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Don’t Want Me to Recline My Airline Seat? You Can Pay Me

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Re: Don’t Want Me to Recline My Airline Seat? You Can Pay Me

#31

Post by finder83 »

I feel like this whole issue was largely resolved by Jet Blue who gives a couple of more inches of space. Even if someone reclines, I felt like I wasn't being invaded by the person's seat. Of course now they charge for higher legroom seats...so essentially Jet Blue has done exactly what the author states.

As a slightly above average 5'11" guy, I feel though that the average coach airline seat is designed as a torture device. The arms are too low to properly rest my shoulders (forcing me essentially to either severely slouch or fold my arms the entire flight), the seats are too close to fully extend my legs, the seat itself has a slight incline so that your knees get particularly more uncomfortable, and the space to the next person (particularly with shared armrests, and overweight people) requires me to slightly bend away from them. All of this combines to muscle cramps in the back for a couple of days after flying. It's really a miserable experience that I feel could be largely fixed by the airlines, if they weren't in debt, greedy, or dieing. I don't really blame the people in front of me for wanting to recline (I often do a couple of inches, though never the full length). I blame the airlines (and in essence the manufacturers, though I'm convinced they build what the airlines are demanding) for designing horribly uncomfortable seats with no space.

Re: Don’t Want Me to Recline My Airline Seat? You Can Pay Me

#32

Post by jug6ernaut »

cmiles74 wrote: post #23

This all seems beside the point, the airlines have simply placed the seats far too close together. Perhaps the whining , bad press and diverted flights will encourage them to spread them a little further apart.

"the airlines have simply placed the seats far too close together"

Not siding with the airlines, but the seat spacing likely directly correlates to the ticket costs. Want more space? you will likely have to pay for it.

Re: Don’t Want Me to Recline My Airline Seat? You Can Pay Me

#33

Post by wiredfool »

crazypyro wrote: post #6
67726e wrote: post #4

How about you pay me to recline into my lap. I'm a tall guy. Each and every time I take a flight someone tries to recline because my lap is a seemingly good spot to rest. However given my stature I can just push their right back up into it's upright position with my knees. There isn't much to be done about that, is there?

The reclining feature doesn't go "into" your lap. No need for a ridiculous hyperbole. Either way, the person paid for that seat and if the airlines choose to put in a reclining feature, your anger should be directed at them and not attempting to harass the person merely trying to use the seat they paid for.

> The reclining feature doesn't go "into" your lap.

No, it tends to go into my patellar tendon. I can move my knee out of the way with just a little bit of warning, but slamming back your seat into my knees is not exactly a friendly thing to do.

Re: Don’t Want Me to Recline My Airline Seat? You Can Pay Me

#34

Post by randallsquared »

crazypyro wrote: post #25
67726e wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The idea that someone gets to invade my personal space is rather selfish and not a valid option. If I don't want you imposing on me, then I will make sure that damn well doesn't happen.

Sorry, it's not your personal space. The airline you purchased a ticket on sold that space to the passenger in front of you. Don't like it? There are plenty of other options in which you can expend your energy/time/money to get a seat that suits your comfort. You don't have the right to take away what the person in front of you bought from the airline. It is stealing, plain and simple. They may choose to donate it to…

There's stealing involved, but it's the airline that committed it. They sold the right to recline to the person in front of 67726e, and the right to be in the same space to 67726e. The right to occupy the same space was sold twice to different people, and at least one was a fraudulent sale.

Re: Don’t Want Me to Recline My Airline Seat? You Can Pay Me

#35

Post by notahacker »

randallsquared wrote: post #14

The real problem, then, is that the airline seems to be selling the right to sit with unsquashed knees and the right to recline your seat into someone else's knees, and since it rarely comes to an argument, they can get away with double-dipping.

I have yet to see a regular airline ticket that guarantees the right to sufficient knee-room. On the contrary, most airlines actively encourage people to pay small premiums for exit row seats or large premiums for business class if they anticipate needing an above-average amount of space to sit in comfort.

Re: Don’t Want Me to Recline My Airline Seat? You Can Pay Me

#38

Post by mischanix »

crazypyro wrote: post #16
mischanix wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The reclining feature doesn't go into your lap. As a tall person, especially on regional jets: yes, yes it does.

Okay, if that's how you feel, there are plenty of options. Choose a different airline, take your chances that someone reclines in their seat, sit in the front row, check in earlier or pay more money. Those are all valid options. The idea that you somehow control the right of the person in front of you to recline (a right which they actually paid money to use) is rather selfish and not a valid option.

To add, I'm personally not bothered by it. I find it impossible to work or sleep on flights and have chalked off time spent on airliners as a (relatively) short period of being mildly uncomfortable for the purpose of getting somewhere quickly.

Re: Don’t Want Me to Recline My Airline Seat? You Can Pay Me

#39

Post by virmundi »

cmiles74 wrote: post #23

This all seems beside the point, the airlines have simply placed the seats far too close together. Perhaps the whining , bad press and diverted flights will encourage them to spread them a little further apart.

They don't care. They move as a group. They may collude openly or not, but in the end they hold all the cards. They have little incentive to reduce prices or improve conditions. The only way they will improve is if either a massive is issue arises or more competition enters from other vectors.

Re: Don’t Want Me to Recline My Airline Seat? You Can Pay Me

#40

Post by virmundi »

cmiles74 wrote: post #23

This all seems beside the point, the airlines have simply placed the seats far too close together. Perhaps the whining , bad press and diverted flights will encourage them to spread them a little further apart.

They don't care. They move as a group. They may collude openly or not, but in the end they hold all the cards. They have little incentive to reduce prices or improve conditions. The only way they will improve is if either a massive is issue arises or more competition enters from other vectors.
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