Late last week a traveler posted a photo of their exit row, saying they’d paid extra for the seats – but “but spent 4 hours with kids blocking the emergency exit window.” They were flying with their sister and niece, paid €30 each for the legroom on the flight within Europe, and spent most of it with a father and two kids standing at the emergency door window leaning in, talking loudly, and physically occupying the legroom they’d paid for.
They called for help from flight attendants three times. Each time they asked the passengers to move, but on the third visit – instead of escalating or enforcing the edict – she warned that she would not come back a fourth time to say anything.
In addition to calling for help from crew, they asked the father directly twice. He sat down, but returned 10 minutes later with the kids.
Exit door areas are not standing zones. There’s supposed to be unobstructed access to emergency exits. Cabin crew are responsible for keeping aisles and exits clear. That’s not just for taxi, takeoff and landing.
And if you pay for extra legroom, the airline should deliver on that promise. Other passengers shouldn’t be able to turn that space into a social or viewing area.
If the crew isn’t helpful, what do you do?
- Assert rights yourself, but this can lead to conflict. You might occupy the space with your legs or bags (in a non-obstructive manner, of course!).
- Complain to the airline seeking a refund of the seat fees, noting that the legroom offered wasn’t delivered and that crew failed to secure it – and failed to provide for safe egress to the exit in the event it was needed.
Some coverage says the flight was headed to Spain, but I can’t verify that. This looks like an Airbus A321 to me. Some of you will have a better read on cabin interiors than I will, but it looks like a Lufthansa Group interior to me.
The A321 mid-door bay is a natural space to congregate. Passengers treat it like shared space. But airlines are monetizing that space. So they need to enforce that and deliver what the promise.
(HT: JonNYC)
Agreed, Gary. In addition of things to do IF the AA’s do not help, video evidence seems to be the most powerful.
Well, at least it was for a kid; like, if it were an adult fellow passenger doing this repeatedly, I think would have resulted in r/AirRage.
Stick your legs out and trip the children.
I will often book this equivalent space on a transatlantic. My solution is that I take my backpack (stowed in the overhead for takeoff and landing) and put it squarely in the space in front of me. It’s an excellent footrest. They cannot stand there because my backpack, my feet, and my long legs are there.
@Brian gets it. Practical, compliant, and also creative. I applaud you, sir, for not feeling the need to threaten anyone, for not ‘doing nothing’ then whining on socials afterwards, and for not having to get the ‘authorities’ (the crew) involved… no; rather, he simply uses the space he paid for. Sowie kiddo. Brilliant.
At some point tell them to get out of your space.
I would suggest that if they want a better view to step out on to the wing.
This would be only time it would ever be acceptable to take off your shoes and socks and trim your toenails on a flight…
The real problem with issues like this are twofold- (1) the Airlines themselves do not have standard policies in place for such actions, and (2) the Flight Attendants are put into a no win position – they are criticized if they do something and/or they are criticized if they don’t do anything. The Flight Attendants are not the police and should not have to be put into a position where they are expected to police these type of situations. I blame the airlines – all they care about is the bottom line and they leave Flight Attendants out there to take the abuse. As I said before, the airlines should have standard policies in place for these types of situations. This being said, the passengers find no sensible actions are taken to resolve these types of issues.
@David R. Miller — A rare somewhat ‘based’ take from you. ‘A broken clock is right twice a day’ vibes.
In addition to being paid for space, it is a danger to the people seated there if sudden turbulence sends the unsecured people flying. When the seatbelt sign is off you can go the rest room or stretch your legs, but just hanging around is what ends up with people injured by turbulence.
That wouldn’t happen if I were sitting there. My legs would already be occupying that space.
1990 – Still waiting for you to be right
@David R. Miller — “Your boos mean nothing, I’ve seen what makes you cheer…”
1990 – Do yourself a favor – save your smug remarks. You impress no one with your imbecilic know-it-all, fatuous, witless, inappropriate postings.
