RANT: I don't care if you want to sit next to your kids on the airplane

[gwynne]

cripe. I didn't know claustrophobia was such an epidemic in this country. seems like have the people on this forum are claustrophobic. dang.

Really?
I think personal responsibility is the key. I'm not judging other travelers' plans and preferences.

 

[Goofy_Disney_Dad]

I can't wait to round up the grandkids for my next flight. Free first class here we come! I had no idea it was supposed to work this way...

 

[mom2rtk]

(OK; I did not offer to switch once when DH and i were in first and hte kids were in coach together,but by then they were over 8 and I was not worried about them at all lol ).

Wait a minute..... I saw that movie. You didn't leave anyone home alone did you?

 

[gwynne]

I can't wait to round up the grandkids for my next flight. Free first class here we come! I had no idea it was supposed to work this way...

I hear there's lots of free food behind that curtain, too! Enjoy!

 

[Goofy_Disney_Dad]

I hear there's lots of free food behind that curtain, too! Enjoy!

Should I mention my granddaughter's allergy to white wine before or after we're moved?

 

[gwynne]

Should I mention my granddaughter's allergy to white wine before or after we're moved?

 

[morgan98]

cripe. I didn't know claustrophobia was such an epidemic in this country. seems like half the people on this forum are claustrophobic. dang.

I am not sure what everyone is calling "claustrophobia" is the true clinical definition. I think it has more to do with the fact that flying has people crammed in like sardines. Quite frankly, it does not matter AT ALL why one chooses to not give up there seat.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying when asked someone needs to respond like a rude jerk, but a simple NO will suffice. I don't understand why some people feel that the people who are asking others to move are owed any kind of explanation. They are not.

 

[mjkacmom]

cripe. I didn't know claustrophobia was such an epidemic in this country. seems like half the people on this forum are claustrophobic. dang.

Actually, I suspect it's pretty common, along the lines of a fear of heights, or a fear of flying (unfortunately I have all three). I always get an aisle seat at the movies, plays - heck, I need to sleep on the side of the bed closest to the door! I dread visiting family on Long Island because I know we will always get stuck in a few miles of traffic on the Cross Bronx Expressway getting to the bridge.

 

[Turn the Page]

On our last flight with the kids we were a bit nervous about this very issue. Due to the kids coming back home with the grandparents they were on a separate reservation as we were so we couldn't check in early because the system thought they were unaccompanied minors. Do not even get me started on Delta's reservation policies, that is a rant for another day. However, we were worried we wouldn't be near the kids.
DD9 would have been fine separated from us. She has flown quite a few times in the past and this plane, though we didn't know it until we got on, was a model that had the little tv screens in each seat and she had headphones that were compatible so she just plugged in her headphones and had a blast watching something. I poked her at one point to see if she wanted anything when the drink cart came by and that is when we discovered she dearly loves the biscoff cookies. Other than that I didn't hear a peep out of her the entire flight. I was a bit worried she was having too much fun to get her off the plane but she did.

We ended up with DH being right next to DD5 and I was right across the aisle from DD9 but we were separated from the other 2 by two rows I think but they may have been right behind us. Anyway, it worked out fine.

The flight back however, besides being a comedy of errors, featured a 2 year old that was allowed to chug a 20 oz bottle of diet coke and let me tell you when the pilot finally said we were ready for take off and everyone had to sit in their seats with their seatbelts on that kid SCREAMED for like 20 minutes or more. I mean kicking her parents, scratching them, slapping them, and all while screeching at the top of her lungs. At one point the mom hit the call button for the FA so she could explain that her DD has never thrown a fit on a plane before. Well lady, she is now so that doesn't really matter does it? DH and I were directly across the aisle from the screaming toddler that time. At one point the mom behind the screamer offered the screamers mom some snacks or other things to try and calm her down and the mom waved her off saying "oh she doesn't need anything, she's fine."

Hey, I get it. You're on a airplane, there are only so many things you can do to try to calm your child and sometimes it's just not possible. But we aren't talking about an infant whose ears are bothering them here. This was a toddler who was allowed to kick and scream and carry on for a good 20 minutes while we sat on the runway. I will never understand why parents don't try to to at least muffle their kids screaming. I'm not saying put a pillow over their face and cut off airflow or anything but really, you can't cover their mouth with your hand to muffle it a bit at least?

 

[mnrose]

Nothing wrong with OP wanting to keep her paid-for premium seat, even if Mom and kid originally had good seats on a flight cancelled due to the snowstorm.



Nobody ever demanded that I swap seats, but it happened to DH. We were flying back from Denver, and while checking in at the airport kiosk about 90 minutes ahead of time, a screen asked if we'd like to upgrade to First Class for $99 each. We figured, why not? and got separate seats in FC. A guy boarded and ordered DH to move back to coach. Apparently he was a Lifetime Triple Platinum Deluxe Diamond Encrusted Elite, and he wanted his female companion to sit up front with him. He was probably aware that the FC seat next to him was still open earlier in the day, but was too cheap to pay the upgrade for her. A flight attendant denied his command, and he and the woman stormed off the plane raising holy hell. Eventually another person took the guy's FC seat.



(By the way, a 9 page NEW thread!!! I had to look twice to make sure it wasn't a zombie.)

