Plane passenger praised for refusing to swap seats with 'entitled' couple

Daily Mail​

6 hours ago

Plane seating can bring out the combative side in people, as one couple found out on a recent flight.
The loved-up pair had hoped to persuade a fellow passenger to switch from his allocated spot...but their pleas fell on deaf ears.
Documented in a recent Reddit thread, a 29-year-old tourist revealed how he was approached by an 'entitled' boyfriend who assumed he would be okay with moving so he could spend the flight next to his girlfriend.
However, the man's plan came unstuck when his co-passenger apparently wasn't so keen on the idea.
The man being asked explained his reasons for not being interested in seat hopping in the Reddit post, saying: 'I was flying home from a work trip and had booked an aisle seat because I'm tall and need legroom.
'As soon as I sit down, a guy comes over and says, "Hey bro, can we switch? My girlfriend's by the window and I'm in the middle back there."'
He said it only took a quick glance at the seat in the offing to realise that this wasn't a deal he was prepared to make.
The flyer wrote: 'I glance at his seat, literally the second-worst spot on the plane.
'I say, "Sorry, I booked this one specifically'" He gets annoyed and says, "Dude, I'm just trying to sit next to my girl."'
The traveller then being asked to change places explained that he said while he empathised with the tourist wanting to sit next to his partner, he wasn't going anywhere.
As the verbal volleying continued, he was told: 'You're sitting alone, man. What do you need the aisle for?'
His answer was short and sweet: 'Because I paid for it. That's how seats work.'
It didn't go down well and he was branded an 'inconsiderate loner'.
The man in the wanted seat said his reaction was that the slur was 'amusing, given he tried to guilt-trip me into accepting a less desirable seat.
'The flight attendant eventually had to instruct him to take his seat or face removal.'
He dropped the mic in his post by adding: 'Couples don't get priority over people who planned ahead. Sorry not sorry.'
Standing firm in the face of the couple saw the man garner praise, with one person writing: 'In the airplane seat war card game, inconsiderate loners beat inconsiderate losers every time. Especially the ones too cheap to buy an aisle seat.'
Others shared their own stories of plane seat battles.
Earlier this month, a flight attendant has revealed the secret trick she uses to 'punish' passengers who refuse to swap seats.
Mitra Amirzadeh, an Orlando-based flight attendant, revealed she has her own secret method of dealing with difficult passengers.
The cabin crew member claimed she doesn't always get involved in seat swapping dilemmas, but if it involves a child needing to sit with a parent she will step in.
Mitra revealed that asking the passenger who is refusing to move seats, to look after the child, is a very quick way to get them to move seats fast.
She told the The Wall Street Journal: 'I have said before, "OK, so you're going to watch the toddler?
'"You'll want their snacks and their colouring books then, because they're going to need that".'
She claimed this quickly motivates the passenger to allow the child to be seated with their parent.
However Mitra, who is also a union rep for an airline that charges passengers for advance seat selection, said she doesn't want passengers to be 'forced' to swap seats if they have paid for it.
She continued: 'The next time you feel yourself getting angry or getting frustrated that you're not getting the seat you want, you need to remind yourself that you didn't pay to pick your seat. Otherwise, you'd be in it.'
Mitra revealed that the frustrating seat-swapping drama occurs on roughly 80 per cent of her monthly flights.
It comes after travel expert Jamie Fraser, of Wild Packs American summer camp, offered his top tips on how to respond to a seat swapping request with proper etiquette.
His advice comes in the wake of a viral incident involving a woman who was filmed by a passenger and berated online after refusing to give up her seat to a crying child - resulting in her losing her job.
Jennifer Castro, a 29-year-old bank employee from Brazil, became the centre of an internet firestorm after a row on a GOL Airlines domestic flight in December 2024, and has since filed charges against the airline and the passenger who filmed her.
According to YouGov, a mere six per cent of Brits would not switch seats under any circumstances, even though this could cause a disturbance.