to eat with their seat still reclined, to put it upright.

melanzana

I rarely, if ever recline on short haul. By the time I've read the inflight blurb, sorted out what grub I'll have and look out the window, then eat, drink, it's landing time anyway.

On longer flights, I turn around and peer over the seat back to say to the person behind that I'm about to recline the seat, and say is that ok?

They NEVER mind.

I think it's the sudden wham of the seat going back without a by your leave that really irritates people.

Just my view anyhow.

ferf1223

I'm 5'8" and fluffy...I can contain myself to my seat width, yes...in most economy configurations if the person in front reclines fully my knees are smashed up against the seat back. It's not just about being tall, specifically, it's overall bodily configuration. I have arrived with bruised knees more than once...the folks who slam the seat back the second they can, as far as they can, occasionally trying with all their might to go that little bit further (which they can't because hey, knees) with no regard for anyone else are not my friends. Most of them are the same passengers who leave their seat reclined when the meal is served...also while they are leaning forward or against the person next to them.

Based on my personal experiences, after the seat belt sign goes off I normally head for the loo (the anxiety of not being able to get up always has this effect on me)...at that point I have a look at the person behind me...their physical set-up. At that point I decide if I will recline at all. If I do, it's a tiny bit only. Including long-haul flights.

Now we almost always fly Virgin Premium Economy...our internal US flight on AA we've paid for the extra leg-room seats...too many bad experiences and being lucky enough to have enough disposable income to justify the additional cost = cannot be arsed to worry about /suffer a miserable flight... I have had flights where the person in front does not recline at all or only a bit...those flights have been as fine as an economy class flight can be...but the other times are what I remember most.

ferf1223

Marmaduke123 wrote: »

On several occasions I've had to get the flight attendants to ask someone who is crouching forward to eat with their seat still reclined, to put it upright.

Yes..one thing I notice that some FAs do, as they are asking what you would like to eat they will reach over and push the button and whack your seat forward if it's reclined. I like that. So much. AA does it, or they used to as it has been a couple of years.