Why do so many idiots ask to switch seats on planes these days?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents who refuse to pay for seat assignments who then expect other people to switch seats that they DID pay for suck.

The airlines create this problem. A parent should not have to pay for an upgraded seat assignment in order to sit next to a minor child. That's like arguing that when disabled people fly with a caretaker, they should be required to pay extra for seat assignment so their caretaker can assist them. Small kids are essentially disabled on airplanes -- they can't reach their tray table or their personal items under the seat in front of them, often they cannot go to the bathroom alone, they can't communicate their needs to the flight attendant, etc. Suggesting that someone in that condition should have to pay an upgrade in order to have the person who will do all that for them nearby is psychotic. Parents aren't trying to sit next to kids so they can gossip about the latest episode of Love Island. It's a necessary set up for everyone involved.

If airlines can find a way to accommodate disabled people flying to ensure they are seated with caretakers, they can do this for families who have kids under a certain age. No one should have to pay an extra $100 per leg so they can provide an infant with a bottle, keep their 2 year old entertained, hold their 5 yr olds hand when they get nervous during landing, help their 4 year old to the bathroom, etc.

But it should be on the airline to figure it out, not on passengers. If you are traveling with young kids and get seated apart, I would go to the flight crew and ask them to assist in figuring it out. Usually it can be done without moving a passengers who paid for assigned seating, because on any plane only about half of flyers do that anyway. But if someone who paid for assignment has to move, the airline can also offer to refund them the cost of that assignment and I think people should be flexible in that situation because we are talking about a basic accommodation that is really beneficial for all involved (the child, the parents, the flight crew, and other passengers).

It's like people forgot how to be human.

You are looking at this backwards. Everyone has to pay (via a specific fare class) if they want to select their seats - whether because they want to sit next to someone, they want an aisle seat, they want extra room, they want to be in the front of the plane wherever. This isn't an instance of an extra fare being levied on parents - it's that parents want a fee that everyone pays waived simply because they are traveling with kids. That is, frankly, selfish and nonsensical.

In the parlance of American Airlines, you are asking that parents and their kids get to pay for a basic economy fare class while getting the benefits of a higher fare class. That's BS, and that should be obvious.

Well it's either this or deal with unavoidable caretaking that a 3-year old needs. I mean is the flight attendant going to take them to the bathroom every time they want to go, or are they going to let them make a mess on their seat? Do they want to deal with the child eating messily or crying or screaming? Do the passengers stuck sitting next to them do?

[Anonymous]

We were traveling to Las Vegas with our then 4 and 8 year old kids (this was about 8 years ago). My husband and I were fine to be placed separately (2 and 2) and we knew we were scattered around the plane before we arrived - we called the night before and were told to ask at check in. Got to the airport 2 hours early, asked at check in. We were told to ask at the Customer Service counter. Customer Service counter looked at us like we had 8 heads. Go to the gate, they said.

The gate agent was so rude. Basically told us off and yelled at us for not booking earlier - what? My husband happened to be Platinum at the time so we were early in the boarding process. When we walked up and the boarding agent (different than the original gate agent, who was also standing there) looked at the 4 of us she lost her mind. Berated the gate agent and explained she should have fixed it well before boarding started, and as a result we held up the entire boarding process. The gate agent would not look at us or make eye contact - it was so awkward.

I agree it's on the airlines - but they push it back on you. I felt like we did everything we could to make it right but the airport employees (until we got to the boarding agent) did everything wrong.

We ended up in Economy Plus because guess where there were seats together? The attendants on board spent the entire flight apologizing for the behavior of the airport folks and compensating us with whatever we wanted F and B wise and if I remember correctly, my husband got 50K miles added to his account. Miraculously, our seats were together for the flight home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents who refuse to pay for seat assignments who then expect other people to switch seats that they DID pay for suck.

