# Airline passenger etiquette: reclining your seat **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 16, 2020, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044 "2020-02-16T21:22:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2020, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/1 "2020-02-16T21:22:59Z")
I fly quite a bit. I often recline my seat after reaching altitude and don’t think twice about it. But a recent news story suggests I’m being rude in doing so. At the very least, according to Delta’s CEO, I should ask permission from the person behind me. Which… doesn’t make sense to me. After all, I’m paying for a reclining seat. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2020, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/2 "2020-02-16T21:38:14Z")
This puzzles me too, a bit. Usually I take it to mean that it is polite to notify the person behind you if you are going to do a full recline (which I never do) or at least to do it fairly slowly instead of just crashing back. When flying Coach I’ve had seats recline suddenly into my knees (I have longish legs) when with a bit of warning I could have gotten them out of the way. (My loud “Ow!” had no visible effect on the perpetrator.) These days I only fly Premium Economy (or whatever the individual airline calls it) with the extra room between rows. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2020, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/3 "2020-02-16T22:04:03Z")
I’m not a flyer, but I just can’t believe that doing this is even allowed, because of safety issues, unless a passenger is ill. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2020, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/4 "2020-02-16T22:11:17Z")
That’s bullshit, especially coming from an Airline CEO that has reduced seat size & leg space to such tiny amounts. I didn’t start flying until the 80s, but the seats were wider and the leg space was absolutely a lot greater. There are airlines now where the seats don’t recline anymore (Spirit is one). Maybe Delta is preparing for that move. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2020, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/5 "2020-02-16T22:19:49Z")
As long as it’s not meal time I see no issue in slowly reclining your seat. I mean it only reclines by what, three or four inches at the top anyway. And it IS your paid seat. Most times I don’t bother reclining because it’s barely worth it anyway. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2020, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/6 "2020-02-16T22:20:31Z")
I fly a,lot, I never recline fully if there is a person in the seat behind me. Air travel is terrible enough, it’d be a little better if people were more considerate of one another. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2020, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/7 "2020-02-16T22:22:13Z")
I get annoyed every single time the person in front of me reclines. That said, it’s hard to argue against the “if we should not recline then why are the seats designed to allow reclining?” point of view. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2020, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/8 "2020-02-16T22:24:03Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > After all, I’m paying for a reclining seat. Are you specifically paying for a reclining seat, as opposed to just paying for a seat? And what is the person behind you paying for? Common sense says to me that, if your seat has the option of reclining, your reclining _shouldn’t_ cause significant discomfort or inconvenience for the person behind you. But if it is, that’s the airline’s fault, not that of the person behind you, and that person shouldn’t have to suffer for your comfort. So if what that person has to lose is equal or greater than what you have to gain by your reclining, you should not recline. And if you don’t like it, your beef is with the airline or the designer of the plane. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2020, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/9 "2020-02-16T22:25:29Z")
If I’m not supposed to recline my seat, then the seats shouldn’t be reclinable. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2020, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/10 "2020-02-17T00:15:44Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Are you specifically paying for a reclining seat, as opposed to just paying for a seat? And what is the person behind you paying for? > > Common sense says to me that, if your seat has the option of reclining, your reclining _shouldn’t_ cause significant discomfort or inconvenience for the person behind you. But if it is, that’s the airline’s fault, not that of the person behind you, and that person shouldn’t have to suffer for your comfort. So if what that person has to lose is equal or greater than what you have to gain by your reclining, you should not recline. And if you don’t like it, your beef is with the airline or the designer of the plane. I think this is the major reason I have a problem with the “don’t ever recline” position. I’ve never been in an airplane where the person in front reclining back into my space made all that much of a difference to me (except maybe at meal times). Sure, they’re a bit “in your space”, but it’s not like your head is trying to be in that space - your head is probably back on your own seat. But sitting straight up for a whole flight is fuckin’ uncomfortable - if I have a choice between “everybody reclines” and “everyone doesn’t”, it’s really not even a question. Bearing in mind that well over half of flights I’ve ever taken are of the 24-hours between opposite sides of the globe type. In order to be comfortable and have a chance of sleeping I really need a recline of at least 30 degrees, 45 for preference, and I’m \*getting \*about 5. I have a hell of a lot of unmet recline-need here ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2020, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/11 "2020-02-17T00:30:02Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > …if I have a choice between “everybody reclines” and “everyone doesn’t”, it’s really not even a question… I agree with this. If everyone reclines, everyone has the same volume of space, but configured in a way that most people find more comfortable to rest. If this continues to be a big contentious issue, I think it should probably be formalized that you cannot recline while the meal is served, then they have an announcement when the meal is over that everyone is now allowed to recline. That would also address the problem of people doing it suddenly and without warning. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2020, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/12 "2020-02-17T00:46:25Z")
