'"he wont put his seat up!'"

ok this sometimes happens on flights and can be either really easy to sort out or extremely hard, i do hate this problem but always try to keep everyone happy.

Your on a flight and going through the ailse and a passenger complains that the person in front has put their seat back and refuses to put it up. you normally get them hitting or pushing the seat in front while they are telling you this. The man in front hasn't really done anything wrong, and refuses to put his seat up. in theory they have both paid for seats that recline and should be able to use this facility of their seat. After all we advertise or seat recline as a means of getting you to book with us. the person behind refuses to recline their seat saying it is just plain rude. the flight is full and there are no more seats not even in PE or J.

I will give you my real life solutions that i have used but i just want to know what would you guys do? Personally i feel sorry for both parties. answers below please and when i get back from my next trip i will tell you about mine. It would also be interesting to see what other crew do here.

[Darren Wheeler]

Tell them that there is a free seat on the wing if they would like to use it.

The toilet seat doesn't recline but nor does the door

Don't be a whinging cheapskate and buy a J ticket next time.

Close? [:D]

Really interesting one from a crew perspective. Recently BA have introduced a new tactic of asking you move your seats in the upright postion for meal services, which I think is a great idea, so that everyone can enjoy there meal. It is a tough one but everyone should be aloud to recline if they like, but on the other side there is no point people being rude with one another. Maybe as crew it would be a good idea to do a polite PA during meals services to ask everyone to not recline. This way a percentage of people will forget to recline back .

hahahaha yeah if only i could say that!!

we do sometime make a PA during the meal its happening more on my flights and when im in Y i ask if its ok to do it. during the meal its easy but this normally happens right after take off

[Neil]

For me its quite simple really. I have paid to use a seat for the duration of the flight, if the seat is designed to recline and I want to recline it I will. As the OP says, a lot of airlines advertise the recline as part of the 'sales pitch' so they are obviously happy for you to use it.

If the person behind doesn't want to recline their seat then that is their choice. Plenty of seats on the a/c have no seats in front of them (bulkeads/Exit Row/UCS)and if it is that big a deal to them then should make sure they get one of these (by either getting to the airport early or paying).

I also think it is only right and fair that during the meal service the CC should make pax put their seats in the upright position.

Neil

I don't have that problem in UC! [}:)][}:)]

But when I did turn right [:0] I would recline my seat to give me some more room, as long as it was up right for the meal service.

Hi Johnvscrew

A very pertinent question!

I do recall from past years when I travelled in economy feeling extremely resentful at passengers in front of me who recline their seats from the moment that the aircraft reaches cruising altitude. You have so little personal space in economy that having it reduced even further is unpleasant to put it mildly.

The fact that the entertainment screen is pushed closer to your face and at a less advantageous angle adds to the irritation.

It is virtually impossible to have your meal whilst the seat in front is reclined, but fortunately when ever this has occured the cabin crew have been sufficiently forceful in instructing passengers to upright their seats when serving meals. The problem comes when the person in front decides that, having finished their meal, they can just recline their seat without warning or apparent consideration to the person behind them. Two such experiences, left me with a meal floating in wine, until I learned to replace the screw cap on the my wine miniature immediately after use.

I have never made an issue out of a reclined seat but have witnessed several bitter arguments amongst other passengers usually resolved by the cabin crew to the dissatisfaction of the rear passenger.

I think the airlines could do a lot to help this situation with some clear directions as to when seats can and cannot be reclined. Sometimes its helpful to know what the rules are even if you don't like them!

(typos corrected)

I can see both sides of the argument but from a personal point of view, having been 'stuck' behind a recliner, a little bit of courtesy goes a long way. Yes, the recliner has paid for his/her seat and is entitled to recline if they so wish, however, the person behind has also paid for his/her seat and the recliner will be 'encroaching' into their 'leg' room. I have no problem with anyone who wishes to recline but a polite word of 'warning' beforehand would be helpful.

On a serious note, I have seen a recliner recline straight onto the person behind's head/face (they were bending forward and the recliner reclined the seat fully with no warning), this person ended up with a bloody nose and was none too pleased (this was BA a number of years ago).

I now only fly PE/UC, preferably UC, to get round this problem.

Clare

The problem has a simple solution. Fixed seats (ie immovable with no recline).Take the button away!!Hallejuljah!!! Economy is a penance. Somebody's seat in my face makes it worse .This for me was one of the many reasons that contributed to the slippery slope of turning left.Many years ago the announcement in flight (on VS)was that all seats were to return/remain in the upright position for meal service. BA have continued to do this -On recent BA flights I've seen the crew hoike the seat back to the upright if the passenger fails to do this manually at mealtimes when requested(all done with a smile I hasten to add).
The other alternative (shock horror) is to stop treating cattle class passengers as battery hens and give them some room! A radical proposal eh?? Ooh silly me. Means fewer passengers in the permitted space and consequently less revenue.

You could always suggest that you may swap a young child into the seat behind the recliner if they won't compromise - anyone who has travelled with a youngster constantly kicking your seat back will know how real that threat is.

I'm conscious of the person behind me when I recline in economy so I'm quite happy when the person in front of me reclines fully so I can follow suit with good reason! I always raise my seat during meals but the problem is, when I fly economy it's on charter airlines out of GLA which more often than not have their fair share of scumbags who couldn't give a flying f*** about anyone other than themselves.

