Does your first class seat belong to you, to do with as you please? Or if you decline the upgrade does it belong to the next person on the list?
I’ve seen passengers give their first class seat to a member of the military, saying ‘thank you for your service.’ Former United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz got press for giving away his first class seat to an elderly passenger.
Whether or not you can give your seat to someone else depends on the airline, and also potential on the crew. The best thing to do is ask the flight attendant’s permission to offer up your seat.
Sometimes it can even be important in saving a relationship. After all, you don’t want the drama of sitting up front while your partner is relegated to the back for the start of a romantic vacation or family holiday.
But what if you want to give them the seat for… just a little while? And then take it back? Then it tends to become a disturbance in the cabin. On an American Airlines flight, a passenger relays that:
- A husband and wife were traveling with two kids.
- The husband is in first class, wife in coach with the kids
- Once airborne, one kid runs from coach up to first class to see the dad, then returns to economy after a few minutes.
- After meal service, about an hour and a half into the flight, the husband heads back to coach and tells his wife, “your turn.” They trade seats, she sits up front and he sits in back with the kids.
- Every hour for the rest of the flight, the husband and wife swap who sits in first
- And the “[k]ids are constantly running back and forth the entire flight”
The first class flight attendant chatted up both the mother and the father, whichever one was seated up front at the time.
I suppose this is better for the family than one parent taking first class for themselves the whole flight, while the other parent deals with the kids in economy. I wouldn’t mind splitting the first class seat as much if it was just a matter of one parent giving the other one a break, but here the kids were running back and forth between the parents in different cabins. That’s disruptive to other passengers.
You can pretty much do whatever you wish inflight with the ascent of the cabin crew, and here (tacitly at least) it seems the first class flight attendant approved. They seemed to think it was ok – but do you?
I tend to think this isn’t ok. If splitting use of a first class seat was acceptable, surely airlines would sell a first class by the minute option, or a first class timeshare. They don’t for a reason, and they rarely miss opportunities to monetize their product that are even in a gray area for acceptability. This one doesn’t pass that test.
Assent
Kids are annoying. As a grandfather particularly so.
At least you should be happy they are paying more than their fair share per pound.
They charge, what $50 for a 50 pound piece of luggage?
Kids should be given a $50 to $100 discount rather than making parents pay to subsidize your fat arse.
Until that happens, stop complaining.
Switching once (or twice on a really long flight) is acceptable when done discreetly, like when going to the bathroom. Giving one parent a break is perfectly acceptable – but you need to control the kids. Kids running around on a flight – never acceptable. It’s a danger to them and everyone else. Hit a little unexpected turbulance and kids will be on the ceiling. There’s a reason they ask you to be belted in at all times, even when you’re allowed to get up and move about the cabin. Get up, do your business, sit back down, seatbelt on. (SO has also gotten up from her seat, turned around, and given kids and their parents the Death Glare when kids start kicking her seat. We’ve had kids, flown with them since they were babies, and they behaved, because we taught them to behave. We call BS on Gentle Parenting.)
It’s an airplane, not a playground.
Agree with CM.
I have no problem with the hubby and wife trading places a few times. I DO however, have a problem with children running up and down the airplane aisles disrupting what should be a peaceful and quiet atmosphere no matter WHERE their parents are seated. It is rude and the fight attendants should not allow children to be running up and down aisles whilst in flight. Besides, it is dangerous both for the children and the passengers should there be turbulence or an emergency.
I think it is BS
I had this happen on a transatlantic flight. I complained to the FA. she put up a velvet rope that separated the cabins and that seemed to put an end to it. i do not know if she spoke to the parents.
I wish people would just decide whether to fly coach or first and buy seats accordingly. However, the real problem isn’t the switching of the seats. It’s the kids running back and forth. If the flight attendants won’t stop it, there’s nothing that can be done. So chill.
As a parent, I love this idea! (As long as they aren’t really disturbing anybody, disrupting meal service, blocking the aisle, etc)
And for all the crankypants people out there who are just looking for something to be mad at, if you don’t want kids on the plane, you are welcome to buy every seat in the cabin and allow or exclude anybody you want.
It seems the whiny little biatches are out in full force.
If a husband / wife team want to exchange seats every so often, just STFU and mind your own business. The fact is they were seated separately and changing seats every hour or two gives one a rest while the other takes care of the kids.
And as for the kids, kids are kids. I’m sure you were a kid once and were a major pain in the arse. Stop pretending you didn’t do the same when you were a child. Also, the kids are confined on a smallish, dull and boring plane. What, Einstein, do you think they’d do, sit down and study the Wall Street Journal for a few hours?
Seriously, crawl back in your cave. Stop trying to enforce your whiny Neanderthal attitude on others.
I don’t think First and Business Class passengers should be bothered by this nuisance. Contrary to Mike’s ridiculous solution, the burden should be on If the parents if want to keep the kids together then book in the cabin as a family. Airplanes are not day care facilities.
Judging by recent international trips on American, this is not allowed. On each flight, several very stern announcements were made that movement between cabins is forbidden by “International regulations.” While this is apparently to keep steerage class passengers from using the premium cabin lavs, it certainly should apply in these cases.
@ Gary — Children and their accompanying parents should be banished to the rear of the aircraft and should not be permitted in lounges.
Most passengers won’t complain as long as free-range kids are quiet and don’t run between first class and coach, or poop in the aisle.
The flight attendant should have found a way to seat the children in first so us miserable folks in coach won’t be disturbed.
Kids are like farts on a plane, barely stand your own and can’t stand anyone else’s
Quite a few years ago, I stopped a child from running up and down the aisle. When she came by me I told her to go back and sit down, and she did for the rest of the flight.