The airlines create this problem. A parent should not have to pay for an upgraded seat assignment in order to sit next to a minor child. That's like arguing that when disabled people fly with a caretaker, they should be required to pay extra for seat assignment so their caretaker can assist them. Small kids are essentially disabled on airplanes -- they can't reach their tray table or their personal items under the seat in front of them, often they cannot go to the bathroom alone, they can't communicate their needs to the flight attendant, etc. Suggesting that someone in that condition should have to pay an upgrade in order to have the person who will do all that for them nearby is psychotic. Parents aren't trying to sit next to kids so they can gossip about the latest episode of Love Island. It's a necessary set up for everyone involved.

If airlines can find a way to accommodate disabled people flying to ensure they are seated with caretakers, they can do this for families who have kids under a certain age. No one should have to pay an extra $100 per leg so they can provide an infant with a bottle, keep their 2 year old entertained, hold their 5 yr olds hand when they get nervous during landing, help their 4 year old to the bathroom, etc.

But it should be on the airline to figure it out, not on passengers. If you are traveling with young kids and get seated apart, I would go to the flight crew and ask them to assist in figuring it out. Usually it can be done without moving a passengers who paid for assigned seating, because on any plane only about half of flyers do that anyway. But if someone who paid for assignment has to move, the airline can also offer to refund them the cost of that assignment and I think people should be flexible in that situation because we are talking about a basic accommodation that is really beneficial for all involved (the child, the parents, the flight crew, and other passengers).

It's like people forgot how to be human.

You are looking at this backwards. Everyone has to pay (via a specific fare class) if they want to select their seats - whether because they want to sit next to someone, they want an aisle seat, they want extra room, they want to be in the front of the plane wherever. This isn't an instance of an extra fare being levied on parents - it's that parents want a fee that everyone pays waived simply because they are traveling with kids. That is, frankly, selfish and nonsensical.

In the parlance of American Airlines, you are asking that parents and their kids get to pay for a basic economy fare class while getting the benefits of a higher fare class. That's BS, and that should be obvious.

Well it's either this or deal with unavoidable caretaking that a 3-year old needs. I mean is the flight attendant going to take them to the bathroom every time they want to go, or are they going to let them make a mess on their seat? Do they want to deal with the child eating messily or crying or screaming? Do the passengers stuck sitting next to them do?

Simple solution to this - make it a law. If you are traveling with a child under the age of 12 then you MUST have them seated next to you. If that means paying extra to select seats in order to do so, then so be it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents who refuse to pay for seat assignments who then expect other people to switch seats that they DID pay for suck.

The airlines create this problem. A parent should not have to pay for an upgraded seat assignment in order to sit next to a minor child. That's like arguing that when disabled people fly with a caretaker, they should be required to pay extra for seat assignment so their caretaker can assist them. Small kids are essentially disabled on airplanes -- they can't reach their tray table or their personal items under the seat in front of them, often they cannot go to the bathroom alone, they can't communicate their needs to the flight attendant, etc. Suggesting that someone in that condition should have to pay an upgrade in order to have the person who will do all that for them nearby is psychotic. Parents aren't trying to sit next to kids so they can gossip about the latest episode of Love Island. It's a necessary set up for everyone involved.

If airlines can find a way to accommodate disabled people flying to ensure they are seated with caretakers, they can do this for families who have kids under a certain age. No one should have to pay an extra $100 per leg so they can provide an infant with a bottle, keep their 2 year old entertained, hold their 5 yr olds hand when they get nervous during landing, help their 4 year old to the bathroom, etc.

But it should be on the airline to figure it out, not on passengers. If you are traveling with young kids and get seated apart, I would go to the flight crew and ask them to assist in figuring it out. Usually it can be done without moving a passengers who paid for assigned seating, because on any plane only about half of flyers do that anyway. But if someone who paid for assignment has to move, the airline can also offer to refund them the cost of that assignment and I think people should be flexible in that situation because we are talking about a basic accommodation that is really beneficial for all involved (the child, the parents, the flight crew, and other passengers).

It's like people forgot how to be human.

You are looking at this backwards. Everyone has to pay (via a specific fare class) if they want to select their seats - whether because they want to sit next to someone, they want an aisle seat, they want extra room, they want to be in the front of the plane wherever. This isn't an instance of an extra fare being levied on parents - it's that parents want a fee that everyone pays waived simply because they are traveling with kids. That is, frankly, selfish and nonsensical.

