A window seat, extra legroom, and similar amenities are often not free. That’s why some people get creative seeking something they desire without having to pay a penny.
New-York based TikToker Chelsea Zeferina discussed one of these people in a video that quickly went viral. The woman had booked a window seat for a flight from San Francisco to New York, which, to her surprise, was already occupied by someone else when she boarded. It turned out, the passenger in the seat was hoping his trick would allow him to stay there.
Some passengers feel entitled to certain amenities for reasons only known to them
Image credits: Iakobchuk (not the actual photo)
Chelsea turned to TikTok to shame the entitled man who tried to take the window seat that she paid for
Image credits: chelseazeferina
As someone who primarily travels by themselves, I have a lot of stories like this. But my favorite one is when I was flying a red-eye from San Francisco to New York, and I had booked a window seat so that I could sleep.
Image credits: chelseazeferina
I go to board the flight, it's like 11 o'clock at night. I get to my row, and there is a man in my seat with his hoodie over his eyes, pretending to already be asleep. I tap my shoulder and I was like, "Excuse me, that's my seat."
Image credits: chelseazeferina
He looks up at me not sleeping. He was not sleeping. He looks up at me and he goes, "Oh, do you mind if I sit here? I'm supposed to be in the middle seat, but I don't want to sit there." And I was like, "Yes, I mind. It's 11 o'clock at night. We're flying a red-eye to New York. I booked that seat on purpose. That's my seat."
Image credits: chelseazeferina
And he gets all huffy and puffy, gets all of his stuff up and moves over to the middle seat. Mad the entire flight. The audacity to just sit there, pretend that you're sleeping, and then get mad when I asked for my seat that I booked and paid for back. People are crazy.
Image credits: chelseazeferina
Image credits: chelseazeferina
Image credits: Hanson Lu (not the actual photo)
Chelsea’s video went viral and attracted over 780k views
Some seats are more convenient than others, which makes certain people forget what’s written on their ticket
It’s no secret that flights get pretty uncomfortable at times. Sitting still for hours on end, with nothing but a neck pillow for support, can get tiresome at best. That’s why travelers typically opt for a window seat, or the aisle one, as these two are considered to be more convenient than being stuck in the middle.
Quartz’s survey revealed that over 50% of travelers in the US prefer to sit by the window, while roughly 37% of them choose the seat by the aisle. It also pointed out that the row by the aisle is more popular among passengers who travel more (at least more than once a year). Moreover, the survey showed that men are more in favor of sitting by the aisle than women who opt for the window more often.
Another study showed that some seats in particular are favored by people more than others in a seemingly similar arrangement. CBS News revealed that the most sought-after one on a passenger plane seems to be 6A—a window seat providing views unobstructed by the wing. The least favorite one, based on the opinion of a 1000 surveyed Americans, is 31E, a middle seat at the rear of the aircraft.
Some passengers want to make sure they’re comfortable (and typically, not stuck in the middle) during the flight and book a preferred place in advance, which isn’t free in most cases. That’s why, as in Chelsea’s story, they get understandably annoyed when someone else is trying to take over what’s rightfully theirs.
People sitting wherever they like is a headache not only for those who lose their seats but for the crew as well
At times, people who don’t bother to book something in advance try to get what they want nevertheless. For instance, they board the plane and choose something that suits them better instead of what’s written on their ticket. Some don’t even bother to check if the seat is taken or talk to the person it is assigned to, as the guy in the story did. That is frustrating not only for the passenger who booked the seat, but for the crew as well.
Travel + Leisure pointed out that people changing seats shift the pre-calculated distribution of weight on the aircraft. That can affect the plane during takeoff, when its center of gravity is most critical. In addition to that, some seats are left empty for other safety reasons, which is why passengers should always consult the crew before moving elsewhere.
In addition to the safety-related regulations, there are also unwritten rules when it comes to seat swapping. One Mile At A Time pointed out that if you’re the one seeking to switch seats, you have to offer one that’s equally good or better than what you’re getting (suggesting only to switch an aisle seat to an aisle seat, or one by the window in exchange for a seat in the middle).
It also emphasized that taking someone else’s place without asking them first is a no (which is likely one of the reasons Chelsea wasn’t very pleased to see the man already comfortably in her seat). In addition to that, it said that you should take no for an answer if the person is not willing to switch seats.
The passenger in the woman’s window seat chose one of the worst possible ways of handling the situation. He didn’t ask if the fellow traveler would be willing to change, and not only that, he pretended to be asleep in order to avoid having to deal with it. To make matters worse, he made sure to let her know he wasn’t happy about not getting what he wanted, and that breaks another unwritten rule—being polite to other passengers on the plane.
People shared their opinions in the comments
Some discussed similar situations they've encountered with entitled passengers
