Passenger Kicks Off Debate After He Didn’t Let Woman In Front Of Him Recline Her Seat

May 04, 2023 by apost team

One traveler has sparked a furious debate concerning reclining seats on a plane after he recounted his experience with a disgruntled passenger on a flight.

In a Reddit post shared on Apr. 25, 2023, the man started off by explaining that because he is so tall, it can be hard for him to get comfortable on a plane.

“I (25M) am around 6’5 or 196 cm, but my legs are long. Normally I purchase economy plane seats because I have no issue being uncomfortable for a while, especially for shorter flights,” he wrote.

He said on a recent four-hour flight, he found himself sitting with his knees “crammed into the seat in front of me.”

“The passenger directly in front of me tried to recline, but realized that my knees were preventing her from doing so. She turned around, gave me a dirty look, and attempted to recline again with more force. I was a little annoyed, but apologized and told her I could not move my legs out of the way without encroaching on the spaces beside me,” he continued.

Still dissatisfied, the woman accused him of doing so on purpose “just because I wanted more room for myself, calling me an asshole and saying that if I could not fit into a normal economy plane seat that I should pay extra for an emergency exit seat so that people around me can have more free space,” he wrote.

He went on to share his true feelings about reclining seats on a plane, which went on to ignite some serious arguments in the comments.

“If I’m honest, I feel that people who recline their seats in economy are annoying and inconsiderate, so I didn’t exactly bend over backwards to accommodate for her,” he said.

The man then gave readers more context to the situation and explained:

“No, I did not check to see if this flight in particular had extra emergency exit seats. Like I said, usually I do not feel the need. I do not often run into issues with seats beside me, although this issue with people in front of me not being able to recline has occurred before, though not always, and has earned me some dirty looks from those in front of me in the past.”

He then asked readers whether or not he should have paid “extra for seats with more leg room so that people in front of me can recline even though this is not always a problem?”

The post set off a firestorm of opinions in the comments section, with more than 3,300 readers throwing in their two cents worth on the issue. Many tall folks recounted their own disappointing experiences on flights.

“I’m a big guy and it’s a common problem. They squeezed every inch out of those aircraft and it’s uncomfortable. She should have been more understanding of reality. Maybe you could have gotten an isle seat but you paid for your seat as well and are entitled to your space,” one commenter wrote. Another user responded, “Noo tall lady here whose knee got destroyed by an aircraft trolley. This is not a solution to sit in the aisle seat.”

A third user told the man, “You are intruding into the space around you by making sure the person in front of you can’t recline their seat. They’re allowed to do that. You are too big for the seat. … If you don’t fit in the seat for whatever reason then you need to buy a seat that you do fit in.”

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Many commenters also butted heads over proper etiquette when it comes to reclining seats. Many said doing so doesn’t really make a drastic improvement to a traveler’s comfort and so should not be done, while others argued they suffered from health conditions that required them to recline or feel the unwanted negative effects.

“When I have attempted to recline a seat, I never felt a noticeable difference. But when a seat is reclined back towards me, it feels like I’ve lost inches of space,” one user wrote, while another said, “My back is absolutely murdered by airline seats and I need to recline at least an inch or two to not be in pain.”

After one user suggested others do as he does, that is, asking the person behind you before reclining, the commenter was met with derision. “This is absolutely ridiculous. In my 30 years of flying I’ve never once had a person ask before reclining. That is not common etiquette at all,” the response read.

Many users piped in to say that reclining one’s seat isn’t impolite or poor etiquette.

“No, you’re supposed to recline, that’s why they make reclining seats,” one user argued, while another agreed and said, “I do not mind AT all when ppl recline. It is so weird to me that ppl think this is some sort of faux pas.” Others, meanwhile, felt the complete opposite. One user said, “Etiquette to me is no one reclines,” while another said, “Unpopular opinion but reclining the seat full back is just rude these days.”

However, the commenters were all in agreement that, in the end, the fault lay with the airlines. One user summed it up:

“At this point, airline seats are poorly designed for anyone larger than the average American 10-year-old.”

Which way do you swing on this issue? Do you feel it’s impolite or rude to recline your seat on a plane? Let us know and be sure to pass this on to family and friends to see what they think as well.