In the parlance of American Airlines, you are asking that parents and their kids get to pay for a basic economy fare class while getting the benefits of a higher fare class. That's BS, and that should be obvious.

Well it's either this or deal with unavoidable caretaking that a 3-year old needs. I mean is the flight attendant going to take them to the bathroom every time they want to go, or are they going to let them make a mess on their seat? Do they want to deal with the child eating messily or crying or screaming? Do the passengers stuck sitting next to them do?

Simple solution to this - make it a law. If you are traveling with a child under the age of 12 then you MUST have them seated next to you. If that means paying extra to select seats in order to do so, then so be it.

It's almost like the entire world has figured out a solution to this but US-based airlines are just uniquely stumped. I travel with my kids all the time and neither Air France nor Finnair nor SAS nor Avianca nor Turkish Airlines ever have a problem assigning family seats together without any additional moves.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents who refuse to pay for seat assignments who then expect other people to switch seats that they DID pay for suck.

The airlines create this problem. A parent should not have to pay for an upgraded seat assignment in order to sit next to a minor child. That's like arguing that when disabled people fly with a caretaker, they should be required to pay extra for seat assignment so their caretaker can assist them. Small kids are essentially disabled on airplanes -- they can't reach their tray table or their personal items under the seat in front of them, often they cannot go to the bathroom alone, they can't communicate their needs to the flight attendant, etc. Suggesting that someone in that condition should have to pay an upgrade in order to have the person who will do all that for them nearby is psychotic. Parents aren't trying to sit next to kids so they can gossip about the latest episode of Love Island. It's a necessary set up for everyone involved.

If airlines can find a way to accommodate disabled people flying to ensure they are seated with caretakers, they can do this for families who have kids under a certain age. No one should have to pay an extra $100 per leg so they can provide an infant with a bottle, keep their 2 year old entertained, hold their 5 yr olds hand when they get nervous during landing, help their 4 year old to the bathroom, etc.

But it should be on the airline to figure it out, not on passengers. If you are traveling with young kids and get seated apart, I would go to the flight crew and ask them to assist in figuring it out. Usually it can be done without moving a passengers who paid for assigned seating, because on any plane only about half of flyers do that anyway. But if someone who paid for assignment has to move, the airline can also offer to refund them the cost of that assignment and I think people should be flexible in that situation because we are talking about a basic accommodation that is really beneficial for all involved (the child, the parents, the flight crew, and other passengers).

It's like people forgot how to be human.

You are looking at this backwards. Everyone has to pay (via a specific fare class) if they want to select their seats - whether because they want to sit next to someone, they want an aisle seat, they want extra room, they want to be in the front of the plane wherever. This isn't an instance of an extra fare being levied on parents - it's that parents want a fee that everyone pays waived simply because they are traveling with kids. That is, frankly, selfish and nonsensical.

In the parlance of American Airlines, you are asking that parents and their kids get to pay for a basic economy fare class while getting the benefits of a higher fare class. That's BS, and that should be obvious.

Well it's either this or deal with unavoidable caretaking that a 3-year old needs. I mean is the flight attendant going to take them to the bathroom every time they want to go, or are they going to let them make a mess on their seat? Do they want to deal with the child eating messily or crying or screaming? Do the passengers stuck sitting next to them do?

Simple solution to this - make it a law. If you are traveling with a child under the age of 12 then you MUST have them seated next to you. If that means paying extra to select seats in order to do so, then so be it.

This is obviously the solution. But then you will have parents disingenuously complaining about the "extra" fares they have to pay.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I fly once a month and the last time I was asked to switch seats was 3 years ago. And weirdly enough it was a guy offering his business class seat (domestic really just a bigger seat) to me because his wife had got a standby seat next to me at the last minute and he wanted to sit with her. The flight attendant was a little annoyed that we had to switch after everyone boarded and told the man next time to this at the counter

And the FA can eff off, because the counter won't do that and will tell you to just switch seats on the plane and let the crew know.