I remember one occasion where I reclined on a MYT flight and an older gentleman behing me gripped my shoulder saying I was crushing his knees. After demanding he remove his hand I asked him to look at the space I had in front of my nose from the seat in front and he saw reason. The fact that the chair reclines above knee level did help.

Why doesn't EVERYONE recline in economy as a matter of course and only move back to sitting bolt upright for meals?

Regards

John

I have a pair of these and they work quite wonderfully. I affix them to allow them 50% recline and I have yet to be called out on it.

GJ

[Darren Wheeler]

Originally posted by GrinningJackanapes
I have a pair of these and they work quite wonderfully. I affix them to allow them 50% recline and I have yet to be called out on it.

GJ

LOL [oo]

haha wow there pretty cool! its great to see there are some really different views on this and opinions. in theory both side have a good argument but when both sides are arguing and not seeing reason this can be a very big issue

[Decker]

So GJ you interfere with the operation of the aircraft equipment? (and you fly coach?). Do you disable smoke alarms too? I'd call you on it I assure you if I were there. If the airlines don't want the seats to be reclined they can do what others do and fit non reclining seats.

yeah many airlines have non reclining seat my last airline were thinking of it as they were just short haul. those devices clearly stop the seat reclining but i have never heard of them till now, and im sure unless you had seen them before you wouldn't even notice them, now imagine adding these to the senario!! as they have a key with them am i right in thinking they lock in place? that would be a dodgey situation to have to deal with. and whilst i dont agree with interfering with aircraft equipment i still think they're pretty cool LOL!

As other replies have said I think consideration is the key.

Some people push their seat fully back as soon as wheels are up and then, when the seatbelt light goes off meander of to talk to their mate for half an hour while their seat is full back - inconsiderate or what?

Personally a little glance behind before reclining to make sure no obvious problems then a slow recline - and not all the way back at first. I think if the person behind has reclined then I feel a bit better. If the person in front has already reclined then you have no choice if you are tall and want to watch TV as otherwise you cannot see the screen.

In Y people should sit up during meal service or maybe on short night flights there should be a few rows reserved at the back as a free-recline zone without meal service for those who want to maximise sleep time. I am not sure there is the same issue with recline during meals in PE - I never have any problem.

FM

Oh, Andrew, all that huff and puff...

Let's look at what the FAA says. In fact, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was asked about the use of Knee Defenders.

As reported in the October 28, 2003 edition of The Washington Post:

'FAA spokesman Paul Takemoto said the clips were not against federal aviation rules as long as they weren't used during taxiing, takeoffs or landings.'

Knee Defenders are specifically designed to be used with your tray table lowered, while your tray table must be up and locked 'during taxiing, takeoffs or landings.'

So, as long as Knee Defenders are being used as they are designed to be used in flight, their use does not violate any US aviation law, rule, or regulation.

Feel free to call me on them when next you see me on a flight.

GJ

I agree with the posters who cite the advantages of the FSM requesting that pax leave seats upright during whole cabin drinks and meal runs and use courtesy in reclining at other times. It just raises the general awareness and sets a nice tone.
Reclining seats work well when everyone does it together--so perhaps there could also be a FSM announcement that it's officially count down to 'recline time' and everyone can pull the lever and rock back when s/he counts to three.

Personally I have never heard FA intervene in the recline debate on VS--but do seriously appreciate it with BA. This is not just a Y issue either--it's just as annoying in PE, where a sudden swooping recline has several times sent my dinner flying. The argument that 'I bought the seat and own the space' is just thoughtless--if I did that every time
I purchased an oversold GNER ticket requiring me to stand up the whole journey--there would be a lot of surprised pax finding they were sharing their seat with me--as we both paid for it--and me probably more than they as I would have paid the late price.

Of course it's even more annoying when you're sat in UC, reach for the syrah and hit the wrong button with yr elbow as there's no one to blame but yourself. [8D]

RR

Originally posted by roadrunner


if I did that every time
I purchased an oversold GNER ticket requiring me to stand up the whole journey--there would be a lot of surprised pax finding they were sharing their seat with me--as we both paid for it--and me probably more than they as I would have paid the late price.

I'm sure that the T&C's on rail don't guarantee the seat - just the journey unless you have a reservation. I'm also sure they need to keep a portion of the train unreserved in standard class but @i've never seen it in first.

regards

john

Dragonlady hit the nail on the head. Tell SRB to put a bigger gap between the seats instead of your customers having to make allowances for awfull seat pitch.
Good choice of position for the IFE boxes as well. You can just picture the design meeting,
' Ok we have given them crap seat pitch, but they can stil strtech their legs. I` ve got it, shove the IFE boxes under every other seat'.

[Decker]

Ah but GJ I ALSO have the right to remove it - it is on MY seat not yours... :p. To be more accurate you have no more right to employ it than I have to deploy it.

Oh, I agree 100% you have the right to ask me to remove it, and I would, immediately. No one ever has, though...my use of the nefarious device has gone unnoticed to date [}:)]

GJ

[Decker]

Jammy bar steward... meanwhile back at my original query... coach?

[Decker]

PS That's clever. If people don't KNOW they're being short changed to quote the i-ching 'no blame attaches'