Probably that I’m always booking quite far in advance, for long-planned vacations. If I am travelling for business, I’ll get business-class, have the client or firm pay for it. 
Also, just dumb luck.
Aha! Tallism is a form of discrimination, people. I see you folks out there reclining your seats just to disconcert we tall people. 
Seriously, though, airline travel is no longer a joke for the overly tall. I’m the shortest member of my family at 5’11". My older son is 6’7", younger son is 6’6’ and my late husband was 6’5". Traveling at any length by air is a nightmare these days. We quickly learned to book the least convenient flight available or book as far ahead as possible so we could grab the Exit row seats. We even changed travel days now and then to get the Exit row.
I often travel for work and am at the mercy of our in-house travel agent who loves to book me on the cheapest flights in the middle seat. She is 5’3" and oblivious to my issues.
Thank your lucky stars if you are petite.
What do you mean by slight recline? Really slight reclines are fine. The reclines I’m complaining about are all the way. Which is more than slight in my book.
The last couple flights I was on had ordinary 110 V AC outlets at the seats. Obviously designed for laptops (and don’t say it was for charging phones/tablets, because it also had independent USB charging ports).
No flight is long enough that anyone needs to sleep. And no, I don’t need my laptop, either. We’re all just a bunch of people crammed in a tube and hoping to stay reasonably comfortable through it. So it would be nice if people minimized douchey behavior even if it’s within their “rights.”
Talk about a Third World Problem! Every time I fly somewhere I actually do consider how much more quick and convenient it is than driving or taking a train (though I have to admit, trains are much more relaxing.)
Frankly, I’d rather sit behind someone with the seat back than beside someone the size of a house. I admit one is a matter of choice and the other isn’t, but I’m just stating my preference.
Some newer planes have a different pivot for reclining seats. The seat bottom actually slides forward, and the seat back pivots on a point about 4 inches above the seat. Great idea, only it sucks even worse for us tall folks, because we can’t put our seats back (no knee room), but if the guy in front of us does, our knees are up high enough where it still pushes on them (though not quite as bad).
Sigh. But seriously: TWP. Get me there, quickly and safely, and screw the minor nuisances.
If you ask politely, I’d be inclined to accommodate your request.
In my opinion, people who feel that way are assholes, and their opinions don’t matter much to me.
Repeat after me: “Extra-corporeal shockwave lithotripsy.” No walk in the park, but way better than passing a big stone. I had a 1cm stone, and I sure was happy (if miserable) to pass 2mm gravel for a week, than to pass that 1cm stone. OK, back to airline seats …
You don’t have to be exceptionally tall for this to be an issue. I’m 6’1" and it’s an issue. That’s barely above average for younger men, and meanwhile the inter-seat gap keeps getting smaller. I’d pity the young folks, except that I don’t.
A number of seats don’t recline, such as the last row in back and any row ahead of or with an emergency exit. (I confess I’m perplexed why they defeat it for the emergency exit row itself, but whadda I know?)
You may get these seats a lot because other people avoid them, so they stay available later into seat choice and look like ideal choices.
Just a heads up for us taller travelers. And this will help everyone else as well.
The aisle seat armrest next to the aisle DOES swing up. You have to search for the button, it’s usually a little nubbin back and under the armrest.
Raising the aisle armrest for myself makes it much easier to get up. I can swing my size 13 feet out from the seat in front of me and into the aisle, and stand. Very helpful for me at 6’4". Especially if the seat in front of me is reclined. I can’t stand unless in the aisle. The overhead storage prevents it. And it makes for a nearly impossible balance problem.
This also makes deplaning much easier for other people in your row, since they don’t have to climb over the armrest. Especially if they have an extra carryon/computer bag.
I suspect this feature is for FA’s to be able to help a passenger in distress. I never see anyone using it though. I think it must be down while your are in your seat.
And - Right where the overhead bins close and latch, there is usually a small ‘gutter’ that you can run the end of your fingers through as a handrail when walking down the aisle. No need to grab a seatback for balance. I can use this to help stand up and balance when stuck in a seat for hours too.