[Anonymous]

I have been traveling with 3 kids for 19 years. It has never been a problem. I simply pay for seats together ahead of time and if we get bumped or need to switch due to a connection error airline was able to assist until DC were 7/8. Then we may not have been side by side on 1 or 2 flights but certainly line of vision.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We were traveling to Las Vegas with our then 4 and 8 year old kids (this was about 8 years ago). My husband and I were fine to be placed separately (2 and 2) and we knew we were scattered around the plane before we arrived - we called the night before and were told to ask at check in. Got to the airport 2 hours early, asked at check in. We were told to ask at the Customer Service counter. Customer Service counter looked at us like we had 8 heads. Go to the gate, they said.

The gate agent was so rude. Basically told us off and yelled at us for not booking earlier - what? My husband happened to be Platinum at the time so we were early in the boarding process. When we walked up and the boarding agent (different than the original gate agent, who was also standing there) looked at the 4 of us she lost her mind. Berated the gate agent and explained she should have fixed it well before boarding started, and as a result we held up the entire boarding process. The gate agent would not look at us or make eye contact - it was so awkward.

I agree it's on the airlines - but they push it back on you. I felt like we did everything we could to make it right but the airport employees (until we got to the boarding agent) did everything wrong.

We ended up in Economy Plus because guess where there were seats together? The attendants on board spent the entire flight apologizing for the behavior of the airport folks and compensating us with whatever we wanted F and B wise and if I remember correctly, my husband got 50K miles added to his account. Miraculously, our seats were together for the flight home.

So...in summary...you were too cheap to actually purchase seats together for your flights. Correct? It sounds like you didn't even just purchase regular economy tickets which usually allow free seat assignments (though usually in the back). I am surprised it wasn't some perk of being Platinum, but your story makes you out to be a huge pain-in-the-ass.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The last two times my family wasn’t seated together it was because the airline changed the aircraft after we’d booked the tickets.
We’d done our part and paid for seats together and the gate agent was able to move us around.
Sometimes the outrage over “people were too cheap” just isn’t warranted.

This - I used to feel exactly the way you did OP, and then realized that airlines have just randomly switched people away from their TODDLERS for crying out loud last-minute. I have no idea why. I still have no sympathy for people who just book wherever and rely on guilting another passenger to switch, but some of the time it is not due to a lack of planning or care on the parents’ part

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents who refuse to pay for seat assignments who then expect other people to switch seats that they DID pay for suck.

The airlines create this problem. A parent should not have to pay for an upgraded seat assignment in order to sit next to a minor child. That's like arguing that when disabled people fly with a caretaker, they should be required to pay extra for seat assignment so their caretaker can assist them. Small kids are essentially disabled on airplanes -- they can't reach their tray table or their personal items under the seat in front of them, often they cannot go to the bathroom alone, they can't communicate their needs to the flight attendant, etc. Suggesting that someone in that condition should have to pay an upgrade in order to have the person who will do all that for them nearby is psychotic. Parents aren't trying to sit next to kids so they can gossip about the latest episode of Love Island. It's a necessary set up for everyone involved.

If airlines can find a way to accommodate disabled people flying to ensure they are seated with caretakers, they can do this for families who have kids under a certain age. No one should have to pay an extra $100 per leg so they can provide an infant with a bottle, keep their 2 year old entertained, hold their 5 yr olds hand when they get nervous during landing, help their 4 year old to the bathroom, etc.

But it should be on the airline to figure it out, not on passengers. If you are traveling with young kids and get seated apart, I would go to the flight crew and ask them to assist in figuring it out. Usually it can be done without moving a passengers who paid for assigned seating, because on any plane only about half of flyers do that anyway. But if someone who paid for assignment has to move, the airline can also offer to refund them the cost of that assignment and I think people should be flexible in that situation because we are talking about a basic accommodation that is really beneficial for all involved (the child, the parents, the flight crew, and other passengers).

It's like people forgot how to be human.

You are looking at this backwards. Everyone has to pay (via a specific fare class) if they want to select their seats - whether because they want to sit next to someone, they want an aisle seat, they want extra room, they want to be in the front of the plane wherever. This isn't an instance of an extra fare being levied on parents - it's that parents want a fee that everyone pays waived simply because they are traveling with kids. That is, frankly, selfish and nonsensical.

