Passenger TORTURES another by reclining her seat.

I could barely walk off the plane the last time I flew to SFO because the bastard in front of me had crushed my knees.

Just sayin.....

Sorry about your suffering. But instead of blaming a fellow passenger, blame the airlines that squeeze in grown men into tiny spaces...then charge you for few more inches that we crave to mitigate the suffering.

I really thought this one needed a new thread. You know - for a fresh perspective that hadn't already been covered 6500 times.

I think when a person purchases an airline ticket and is given a seat, and that seat reclines, then implicit in that ticket, in that reserved seat is the space that allows them to recline. I understand that this may cause discomfort for the passenger behind, but I think the airline is at fault here, not the passenger, who is simply availing him or herself of the space they have been afforded by the airline. Any passenger who does not have enough space when the person in front of them reclines has a variety of options. One can pay more for more room, fly a different airline, or not go at all. I didn't really "get" the complaints until earlier this year when I flew United to Florida. I'm 5'6 and with the seat down, even just a little, there was barely an inch between my knees and the seat. I can't imagine how anyone taller could fit. I dont blame the passenger in front of me or to my side for my discomfort. I blame the airline. In my entire life, I have never been so uncomfortably packed in on a flight. I will never fly United again. If my choice is to pay more to fly another airline, fly United, or not go, I will either pay more or just not go.

The airlines are definitely at fault (they should prevent the seats from reclining), but so is the recliner. You have a choice to recline and make the person in back of you miserable or you can sit upright and all is well. Just another case of selfishness -- just because you CAN do it doesn't mean you SHOULD (a concept not familiar to most people).

I had this problem when I used to commute to NY by bus. The person in front of me would inevitably recline totally to the point where the top of their head was meeting my chin. Luckily, I learned to put my hand up to the seat in front of me, and when the recliner started to recline, he (it was mostly men) couldn't. They'd think the seat was broken (which was not a far stretch for NJT).

We have virtually given up long distance flying because of this issue. Our Australia journey was the last straw. The discomfort is not just that the tray table is at your throat, but if you are not in an aisle seat, you are trapped if those between you and the exit are fully reclined! One woman next to me must have taken a couple of pills cause she was out before we took off.

Another often broken rule that is ignored by flight stewards is the one requiring the upright position during food service! The employees don't want to do battle.

Regardless that this terrible condition certainly should be resolved by the airlines and that an "implicit" right to recline may beincluded in the price of a ticket, common courtesy should be in play. Recliners should ante up the extra $$$ for their comfort -- not those flying coach because they have no choice.

If a 6 foot man cannot comfortably sit in an airline seat when the person in front is reclining, sorry, thats not the person in fronts fault. its the airlines fault for making the spaces far too tight. If everyone paid for the "extra" space in economy plus, there wouldnt be enough room for everyone who wants a "roomier" seat.

Implicit in my contract with the airline is the full use of my seat. if the airlines are making the spaces so tight that reclining is a problem for the person behind then the airlines should take away the reclining feature of said seat.

However we arent even talking of really big people needing more space, we are talking about normal sized people, average sized. Its ridiculous that people are angry with other passengers instead of with the airlines.

It's less than 90 minutes between LA an SF. Since they turned back rather than continuing I'd guess it was the first half of the flight when he lost his *****. I you can't suck it up for 45 minutes you're probably mentally ill. Hopefully he got some help.

Seats shouldn't recline. Yes, there should be more room but that isn't going to happen so the solution is non-reclining seats. It's gotten to the point where coach travel is almost unbearable unless you have a party that fills an entire row and don't have to sit next to a stranger. Then, it's bearable.

And, no joke, try business class. Domestically, bus class flights have been pricing pretty well lately ( sometimes only $100 or $200 more than coach). A much better way to travel. Makes it a step above bearable.

$100 to $200 above the cost you're already paying is a lot of money, especially for those with families.

Yes, but when they offer "plus" seats at $59 or $79 each way extra, bus class may not be imuch more. I've seen far closer prices than I used to between coach and business.

Point was it isn't double to buy a business class seat anymore- check and decide if $100 or $200 is worth it. We've found it is and it makes the whole thing so much less stressful

When we were traveling home with our son from Guatemala 8 yrs ago, we had paid for first class and requested the bulkhead for extra room. We got stuck in immigration and just made it to the gate. They said that our seats had been given to another passenger because he was tall and needed more leg room. When the flight crew found out we paid full price, they made the guy move. First class wasn't enough room for the guy, too bad. They told him to reserve the bulkhead next time.

I DO blame the airlines for cramming so many seats together, but the only way to change that would be a new government regulation and we know how well that goes over.

Re cost of business class and extra legroom upgrades ... yes - extra cost may be a hardship for some families, but the reality is that air travel is much less costly relative to average cost of living than it used to be, even if you do pay for those upgrades. I have also recently noticed on some routes that the differential for business class has shrunk and my family has started taking advantage of that on some of our trips.

While I would prefer to see the airlines 'take the high road' and not inflict all this torture on regular coach passengers, the airline management (representing their shareholders) see it otherwise and I suspect that things will not get better.