If you ever want to amuse yourself, go to the FlyerTalk website and pick any airline you want. You'll find a whole host of complaining posts from mega frequent flyers who don't get free upgrades anymore because (gasp) airlines have figured out that people will pay for them instead and are offering these seats to other people on a paid basis. The derisively refer to these flyers as "kettles" (as in backwards people who don't know how to behave in the rarefied air of first class...LOL). I frequently will upgrade to first class (paid) because I enjoy the extra room, and more relaxed environment. I love that these seats are now available for somewhat reasonable prices. We are going on vacation in March and the price I paid for my first class seats is below the price currently being charged for coach seats (because I booked pretty far in advance). Yup, I will gladly be sitting in first for less than some people paid for their middle seat in the back.

 

[mnrose]

I don't understand all the seat-trading going on. We were all separated on our last flight and it didn't dawn on me to ask someone to switch. My kids know how to entertain themselves and how to behave. And if they should so happen to need me for something, I am like 10 feet away lol.

Yes, it's not like they are going anywhere. Hard to get separated at 30000 feet. LOL.

 

[PollyannaMom]

cripe. I didn't know claustrophobia was such an epidemic in this country. seems like half the people on this forum are claustrophobic. dang.

I was thinking something similar when reading all the hatred of the middle seat! I pretty much always sit in the middle (with DS by the window and DH on my other side). I never realized I should be feeling sorry for myself!

 

[gwynne]

I was thinking something similar when reading all the hatred of the middle seat! I pretty much always sit in the middle (with DS by the window and DH on my other side). I never realized I should be feeling sorry for myself!

Yup, me too. Dh is on the aisle. Middle-seaters unite!

 

[kamik86]

I was thinking something similar when reading all the hatred of the middle seat! I pretty much always sit in the middle (with DS by the window and DH on my other side). I never realized I should be feeling sorry for myself!

Mine isn't so much claustrophobia in the clincial sense but I hate being crammed in and feeling like I can't get out. Now I have sat in middle seats before... but only once between strangers and I don't want to repeat that (1 hour flight from BWI to Albany when my connection was late so I didn't board early where I was supposed to).

Other times when I have been in the middle were fine, I did it between my mom and my DH once. No big deal at all. Because if I need to get up or move I know my family will move for me so I'm fine.

Most of the time I fly with DH I get the middle one way and he does the other. The other person has the aisle seat. So yes I'm by one stranger but again no one I don't know is blocking me from the aisle so its all good.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

cripe. I didn't know claustrophobia was such an epidemic in this country. seems like half the people on this forum are claustrophobic. dang.

I'm not claustrophobia per se. I just don't like being crowded by people.

 

[NHdisneylover]

I was thinking something similar when reading all the hatred of the middle seat! I pretty much always sit in the middle (with DS by the window and DH on my other side). I never realized I should be feeling sorry for myself!

It is a lot easier to sit in the middle when you know the people on either side of you (IMO).

ON the rare time that I fly with DH and he is stuck in coach with me (he is very tall so we pay for him to have a better seat unless those are already sold out of the price difference is really, really huge)--he takes the aisle to be able to stretch at least one leg out once in a while, and I take the middle (and often one of our kids is on the other side).
Not having to worry so much about if I bump into the person next to me, or even being able to lean our legs into one another, etc makes that seat feel much bigger than it does if I am sandwiched between strangers.

When flying alone I book an aisle--always (I like to get up often to stretch). I am not claustrophobic, nor do I have any other malady which requires me to sit there---I just greatly prefer it and put the effort or money in to be bale to get that seat an dam not interested in giving it up.

 

[Turn the Page]

I prefer the aisle seat as I like to be able to easily get up to go to the restroom if needed but really, I don't care which seat I get. On two of my last three flights DH had the window seat while I had the middle with a stranger on the other side. In theory, I am not bothered by this at all.
The first flight our seatmate was a lovely young man who participated in the appropriate amount of small talk and then kept to himself. The second guy was stoned and annoying as all get out. He was very loud and obnoxious. It was wonderful when he passed out.

 

[robinb]

I don't understand all the seat-trading going on. We were all separated on our last flight and it didn't dawn on me to ask someone to switch. My kids know how to entertain themselves and how to behave. And if they should so happen to need me for something, I am like 10 feet away lol.

I was separated from my DD on our last flight too because of an equipment change that I didn't notice in time (thanks Delta!). I asked the gate agent if she could get us seated together and she couldn't. I was chatting with a woman and her elderly mom who were hoping to get bumped. I was hoping to get moved to their seats, LOL. They encouraged me to ask the people around me to switch while on board and said they did it all the time. We both had middle seats and my DD is now 16 so I told them I would never ask someone to switch to middle so I could sit next to my teen DD. They got their bump but I didn't get their seats . My flight was totally uneventful and not all that uncomfortable either.

 

[Missy1961]

I was thinking something similar when reading all the hatred of the middle seat! I pretty much always sit in the middle (with DS by the window and DH on my other side). I never realized I should be feeling sorry for myself!

I don't mind a middle seat if I know the people on either side of me. But two complete strangers? No, thank you.

 

[robinb]

I think personal responsibility is the key.

What about when things happen that are out of your control? How can you be personally responsible for an equipment change? For a flight delay that makes you miss your connecting flight? A blizzard that shuts down the whole east coast?