In the parlance of American Airlines, you are asking that parents and their kids get to pay for a basic economy fare class while getting the benefits of a higher fare class. That's BS, and that should be obvious.

Well it's either this or deal with unavoidable caretaking that a 3-year old needs. I mean is the flight attendant going to take them to the bathroom every time they want to go, or are they going to let them make a mess on their seat? Do they want to deal with the child eating messily or crying or screaming? Do the passengers stuck sitting next to them do?

Simple solution to this - make it a law. If you are traveling with a child under the age of 12 then you MUST have them seated next to you. If that means paying extra to select seats in order to do so, then so be it.

It's almost like the entire world has figured out a solution to this but US-based airlines are just uniquely stumped. I travel with my kids all the time and neither Air France nor Finnair nor SAS nor Avianca nor Turkish Airlines ever have a problem assigning family seats together without any additional moves.

I agree. We pay for seat selection when needed to ensure seats together but sh-t happens like flight cancellations and when it does I'd rather be on a non-US airline. We actually ran into this over the summer when our flight was rebooked due to a same-day flight cancellation. We automatically assigned seats snd were initially going scatted all over on our overseas flight. I was prepared to beg to be re-seated next to my 4yo and the agent was like, yeah of course you should be seated by your kid!

I just really hate how the system is designed to pit passengers against eachother. Just go back to baking the cost of seat selection into an Economy ticket. Would reduce issues to begin with and then people won't feel so put out if they occasionally need to switch from one crappy seat to another.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We were traveling to Las Vegas with our then 4 and 8 year old kids (this was about 8 years ago). My husband and I were fine to be placed separately (2 and 2) and we knew we were scattered around the plane before we arrived - we called the night before and were told to ask at check in. Got to the airport 2 hours early, asked at check in. We were told to ask at the Customer Service counter. Customer Service counter looked at us like we had 8 heads. Go to the gate, they said.

The gate agent was so rude. Basically told us off and yelled at us for not booking earlier - what? My husband happened to be Platinum at the time so we were early in the boarding process. When we walked up and the boarding agent (different than the original gate agent, who was also standing there) looked at the 4 of us she lost her mind. Berated the gate agent and explained she should have fixed it well before boarding started, and as a result we held up the entire boarding process. The gate agent would not look at us or make eye contact - it was so awkward.

I agree it's on the airlines - but they push it back on you. I felt like we did everything we could to make it right but the airport employees (until we got to the boarding agent) did everything wrong.

We ended up in Economy Plus because guess where there were seats together? The attendants on board spent the entire flight apologizing for the behavior of the airport folks and compensating us with whatever we wanted F and B wise and if I remember correctly, my husband got 50K miles added to his account. Miraculously, our seats were together for the flight home.

So...in summary...you were too cheap to actually purchase seats together for your flights. Correct? It sounds like you didn't even just purchase regular economy tickets which usually allow free seat assignments (though usually in the back). I am surprised it wasn't some perk of being Platinum, but your story makes you out to be a huge pain-in-the-ass.

Wow - glad you can sum me up as a pain in the ass so nicely. The tickets were actually purchased by a travel agent as we were traveling for a job interview/visit for a potential move. We had nothing to do with booking the tickets, but immediately knew there was a problem when the tickets came to us and tried to follow the system/advice of the airlines.

Just trying to provide an example of someone attempting to not be a jerk and ask to switch seats. Sorry if that makes me a pain in the ass.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents who refuse to pay for seat assignments who then expect other people to switch seats that they DID pay for suck.

The airlines create this problem. A parent should not have to pay for an upgraded seat assignment in order to sit next to a minor child. That's like arguing that when disabled people fly with a caretaker, they should be required to pay extra for seat assignment so their caretaker can assist them. Small kids are essentially disabled on airplanes -- they can't reach their tray table or their personal items under the seat in front of them, often they cannot go to the bathroom alone, they can't communicate their needs to the flight attendant, etc. Suggesting that someone in that condition should have to pay an upgrade in order to have the person who will do all that for them nearby is psychotic. Parents aren't trying to sit next to kids so they can gossip about the latest episode of Love Island. It's a necessary set up for everyone involved.