I am all of 5'3" and I don't understand how anyone taller than that fits into an airline seat comfortably. But here's an issue I have - because I am short, when I'm on a plane that has those molded headrests that stick out where a taller person's neck might rest, if I am sitting in my seat properly, up against the seatback with my seatbelt on, there is no way for me to sit comfortably. The top of that seat pushes the back of my head forward, so I have to either lean forward the entire time, or recline my seat. So, depending on how long the flight is, how tall the person behind me is, or how uncomfortable I am (some seats are worse than others) I admit that I recline my seat about an inch so I can sit up straight. I never recline the whole way - just far enough so I'm not going to walk off the plane with sciatica or a pinched nerve. Nobody has ever choked me, though the one time when Million Dollar Baby was the movie playing, I wish someone would have.

blackcat said:
When we were traveling home with our son from Guatemala 8 yrs ago, we had paid for first class and requested the bulkhead for extra room. We got stuck in immigration and just made it to the gate. They said that our seats had been given to another passenger because he was tall and needed more leg room. When the flight crew found out we paid full price, they made the guy move. First class wasn't enough room for the guy, too bad. They told him to reserve the bulkhead next time.

This would never happen on US airlines today. They are super-strict about people not even moving after takeoff to those seats you pay for. I noticed an announcement made on a few recent flights that those seats aren't to be taken but that if you'd still like to do the paid upgrade, you could call over a flight attendant and pay the fee

I find that its best to fly Virgin whenever possible. You can generally avoid this type of situation. Everything is just a bit better and it makes a huge difference.

sac said:
I DO blame the airlines for cramming so many seats together, but the only way to change that would be a new government regulation and we know how well that goes over.
Re cost of business class and extra legroom upgrades ... yes - extra cost may be a hardship for some families, but the reality is that air travel is much less costly relative to average cost of living than it used to be, even if you do pay for those upgrades. I have also recently noticed on some routes that the differential for business class has shrunk and my family has started taking advantage of that on some of our trips.
While I would prefer to see the airlines 'take the high road' and not inflict all this torture on regular coach passengers, the airline management (representing their shareholders) see it otherwise and I suspect that things will not get better.

It's definitely worth looking. The new United site ( when it's not crashing) shows a nice chart of the coach vs business class prices on all flights on your route. For my Mexico City trip, business class was $70 more total round trip. We are going to the Caribbean for New Years and it's around $150 pp more for business class RT on Delta or United. Check!

United's Economy Plus seats offer a substantial increase in leg room that can be worth the extra fee if you are tall or need more room. Depending on your frequent flyer status there may be no additional charge for them. My taller than I husband swears that he has just as much leg room as when we fly Business First.

Agree with those above who have found that sometimes Business First is sometimes a very reasonably priced upgrade......and, now that United has decided that to be competitive they need to improve the quality of meals in Business First you also get a much better meal. Their meals in economy on international flights are also much improved.

@kriss, those headrests aren't any better when you're tall like me. At 6'2" it feels like my head is going to roll off my shoulders.

We fly as a family to Italy at least once a yea. We have taken to flying Air Emirates out of JFK. The coach tickets are several hundred dollars less per person than United out of Newark AND they fly new, large A300's. The space in coach rivals economy plus on United. And they lavish passengers with food, drinks and gifts (for the kids). All in all, an extremely pleasant experience.

Emirates is amazing. Fly business class with them, talk about reclining... I slept like a baby.

Flying in and out of JFK is a trip in itself!

There can be no doubt that the airlines deserve the lion's share of the blame but ultimately, each passenger has the choice whether to inflict pain on the person sitting behind them, regardless of how much money they may have paid for the right to inflict that pain.

I know. I complained to my husband about the time and expense of flying from JFK, but given the ticket prices (big cost savings) and exceeding better comfort, it's worth the trip to JFK.

mtierney said:
Flying in and out of JFK is a trip in itself! ">

If you're in the car anyway, is going tJFk really that big of a deal. If well- timed, it's an extra 30 minutes. For great flight deals, it's an easy option to consider. We take early am weekend flights when we use JFk and it's really simple

ArchBroad said:
Emirates is amazing. Fly business class with them, talk about reclining... I slept like a baby.

They are. Fly first and your head will explode. It may be the only time you wish you're delayed and circling in the air.

conandrob240 said:
If you're in the car anyway, is going tJFk really that big of a deal. If well- timed, it's an extra 30 minutes. For great flight deals, it's an easy option to consider. We take early am weekend flights when we use JFk and it's really simple

That scenario makes sense. Not so much for business travelers or folks using car service.

I believe the car was $250 each way the last time I was pressured into flying out of JFK to save money.

RobB said:
I believe the car was $250 each way the last time I was pressured into flying out of JFK to save money.

Yup. JFK can make sense if you have the time for the transfer and are driving yourself. That said, it's never made sense for me on personal/business trips in the 7 years I've lived in MSO.

I have found that driving to EWR and parking in the daily lot does make financial sense for trips 3 days or less. Basically the same cost as a car/cab to/from EWR.

ETA: Sorry, I think that was to LGA, not JFK (so add a tiny bit more to get to JFK). But the point is that Uber is much cheaper than a car service, so that might make it worth leaving from there.

Uber from Maplewood to JFK was about $90 the one time I had to do it. It was about $140 back because the rates are higher originating from NYC.

RobB said:
I believe the car was $250 each way the last time I was pressured into flying out of JFK to save money.