To recline or not to recline...

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

How would the recliner know your son had the tray table down much less had something on it?

Or that something had knocked down on the floor.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

And how old is your daughter? I'm assuming a minor and therefore is still being taught right from wrong. I think your situation was very understandable and it sounds like you all handled it well and it was received well. What this grown adult did was very different and really probably would fall under assault in some form. Totally insane.

I don't think I would call punching the chair handling it well. I'd call that very reactionary and retaliatory all without knowing a person did anything out of consciousness and out of spite. We give passes because the individual in question is a child doing it, but I don't think it's unanimously "handled it well" nor would I say the situation was "very understandable" for the actions done.

 

[brockash]

I thought that too. That's the equivalent of a child kicking the seat really and most don't take kindly to that.

I mean I still think that's apples to oranges. A child kicking a seat is very annoying and rude that the parent doesn't correct it, however that's hugely different in my opinion than a grown adult repeatedly punching the seat in front of them to make the other person uncomfortable. The child has no intent and is...a child. The adult is a physcho.

 

[brockash]

I don't think I would call punching the chair handling it well. I'd call that very reactionary and retaliatory all without knowing a person did anything out of consciousness and out of spite. We give passes because the individual in question is a child doing it, but I don't think it's unanimously "handled it well" nor would I say the situation was "very understandable" for the actions done.

I meant the parent handled the situation well. Teaching the daughter it wasn't okay and apologizing to the other person. Absolutely the action was not okay, but I think it's very different than a grown adult repeatedly punching the seat in front of them.

 

[belle032]

I haven't read through the entire thread but I'm in the "please do not recline" camp, at least the majority of the time.

On our trip to London, the woman in front of DH (who is 6'3) reclined her seat fully the ENTIRE time. A flight attendant finally had to ask her to un-recline it during meals and she got very huffy with them. And not only did that cause a lack of room for him, it pushed the seat back TV back enough to where he couldn't see it unless he slouched a certain way. Combination of the TV position and his height I think.

I will say we never punched her chair, but neither were we very smooth or gracious when moving around or walking behind/past her seat for any reason.

I was so thankful I got premium economy on the return flight home. We decided paying a little more for the extra room would always be worth it for us in the future!

 

[brockash]

The airport is the best place to see the worst in people. My last flight there was a dad and his son in front of me and my wife, the flight was only 2 1/2 hours and during the middle of the day. As soon as we got in the air, the dad put his seat back as far as possible and then showed his probably around 7-8 year old kid how to do it with his seat. The seat pretty much just reclines from the top, the kid wasn't even close to feeling the benefits of the reclined seat. The dad was small, obviously the kid was small, and they didn't try to go to sleep or anything. I don't understand the lack of considering other people around you.

I get the option to recline is there, but unless it's an overnight or long flight I have a negative reaction to anyone reclining their seat. Even then, I don't do it myself and I'm tall, I can deal with being uncomfortable for a couple hours. To me, there is more of a negative impact in terms of space on the person behind than a positive one for the recliner, it just comes off as a selfish act. The option is there for me to put a kid on my shoulders right when a fireworks show starts but I'm not going to do that either because I don't want to ruin anyone else's experience.

On the same flight we also had the 'pull yourself up out of your seat by grabbing onto the seat in front of you guy' behind us. That I understand if you are older or bigger but this guy looked to be in his 20s and not out of shape.


Not a rude person story, just a strange one - On the same trip, different flight, the guy next to me fell asleep and could have been mistaken for dead. His arm was well over the armrest into the aisle and the flight attendants couldn't get the cart through without hitting him, they tried everything to wake him and eventually just plowed through hitting his arm and then moving his arm back onto him. When we landed he still wouldn't wake up to talking and nudges by me, it was our aisles turn to get off the plane, so I start to attempt to just crawl over him when he finally just wakes up and quickly gets off the plane like nothing happened.

In my experience the recline has more to do with the angle that you sit at as opposed to have anything to do with the top of the seat or your height. The angle of not being forced forward is relieved when you recline a bit (much more to do with your waist area, as opposed to the length of your body.)

 

[DisneyKoyote]

The only one at fault is the airline. They put in the reclining seat knowing full well that space is limited. The only courtesy I can think of between customers is that you recline 50% of the way.

 

[brockash]

I haven't read through the entire thread but I'm in the "please do not recline" camp, at least the majority of the time.

On our trip to London, the woman in front of DH (who is 6'3) reclined her seat fully the ENTIRE time. A flight attendant finally had to ask her to un-recline it during meals and she got very huffy with them. And not only did that cause a lack of room for him, it pushed the seat back TV back enough to where he couldn't see it unless he slouched a certain way. Combination of the TV position and his height I think.

I will say we never punched her chair, but neither were we very smooth or gracious when moving around or walking behind/past her seat for any reason.

I was so thankful I got premium economy on the return flight home. We decided paying a little more for the extra room would always be worth it for us in the future!

See the issue and the blame is and should be on the airlines for purchasing planes that are not functional/comfortable for their customers. There really is a simple solution of either making seats that don't recline, having more room between seats, make it so the recline doesn't impact the person behind them etc. That's the problem, not the people who either do or do not recline. The airlines have disregarded the comfort and functionality of the seats for their customers...that's not the customers fault.