If airlines can find a way to accommodate disabled people flying to ensure they are seated with caretakers, they can do this for families who have kids under a certain age. No one should have to pay an extra $100 per leg so they can provide an infant with a bottle, keep their 2 year old entertained, hold their 5 yr olds hand when they get nervous during landing, help their 4 year old to the bathroom, etc.

But it should be on the airline to figure it out, not on passengers. If you are traveling with young kids and get seated apart, I would go to the flight crew and ask them to assist in figuring it out. Usually it can be done without moving a passengers who paid for assigned seating, because on any plane only about half of flyers do that anyway. But if someone who paid for assignment has to move, the airline can also offer to refund them the cost of that assignment and I think people should be flexible in that situation because we are talking about a basic accommodation that is really beneficial for all involved (the child, the parents, the flight crew, and other passengers).

It's like people forgot how to be human.

You are looking at this backwards. Everyone has to pay (via a specific fare class) if they want to select their seats - whether because they want to sit next to someone, they want an aisle seat, they want extra room, they want to be in the front of the plane wherever. This isn't an instance of an extra fare being levied on parents - it's that parents want a fee that everyone pays waived simply because they are traveling with kids. That is, frankly, selfish and nonsensical.

In the parlance of American Airlines, you are asking that parents and their kids get to pay for a basic economy fare class while getting the benefits of a higher fare class. That's BS, and that should be obvious.

Well it's either this or deal with unavoidable caretaking that a 3-year old needs. I mean is the flight attendant going to take them to the bathroom every time they want to go, or are they going to let them make a mess on their seat? Do they want to deal with the child eating messily or crying or screaming? Do the passengers stuck sitting next to them do?

Simple solution to this - make it a law. If you are traveling with a child under the age of 12 then you MUST have them seated next to you. If that means paying extra to select seats in order to do so, then so be it.

But how will these poor airlines make any money?

[Anonymous]

You should not be able to purchase a ticket for a child under a certain age without selecting seats.

I have been asked to move twice in the last few years. Once was a couple where they were both in middle seats, one behind the other and I was in the aisle. I said no. The woman who was in the row behind pushed her arm between the seats so she could touch her partner throughout the flight. It was ridiculous.

The other was for a big multi generational family group who were trying to move all kinds of people so they could all be together. I was in an aisle. I did end up switching for another aisle as I didn't really want to be in the middle of this family as it seemed like they had food to share and planned to be very interactive throughout the flight and I was pretty sure I would end up with someone leaning or reaching over me and climbing in and out all flight

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents who refuse to pay for seat assignments who then expect other people to switch seats that they DID pay for suck.

The airlines create this problem. A parent should not have to pay for an upgraded seat assignment in order to sit next to a minor child. That's like arguing that when disabled people fly with a caretaker, they should be required to pay extra for seat assignment so their caretaker can assist them. Small kids are essentially disabled on airplanes -- they can't reach their tray table or their personal items under the seat in front of them, often they cannot go to the bathroom alone, they can't communicate their needs to the flight attendant, etc. Suggesting that someone in that condition should have to pay an upgrade in order to have the person who will do all that for them nearby is psychotic. Parents aren't trying to sit next to kids so they can gossip about the latest episode of Love Island. It's a necessary set up for everyone involved.

If airlines can find a way to accommodate disabled people flying to ensure they are seated with caretakers, they can do this for families who have kids under a certain age. No one should have to pay an extra $100 per leg so they can provide an infant with a bottle, keep their 2 year old entertained, hold their 5 yr olds hand when they get nervous during landing, help their 4 year old to the bathroom, etc.

But it should be on the airline to figure it out, not on passengers. If you are traveling with young kids and get seated apart, I would go to the flight crew and ask them to assist in figuring it out. Usually it can be done without moving a passengers who paid for assigned seating, because on any plane only about half of flyers do that anyway. But if someone who paid for assignment has to move, the airline can also offer to refund them the cost of that assignment and I think people should be flexible in that situation because we are talking about a basic accommodation that is really beneficial for all involved (the child, the parents, the flight crew, and other passengers).

