WWYD? Airline rebooked our seats and we're all spread out

[Anonymous]

Economy plus has a teeny bit more leg room. That's about it.

I would love to know how they assign seats. I was on a long-haul flight last year -- stuck in the middle two seats in the middle four. Then an entire high school class boarded and these kids on a field trip took every aisle seat up and down the plane. They were actually unhappy about it because they wanted to sit together!

[Anonymous]

I think it's more than teeny--in a reg seat my knees hit the back of the one in front of me, in economy plus there's actual legroom. Also, economyplus is at the front of the plane, right behind business class so less of a hike down the plane.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents and children are obligated to be seated together. They will switch you up at the gate. They will not let an 8 year old sit alone, etc.

In my experience, this is not true. Like PP, I had my then two year old in one part of the plane, my 8 year old in another and me in another. We needed a whole row together. Flight attendants didn't help and people were not kind about moving. It was an awful experience.

I have an situation coming up that i'm a little nervous about. Flying to FL and on the way back, DH, DS age 2, and I are scattered in middle seats throughout the plane. It actually didn't give me the option to select seats when I was booking and I didn't notice til I got the confirmation that we weren't seated together. I called American and actually tried to switch flights to one with more open availability... there were no other options that day (not sure she would have done it anyhow). The woman I talked to said they would make every effort at the airport to get us together... the flight is this week so we shall see what happens. Worst case scenario, since DS is only 2, I will keep him on my lap for the flight. If that ends up happening, sucks that we paid $$$$ for the seat. Ugh.

Take his car seat, the FAA requires they be installed in a window seat, so your toddler will be switched.

[Anonymous]

No guarantee they switch him to the window seat by mom however.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Economy plus has a teeny bit more leg room. That's about it.

I would love to know how they assign seats. I was on a long-haul flight last year -- stuck in the middle two seats in the middle four. Then an entire high school class boarded and these kids on a field trip took every aisle seat up and down the plane. They were actually unhappy about it because they wanted to sit together!

Where you not able to make a seat assignment when you booked your ticket?

I do not buy a ticket unless I can book a seat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Economy plus has a teeny bit more leg room. That's about it.

I would love to know how they assign seats. I was on a long-haul flight last year -- stuck in the middle two seats in the middle four. Then an entire high school class boarded and these kids on a field trip took every aisle seat up and down the plane. They were actually unhappy about it because they wanted to sit together!

Where you not able to make a seat assignment when you booked your ticket?

I do not buy a ticket unless I can book a seat.

News flash: airlines can and so change preassigned seats. Kind of the point if this thread.

[Anonymous]

We were told that, if you didn't book the window, you need to gate check the car seat and go without it. So that's no guarantee either.

[Anonymous]

This is why I love Virgin America - they will go out of their way to accommodate families.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We were told that, if you didn't book the window, you need to gate check the car seat and go without it. So that's no guarantee either.

How old was your child? Because my 9month old can not sit in a seat without a car seat which is why I always book him a window, but when we've been bumped the always find us a window & middle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents and children are obligated to be seated together. They will switch you up at the gate. They will not let an 8 year old sit alone, etc.

In my experience, this is not true. Like PP, I had my then two year old in one part of the plane, my 8 year old in another and me in another. We needed a whole row together. Flight attendants didn't help and people were not kind about moving. It was an awful experience.

I have an situation coming up that i'm a little nervous about. Flying to FL and on the way back, DH, DS age 2, and I are scattered in middle seats throughout the plane. It actually didn't give me the option to select seats when I was booking and I didn't notice til I got the confirmation that we weren't seated together. I called American and actually tried to switch flights to one with more open availability... there were no other options that day (not sure she would have done it anyhow). The woman I talked to said they would make every effort at the airport to get us together... the flight is this week so we shall see what happens. Worst case scenario, since DS is only 2, I will keep him on my lap for the flight. If that ends up happening, sucks that we paid $$$$ for the seat. Ugh.

I am the last quoted poster. Just got back from my trip. I had called several times to see about switching seats, and was eventually told to call 24 hours before the flight. Long story short, the full last row opened up so we were all together. The last row sucks but much better than middle seats scattered around the plane. So everyone in this situation, just keep checking. They unblock seats 24 hours out. I just wanted to know going in we would all be together. Alls well that ends well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most of these cold hearted lousy treatments are from united flights... They really are the worst! Our kids love JetBlue and virgin America .