 

[MarkLT1]

See the issue and the blame is and should be on the airlines for purchasing planes that are not functional/comfortable for their customers. There really is a simple solution of either making seats that don't recline, having more room between seats, make it so the recline doesn't impact the person behind them etc. That's the problem, not the people who either do or do not recline. The airlines have disregarded the comfort and functionality of the seats for their customers...that's not the customers fault.

Absolutely. In addition, a little bit of consideration (e.g.- "While I got a seat that can recline way back, I know it will really invade the person's space behind me, so I am only going to recline partially") can go a long way to make everyone more comfortable in an already uncomfortable situation (i.e.- being crammed into a tin can).

And now I'll take off my unrealistic rose-colored glasses.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I meant the parent handled the situation well. Teaching the daughter it wasn't okay and apologizing to the other person. Absolutely the action was not okay, but I think it's very different than a grown adult repeatedly punching the seat in front of them.

Well the poster said they were secretly cheering their kid on solely because they don't like people reclining so I was picking up on that.

I mean I still think that's apples to oranges. A child kicking a seat is very annoying and rude that the parent doesn't correct it, however that's hugely different in my opinion than a grown adult repeatedly punching the seat in front of them to make the other person uncomfortable. The child has no intent and is...a child. The adult is a physcho.

Well I think we agree the adult in question is in the wrong but I don't think it's apples to oranges. We just accept it more because it's a kid (and sometimes kids do things intentionally they are capable of that ). Same action is being done of moving the seat purposefully which was my intent behind my prior comment.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I will say we never punched her chair, but neither were we very smooth or gracious when moving around or walking behind/past her seat for any reason.

Good on you for not stooping that low to resorting to punching the chair..but then why not be smooth or gracious when moving around? Why be spiteful at that point? At that point y'all weren't being courteous passengers either.

 

[Disneypro1]

After this thread. And seeing the idiot on video. I shall now always recline. Why? Just to apparently upset people that have nothing better to get upset about.

 

[cluvsdisney]

I don't really recline my seat....I might push the button for a second to loosen it a bit. I can't describe it exactly but I don't believe it's noticeable to anyone since my seat is still in line with the adjacent seat. I prefer the person in front of me not recline, but this a hate the game, not the player scenario. The seats are made to recline, it's their right to do so. It would be nice if the person didn't slam the seat back bc I've had things knocked off the table because of the force they used.

Ironically, one of the first times I flew first class the person in front of me had his seat fully reclined the entire flight except when he was eating, no concept that I might not eat as fast as him. But he squirmed the entire flight and kept tying to push he chair back even more. That was more annoying than when someone just puts their seat back and sits still in other airline cabins.

 

[b2k1121]

The only one at fault is the airline. They put in the reclining seat knowing full well that space is limited. The only courtesy I can think of between customers is that you recline 50% of the way.

Yeah, it is the airline's fault but each person still has the choice to recline or not. No one is forcing them to recline the seat just because it can recline, they are still making a selfish decision. There are a lot of things in life that we can do with no repercussions but choose not to for the sake of others.

 

[skyblue17]

After this thread. And seeing the idiot on video. I shall now always recline. Why? Just to apparently upset people that have nothing better to get upset about.

When given the option to negatively affect people I don't know and have never interacted with, I will take it!

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

I haven't read through the whole thread but I never recline my seat even on cross country flights (from ATL to LAX type flights).

I don't think seats should even have the option to recline. There isn't enough space.

 

[MissStitch626]

A lot of these situations could be eased with just a little bit more consideration on both sides.

I understand the person in front of me might want to recline their seat. We're typically flying UK to US, it's a long flight, people want to be comfortable, I get it. Is it really too much to ask for that person to put their seat back upright when the meal is being served? They're not obliged to do so, but it's nice of them if they do. Similarly, if someone does want to recline for the full duration of the flight, I'd hope they'd be understanding if I occasionally bump their seat when I get up.

To be honest I have more issues with passengers who treat the plane like it's their living room!

 

[wvjules]

Yeah, it is the airline's fault but each person still has the choice to recline or not. No one is forcing them to recline the seat just because it can recline, they are still making a selfish decision. There are a lot of things in life that we can do with no repercussions but choose not to for the sake of others.

Aren't you being just as selfish by not wanting someone to recline? Why is the recliner the only one viewed as being "selfish"?

 

[skyblue17]

Aren't you being just as selfish by not wanting someone to recline? Why is the recliner the only one viewed as being "selfish"?

The recliner is the one forcing themselves into space that isn't solely theirs. The person behind the recliner can't affect the person in front of them unless they bang the seat, or make a habit of pulling down on it.

 

[b2k1121]

Aren't you being just as selfish by not wanting someone to recline? Why is the recliner the only one viewed as being "selfish"?

If no one reclines then everyone has the same amount of space. If the person in front of me reclines I don't recline my seat in response because I don't want to take space from the person behind me. That's the opposite of selfish.