I would politie say: Excuse me but I don’t want to be sitting here looking at your back side, Thank you.
What a waste of oxygen being so PASSIVE AGRESSIVE.
I don’t care if it’s kids, dogs, service dogs, fake service dogs, a woman who peed on herself putting her legs up, whatever.
It’s my space. Stay out of it. Use your phone camera and document as you shove the problem out of YOUR PAID FOR SPACE. It’s not YOUR problem. Trespassers are not welcome. Not in your paid space. Not in the southern US border. Not violating Israel’s borders because “gaza” and not anywhere else.
Suck it up, buttercup. Don’t be passive agressive. You paid – it’s your right to expect to get what you paid for.
What dissonance we live in when people allow others to occupy their space and whine. Can I come live in your living room for free? If the answer is no, there you go.
@ David R. Miller I’ll help…yep. He’s a bit like a puppy peeing on a new carpet, Gary loves him anyway.
@David R. Miller — “Ever breath I take in your disapproval, fuels my self esteem.”
I can tell neither you, nor @One Trippe, ‘gets it.’
Mr David Miller: You said “1990 – Still waiting for you to be right”
Thus, 1990 wasn’t even “right” when he said you were right. What a world.
Having bought exit row many times and on overseas flights, only to have it taken up by people who stretch their legs, wait for the toilet, or just chat (while stepping on my feet), I know the issue. But to be precise, we don’t “buy legroom”, we “buy exit row”, with the hope of leg room. You got unlucky this time. It’s not in the contract that leg room is guaranteed. Buyer beware.
Oh no, an outbreak of tetchy people with too much time on their hands…
Tell the child that if the door suddenly opens it sucks all the small children out first.
The emergency exits do not have to be clear of obstruction while the plane is flying. You use them while there is solid ground under you. They are unable to be opened in the air due to pressurization and no one is stupid enough to think you can just jump out of a plane in mid air, or are they? Best thing to do is create
for yourself a little foot rest that would prevent others from invading “your space”.
All I hear is how FAs aren’t just waiters in the sky, they are super important safety team members. Well, there are rules against congregating and, in general, people should be seated when the plane is flying not randomly standing in spaces. So, they are a sort of police and they should be enforcing the rules.
Unpopular viewpoint alert!
You pay for the seat and that’s it. You get the benefit of the extra room when it’s not in use. The exit row is NOT there for people to have extra room when they are flying. It’s sole purpose is to allow for exiting the airplane in an emergency. The fact that people find value in it and are willing to pay more for it is secondary and the airlines have started to charge for the perceived value. But still, you are only entitled to the seat and some leg room. Of course, you have every right to spread out and make yourself comfortable, but there are no guarantees that someone will not have business to attend to and or enter the zone in front of your legs. The people in the photo were completely rude and should not have done what they did, but I do not see a problem that would absolutely require the flight attendants to get involved. If I did notice a tussle, I might ask the captain to illuminate the fasten seat belt sign for a few minutes to get everyone to return to their seats, most importantly that dad and the kid. This would give the exit row passenger a minute to reclaim his lost ground. But that’s about all i could do with such a large amount of space in front of the seats as shown in the photo.
1990 is a true loser. Probably has a spreadsheet where he does nothing but track every post. Names, stats, tendencies, because he has nothing better to do with his pathetic life. He once accused me of being other posters, what a paranoid irratant. He’s one of those that jump and down, waving their arms, trying to bring some attention, and when you finally look his way, you see nothing. He thinks that kissing someone’s rear end will surely gain him their favor and then two posts later says something that shows his true colors. I feel sorry for him, what a self-absorbed life he must live.
Mike – I don’t and never will feel sorry for 1990 – he is what is wrong in America.
@David R. Miller — Explain further, and be explicit as to what should be done about people like me.
@mike s — You can save your faux-pity for those who actually need it. Give me something spicier. Feed me.