We are currently traveling in Japan with a family of 8. United rescheduled our return flight and split up our previously assigned seats into six individual seats spread out all over the place in the back of the plane... bastards .... i called them up, and they say i can buy economy plus upgrades for $850!!! ... bastards ... when i get home, i will cancell my United credit card ... and swear to never travel on United again ... bastards!!

[Anonymous]

I don't know, if this has been brought up in this thread, but I wanted to add that there were recently inquiries regarding sexual assault on airplanes - this seems to be more common than one would think - mainly involving a male passenger touching, stroking etc. a female when she looked like she was sleeping. The victims are often adult women, so there is NO WAY I will let any of my children sit next to a stranger on an airplane! I switched seats plenty of times when I was flying by myself for families, and I think that is common courtesy.

I can't link right now, but here is an excerpt from one of the articles:

New legislation is being drafted to better protect women from sexual assault aboard commercial airplanes, because of the findings of a News4 I-Team investigation.

A review of federal court records by the News4's Scott MacFarlane revealed a series of recent sex assault cases on domestic U.S. flights, including aboard planes en route to Reagan National and Dulles airports. In each case, female passengers reported being molested by stranger next to whom they were seated.

Surge in Sexual Assaults on Airplanes
In one recent incident, the FBI’s Washington, D.C., field office investigated a Dulles-bound passenger for molesting a 15-year-old girl. In a criminal complaint filed by federal prosecutors, authorities said the passenger, Carlos Vasquez, ran his hand up the girl’s shorts, touched her buttocks and touched a “private area” as he sat next to her on a flight from Houston. The girl, who didn’t know her attacker, pretended to be asleep during the ordeal, prosecutors said.

MacFarlane’s review also found no federal government agency officially tabulating or tracking sex assaults on commercial airplane flights, including the Federal Aviation Administration and U.S. Justice Department.

In the wake of News4 I-Team’s story, Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) has drafted legislation directing the FAA to collect and maintain data on sexual assaults that occur on aircrafts during air transport, including domestic and international flights that land in the United States. Norton said the I-Team’s investigation revealed vulnerabilities in aviation law.

“Without some real time statistics and documentation, we cannot gain either the necessary information to prosecute these crimes or the insights to help eliminate them," Holmes Norton said.

Her legislation will be formally introduced next week, after the U.S. House returns from a week-long recess. It’s expected to be referred to the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, of which Del. Norton is a senior member.

Several men have been charged with sexual attacks against strangers on airplanes since 2012, including men on flights to New Jersey and California.

Dana Larue, a California-based blogger, told the News4 I-Team she’d suffered a sexual assault aboard a flight to Chicago in recent months. Larue said the attacker fondled her legs and breasts.

Larue said she was so stunned by the attack, she failed to notify the flight crew.

“I knew there was nowhere to go," she said. "And I would’ve had to get by him to get out of my seat. I was just completely terrified and frozen.”

Larue notified authorities after her flight landed. The FBI, which investigates crimes aboard commercial flights, looked into her case, Larue said. But she said they were unable to bring charges against the attacker because other passengers and potential witnesses had already dispersed.

FBI agents and safety groups urge assaulted passengers or witnesses to immediately notify flight crews, if possible.

Veda Shook, president of the International Association of Flight Attendants, said airplane crews are prepared to respond to reports of assault.

“There’s only a handful of flight attendants sometimes as few as one flight attendant working a flight. It’s up to all of the passengers to be mindful of what’s happening around them,"

[Anonymous]

Has anyone complained to their representatives about this ? I can't imagine that anything other than new regulations will protect minors and parents from being reassigned seats apart from each other.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most of these cold hearted lousy treatments are from united flights... They really are the worst! Our kids love JetBlue and virgin America .

We are currently traveling in Japan with a family of 8. United rescheduled our return flight and split up our previously assigned seats into six individual seats spread out all over the place in the back of the plane... bastards .... i called them up, and they say i can buy economy plus upgrades for $850!!! ... bastards ... when i get home, i will cancell my United credit card ... and swear to never travel on United again ... bastards!!

Sounds like much to do about nothing. Is it really that inconvenient, just make do. If you want to sit together then buck up. Why are you so special that you should get what you want.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most of these cold hearted lousy treatments are from united flights... They really are the worst! Our kids love JetBlue and virgin America .

We are currently traveling in Japan with a family of 8. United rescheduled our return flight and split up our previously assigned seats into six individual seats spread out all over the place in the back of the plane... bastards .... i called them up, and they say i can buy economy plus upgrades for $850!!! ... bastards ... when i get home, i will cancell my United credit card ... and swear to never travel on United again ... bastards!!

Wait, are they bastards though?