I’ve been on flights where people with very long legs get their knees banged when the seat in front of them reclines, so I’m mindful of it myself. Being short, I don’t care if the person in front of me does, as long as my coffee doesn’t spill. I’ve rarely found the few inches that my seat reclines enough to bother with. The few times I’ve wanted to recline, I asked the person behind me if it would be a problem for their knees. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2020, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/13 "2020-02-17T01:02:37Z")
I’m pretty tall and I’ve been kneecapped by reclining seats many a time. The only escape is to open your knees so your thighs are going diagonally instead of straight into the seat in front. Maybe it was okay in the past, but the ever decreasing pitch of rows has made it so that seats should not be able to recline, and those that do recline are being rude by so doing. You’re paying for a reclining seat? Tough. I’m paying not to get my kneecaps broken. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2020, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/14 "2020-02-17T01:17:40Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > You’re paying for a reclining seat? Tough. I’m paying not to get my kneecaps broken. Obviously, you are not paying enough. If accommodating your longshanks is that important to you, you should have sprung for first class, and everyone would be happy. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2020, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/15 "2020-02-17T01:22:23Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Obviously, you are not paying enough. If accommodating your longshanks is that important to you, you should have sprung for first class, and everyone would be happy. I only fly on the employer’s dime, and damned if they would spring for first class. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2020, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/16 "2020-02-17T01:29:05Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > I only fly on the employer’s dime, and damned if they would spring for first class. So when you said, “I am paying not to get my kneecaps broken,” that was just a figure of speech? Sounds like your beef is with your employer, not your fellow passengers. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2020, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/17 "2020-02-17T01:29:29Z")
It used to be that reclining a seat wasn’t a problem, but the fucking airlines have crammed in so many seats into each aircraft that it’s really inconsiderate to do so now. I generally don’t do it. But the correct response to a reclining passenger isn’t to punch the back of their seat – you can just explain to the person ahead of you that you’re uncomfortable. I’ve read posts on other message boards from people claiming to have a divine right to resort to threats or violence or outright violence if someone dares to recline a seat, and I’m like, WTF?! ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2020, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/18 "2020-02-17T01:32:58Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Obviously, you are not paying enough. If accommodating your longshanks is that important to you, you should have sprung for first class, and everyone would be happy. Total bullshit response. Let’s think about this with some civility. Have some awareness. Try to understand that leaning your seat back can really make someone physically uncomfortable and how much they paid really doesn’t mean jack shit. It’s not BLD’s fault that the airlines pack us all in like sardines, but that’s the reality and everyone who flies just ought to try to be neighborly. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2020, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/19 "2020-02-17T01:36:16Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > I fly a,lot, I never recline fully if there is a person in the seat behind me. Air travel is terrible enough, it’d be a little better if people were more considerate of one another. Same here. I mean, I don’t fly a lot anymore (as in, maybe two or three times a year). But when I did, I never reclined for pretty much the reason you state. (It also helped that reclining didn’t make me the least bit more comfortable anyway, so why take it out on the poor sod behind me?) ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2020, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044/20 "2020-02-17T01:40:29Z")
This is a silly debate. Of course you can recline. That is what the seat is designed for. (I say this as someone who basically never reclines, unless it’s on an overnight flight.) I can see that it’s courteous to ask first if people have just been served drinks or something, but otherwise, it’s ridiculous to expect people not to _use_ a feature that the seat is clearly designed to have. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airline-passenger-etiquette-reclining-your-seat/848044.md?page=2)