This was originally going to be a rant, but rather than vent about an experience I’ve had, I thought I’d see what you folks thought about a practice I find pretty annoying.
When you’re flying “coach,” there is not a whole lot of personal space available to you. When the person in front of you leans his/her seat back, it gets even worse. Not only does it become nearly impossible to have a laptop computer open, it also makes it almost impossible to get to any items you may have stowed under the seat in front of you. For this reason, I never lean my seat back, unless (a) the seat behind me is empty, (b) the seat has an infant in a baby carrier that will not be affected by my seat leaning back, or (c) maybe, if it’s a redeye flight and the person behind me is asleep.
In discussing this with my SO, my position was that even though it may be more comfortable to me, I think it’s rude and I would hate to be in my seat knowing that the passenger behind me was pissed off at me. Her reply was that you have the right to do it, and anyway, the person behind you can just lean THEIR seat back, and everyone’s even. But I just don’t see it that way. I would no sooner lean my seat back than I would set my briefcase down on the lap of the person next to me. It’s an invasion of someone else’s personal space. It’s not like I’m any more kind than anyone else, it’s just that I know what it’s like to have someone lean into your space and ruin a flight. And God forgive me, but on all four legs of my flight to and from Portland last weekend, I wanted to grab the seatback of the person in front of me and shake it like a madman. But I didn’t.
The seats are capable of reclining for a reason, and the person in front of you has every right to recline her seat. Those three inches of space that you claim as your own do not belong to you. You’re allowed to borrow that space while the passenger in front has her seat upright, but you don’t own it. My flight would be ruined if I had to seat in an extremely upright position the whole time, and that’s a lot worse than having trouble reaching your items under the seat.
I usually lean it back a bit. I have a bad back, and need to do whatever I can to be comfortable. During meals (or whatever you call the food you get on an airplane), I put it upright because I know what a pain it is for the person behind me otherwise.
I’m with you malden. I never put my seat back for the exact same reasons you state in your post. I’m 6’0 and some airplane seats are designed to jam into my knees when the person in front of me leans back. I realize it is their right to lean back, but I still consider it rude nonetheless.
I try to nail first class (or at least business) most of the time. If I fly coach, I always try for the exit row.
But I’m a seat leaner-backer. And yes, I know what it’s like to have the seat in front leaned back into me, but they recline for a reason.
Of course, when I fly, I tend to put everything away, stick in my ear-phones and listen to music and/or fall asleep anyway. Even my schedule isn’t so hectic that I have to work the laptop on the plane…
But then, I work until 8 or 9 every night too - hmmm, I wonder is those two things are connected?
I just wish I could get mine to lean to the left a little.
Up front, I like to sit as close tot he middle as I can see how long I can use the inside pedels without making an mistake. Cross my hands sometimes too. Makes me sweat every time.
I agree with CHULA that those seats are capable of reclining for a reason and hence the person before you has every right to recline her seat. But boy, does she have to recline it ALL THE WAY back? Now, THAT’S annoying. If you don’t wat to suffocate, you’re then forced to recline your own seat completly back. Moreover, I can’t stand people who “forget” to straighten their seats when food is being served. You ask them politely, and they comply. But they do it always to abrubtly that in the process, all the dust on the back of their seat are shaken and fall into your food. BERK!
Is it really more comfortable to lean a Coach seat all the way back? (1st class is a different thing alogether - you can make them into a bed). My experience (having worked for an airline) is that the seat recline - like so many other features of a coach cabin - is there to distract people from the cramped nature of their seats. IOW, they think it’s more comfortable than having the seat upright, or they think the improvement in comfort is greater than it really is (the advertising encourages this belief). It’s a major pain for the person behind, that’s for sure.
Well, generally, my knees are touching the seat in front of mine if their seat is up. If they lean all the way back, then their weight is on my legs for the entire flight - and I don’t like being the only uncomfortable person. It might be “their space,” but my knees are there, and unlike carry-on luggage, there isn’t really anywhere else I can put them.
I don’t lean back, I’ve never found it to help with the legroom problem, and the person behind me might have the same issue.
You people must not have been on flights that last more than two hours or three. Try 12 hours and more. There is a very good reason why the seats can recline.
I’m more comfortable sitting upright - in fact, last time I flew, I thought my seat was already reclined, but since I couldn’t change it, I guess not. Same deal in my car - I can’t drive leaned back.
Geez people, we are talking 3 inches here!! The last time I flew, the person in front had his seat back, while I did paperwork on the tray. I noticed no annoyance whatsoever.
They are designed as such that you don’t lose any leg room, (unless your knees are 5 feet in the air when you are sitting) so what is the big deal?
Flights over 6 hours: reclining allowed between meals, when lights are out, et cetera.
Flights between 3 and 6 hours: depends on how tired I am, how much room there is for 6’2" of solid Dutchman, and how sore my back is.
It’s also a very cultural thing. A lot of Asians (in my experience, especially the Chinese) show very little consideration for their fellow passengers, and recline their seats as soon as they sit down at the gate. Just an observation, no offense intended.