Perhaps we are flying on different carriers. I’m 6’4’', my knees touch the seat in front of me, and I can’t afford business class, but I would gladly pay extra to fly in a non-reclining section.
On the planes I’ve traveled in, when the top of the seat goes back (which I don’t mind), the tray goes back and rides at an angle up my thighs, and my knees (which before were only touching) are now jammed against the hard back of the seat in front.
Seats recline. That’s how they were designed to be used. Now those who are passive-aggressive and kick the seat or use the Knee Defender, those are assholes. Not the people using a device in exactly the manner in which is it supposed to be used and who are doing nothing wrong.
Why the snark? I’m 6’ 3" and on some flights any recline forces me to almost assume a fetal position in my seat. And yes, like everyone else, I do know that the seat in front reclines. Unfortunately I can’t afford first class, my company won’t pay for first class, and the drive, train ride or bus trip from Toronto to Abu Dhabi is a tad impractical.
Dear inconsiderate assholes:
I am aware that the fucking seats reclinr. I am aware that you paid JUST as much as I did for your seat.
When I sit in a plane, my knees don’t just touch the seat in front of me ; that are literally almost jammed against them.
If you recline your seat…if its even possible…you’re going to cause me a not insignificant amount of pain.
The only way I can avoid that, if you insist on being an entitled asshole, is if I’m lucky enough to be traveling with family and I can ‘man spread’ my legs out of the way.
So if you cute little five and a half footers want to bicker about getting 4 more degrees napping goodness, fine. But have some situational awareness and common fucking sense.
In any scenario where I have to sit up bone straight, through the night, all the way to Abu Dhabi, because you’re tall, I would posit that YOU are the entitled asshole.
Awwww, whaaaah, you have to sit up. So fucking hard.
You really think that’s equivalent to having plastic grinding in to your kneecaps, doubly so every time the occupant of the seat wiggles?
Nice. Fuck you.
Oh, and tell us again how you fly all the time to Abu Dhabi. We’re really fucking impressed.
With all due respect, what would you suggest that we (who didn’t choose to be tall) do to enhance your comfort? I welcome your suggestions. Pending those I offer up the following:
- Those of us who are over 6’ tall have 6" surgically removed from our legs at the gate; or
- We just stand in the aisle for 13 hours so that you can recline in comfort.
Yours truly,
Entitled Asshole
Your complaint is with the airline, take it up with them.
Quit taking it out on people who didn’t choose what type of seat was installed. They have no more say than you.
Spring for stretch seating, book early to get a preferred seat, or suck it up. But quit taking it out on other passengers!
(And Abu Dhabi was the example mentioned in the post above yours. Sorry if that’s offensive to you somehow.)
This is borderline pushing it. A case could be made that you’re calling Sicks Ate that, so don’t call other posters names outside of the Pit.
This one is clearly out of line, though. Warning issued, don’t say this to any poster on these boards again.
I’m 6 feet tall and it has never occurred to me to complain about reclining of the seat in front of me. And I’ve been on some 15-20 hour flights between LA and Hong Kong. In fact I wish economy-class seats reclined more.
Apologies. Was only reiterating the phrasing of the previous poster, who used it without any mod comment. My bad for thinking I could use it too!
Seat rage!!!
We can clearly see just how wrapped up some folks get in this issue.
I don’t envy our folks in the back trying to keep the peace.
There is hope for a solution. No, really. All carriers are experimenting with the stretch seating or “premium coach” product. If it sells well enough at a price commensurate with its cost, it’ll grow. If not, it’ll wither. So the more the tall folks buy it, the more likely it’ll be to both survive & grow.
Eventually there may be rows with just 4 wider but still coach-type seats for the girth-challenged as well.
The market will respond to the customers. As long as the customers say “I’ll put up with anything to save 1% on my ticket”, that’s what they’ll get. When enough of them demonstrate with dollars that they want something else enough to pay for it, they’ll get that too.