It's like people forgot how to be human.

You are looking at this backwards. Everyone has to pay (via a specific fare class) if they want to select their seats - whether because they want to sit next to someone, they want an aisle seat, they want extra room, they want to be in the front of the plane wherever. This isn't an instance of an extra fare being levied on parents - it's that parents want a fee that everyone pays waived simply because they are traveling with kids. That is, frankly, selfish and nonsensical.

In the parlance of American Airlines, you are asking that parents and their kids get to pay for a basic economy fare class while getting the benefits of a higher fare class. That's BS, and that should be obvious.

Well it's either this or deal with unavoidable caretaking that a 3-year old needs. I mean is the flight attendant going to take them to the bathroom every time they want to go, or are they going to let them make a mess on their seat? Do they want to deal with the child eating messily or crying or screaming? Do the passengers stuck sitting next to them do?

Simple solution to this - make it a law. If you are traveling with a child under the age of 12 then you MUST have them seated next to you. If that means paying extra to select seats in order to do so, then so be it.

Not sure how this works in a last minute flight cancellation and rebooking scenario when there are no seats left together.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents who refuse to pay for seat assignments who then expect other people to switch seats that they DID pay for suck.

The airlines create this problem. A parent should not have to pay for an upgraded seat assignment in order to sit next to a minor child. That's like arguing that when disabled people fly with a caretaker, they should be required to pay extra for seat assignment so their caretaker can assist them. Small kids are essentially disabled on airplanes -- they can't reach their tray table or their personal items under the seat in front of them, often they cannot go to the bathroom alone, they can't communicate their needs to the flight attendant, etc. Suggesting that someone in that condition should have to pay an upgrade in order to have the person who will do all that for them nearby is psychotic. Parents aren't trying to sit next to kids so they can gossip about the latest episode of Love Island. It's a necessary set up for everyone involved.

If airlines can find a way to accommodate disabled people flying to ensure they are seated with caretakers, they can do this for families who have kids under a certain age. No one should have to pay an extra $100 per leg so they can provide an infant with a bottle, keep their 2 year old entertained, hold their 5 yr olds hand when they get nervous during landing, help their 4 year old to the bathroom, etc.

But it should be on the airline to figure it out, not on passengers. If you are traveling with young kids and get seated apart, I would go to the flight crew and ask them to assist in figuring it out. Usually it can be done without moving a passengers who paid for assigned seating, because on any plane only about half of flyers do that anyway. But if someone who paid for assignment has to move, the airline can also offer to refund them the cost of that assignment and I think people should be flexible in that situation because we are talking about a basic accommodation that is really beneficial for all involved (the child, the parents, the flight crew, and other passengers).

It's like people forgot how to be human.

You are looking at this backwards. Everyone has to pay (via a specific fare class) if they want to select their seats - whether because they want to sit next to someone, they want an aisle seat, they want extra room, they want to be in the front of the plane wherever. This isn't an instance of an extra fare being levied on parents - it's that parents want a fee that everyone pays waived simply because they are traveling with kids. That is, frankly, selfish and nonsensical.

In the parlance of American Airlines, you are asking that parents and their kids get to pay for a basic economy fare class while getting the benefits of a higher fare class. That's BS, and that should be obvious.

Well it's either this or deal with unavoidable caretaking that a 3-year old needs. I mean is the flight attendant going to take them to the bathroom every time they want to go, or are they going to let them make a mess on their seat? Do they want to deal with the child eating messily or crying or screaming? Do the passengers stuck sitting next to them do?

Simple solution to this - make it a law. If you are traveling with a child under the age of 12 then you MUST have them seated next to you. If that means paying extra to select seats in order to do so, then so be it.

Not sure how this works in a last minute flight cancellation and rebooking scenario when there are no seats left together.

NP. I am fine with making the airlines figure it out, like by requiring them to offer incentives to other passengers on the flight to get them to “voluntarily” switch seats so the family can be accommodated. Kind of like how they can’t start boarding an overbooked flight until they have bribed enough people to get rebooked. The airlines can absolutely afford it.