Had this happen on overnight international flight in business. Dad in business. Mom and kids in steerage. They didn’t swap but dad would go back to check on them.
He was in window, I had aisle. Okay except one kid kept going back and forth and wanting to climb over me. I was trying too get some sleep.
Finally I stopped them both and said NO MORE. Neither was happy but it stopped.
I did have some kids running back and forth on 1 FC trip I took. Signaled the steward. He told parents to stop. It did.
An occasional visit is 1 thing. Constantly back and forth. Nope.
Look, I love kids. But one can’t take the position “kids are kids” and if you don’t like it, don’t fly or just buy all the seats. Sure, if kids making noise and running around bother you, don’t go to Disneyland and complain. There are places specifically catering to families and children and avoid them if you it bothers you. But a plane is not Disneyland. What’s next? Kids are kids — if you don’t like it, don’t go to the……?
No, that’s just lazy parenting b*** s***. Part of being a parent is to, you know, actually raise your children to be positive, respectful, people. Maybe give it a try.
Lots of comments here! Good work Gary!
My experience is that it’s not nearly as bad as the post made it sound. As for sharing a 1st class seat, do it discretely and quietly, no one can (and should not) complain, IMHO.
As for “kids running up and down the aisle”, how old are these kids? 4? 6? Then yes, probably not acceptable. But what if they were 9 or 11? Again, my experience for that age group is that they are model citizens in public (at home is another story, lol).
Finally, the best thing I heard with dealing/handling things with small children is from my now deceased favorite priest when during a homily there were young children crying or being disruptive during a mass.
He said, “God bless those who are brave enough to express exactly how they feel”.
Lot’s of great meaning there!!!
It is against the rules to try to split a first or business class seat with another passenger. Period. Stay in your own seat. Now if you can do it without disturbing anyone, I’m not going to complain, but if you wake me up on an overnight flight I will complain, and if the FA doesn’t do anything about it, I am going to be writing in, naming names, and requesting compensation.
I wish people would stop using expressions they don’t know the meaning of. Americans hear things on PBS when watching British shows, often guess incorrectly what they mean, and start using them. Every time I hear an American say chat up/chatting up, I want to scream because they ALWAYS use it wrong. It doesn’t mean “chat.” It means hit on or heavily flirt. So was the FA trying to get the parents to date her? I doubt it.
The children should remain seated with their seatbelts on to prevent a disaster. If this happened to a flight attendant imagine a child (today’s news):
https://thebulkheadseat.com/southwest-flight-attendant-breaks-hip-and-elbow-after-severe-turbulence-hits-flight/
Kids need to stay in their own seats just like everyone else. Should not be loose in the aisles of either cabin. People in business and first pay to be more comfortable and that includes not being disturbed by coach people coming and going, FAs need to step up. The parents switching one time could be overlooked 😉 but back and forth every hour, making the kids think it is fine for them too, that’s too much.
Singapore Airlines has the rule that you can visit cabin classes that are lower than yours but not higher. So if the kids were in First and wanted to visit dad in Economy that would be OK, but not vice versa. And their staff enforce the rules, unlike American airlines (generally, not just AA).
Pro tip for those writing here who said that “kid will be kids”: that’s only true if you stop parenting. Do a better job and kids will actually behave themselves.
Hornet, Just because Brits use chat as a way to describe flirting doesn’t mean the poster used it incorrectly. Go check you Oxford English Dictionary. Chatting is just light casual conversation. And most of the world speaks American English not the inferior British version.
1.0 I pay a premium for my Bizz Class Long Haul Flight and value my Comfort, Peace and Quiet on the flight.
2. Kids running around is not a acceptable.
3. !!! !!! Safety of all passengers is of the utmost importance!!! !!!
4. Those folks should have gotten seats altogether in any class of service.
5. I am amazed at some of the language in the above comments. Really are you all adults ? Trying to shame people by calling people names?!?!
Enough said keep it clean people and work together.
It is not the job of flight attendants to raise or discipline children of negligent parents on an airplane. The parents are the problem. We have so many people asking not to be separated from their children creating disruptions on flights because they were cheap. Now you have parents expecting total strangers to keep their devil spawn safe if an emergency should happen on the plane. If you want me to babysit your child, pay me. And I will decide what discipline the child needs. End of discussion. Your little monster is no princess or prince to me and will be delt with accordingly. They will be better behaved getting off the plane than when they got on.
@RP First of all, British English IS proper English. Second, yes, that is what “chat” means. Chat UP means something entirely different. Seems you can’t read in any language.
Gary, I am usually in agreement with you on travel issues but this one not so much. You do need to ask permission from a flight attendant to give up your seat, that is yours to decide.
As a flight attendant for a mainline carrier, I had one of the worst experiences with a similar issue. The only difference was that both parents were seated at the bulkhead directly behind first class. The parents weren’t sitting next to each other. They were on opposite sides of the aisle. Their toddler son started in a seat next to his mother. Dad sat back and read his newspaper alone. As soon as we reached cruising altitude, that’s when all hell broke lose. While dad sat enjoying his paper, mom let her son run wild. Whenever I said something to her about her son needed to remain seated with his seatbelt on, she would say “Don’t worry. I have a hold of him.” Meanwhile, the entire flight this kid not only kept running through the cabin most of the time, but also started throwing things at two little girls sitting behind him. When I told him to stop doing that, mom would grab him by his leg as he leaned backwards towards the girls and say “I’ve got him.”
Dad did absolutely nothing. And even though mom was next to her son, she did nothing either. As flight attendants we can only control so much. Parents need to take responsibility for their own kids. We’re not your babysitters.