Unless you’re willing to fork out for an upgrade, air travel can often be a gruelling ordeal. You may find yourself squashed into a tight space for hours on end next to a total stranger, and it’s often down to pure chance whether your fellow passenger has any peculiar habits that drive you up the wall.
However, one man has claimed that even an upgrade to a more luxurious class doesn’t necessarily shield you from impolite passengers who expect you to bend over backwards for them. In fact, he stated that during a recent flight, a family tried to deceive a flight attendant in order to snatch his seat away from him.
In a Reddit post, the man detailed how he chose to book business class for a recent flight as it would secure him a window seat and ensure the middle seat remained vacant, affording him a bit more space.
Upon boarding his flight, he took his designated seat opposite an older gentleman seated in the aisle seat across from him. However, shortly after, the other man’s wife and son arrived and requested if he could swap seats with them so the family could sit together.
But there was a hitch – the wife and child were booked in economy class, meaning a seat swap would result in a downgrade.
The gentleman declined this unappealing proposition, prompting the family to present a counter-proposal whereby the son would occupy the vacant middle seat alongside his father whilst the mother returned to economy class. It emerged they had deceived the cabin crew to facilitate this arrangement.
In his Reddit submission, he explained: “His wife and son came in, asking me to switch (business for economy) so they could all sit there. Then, [they] told me that if I didn’t switch with the wife, the son would sit in the middle at least. [The dad] reasoned that I didn’t need an empty seat next to me and claimed the stewardess allowed it.
“Turned out, [the flight attendant] said it was possible if the other passenger agreed, to which they replied that I was family, so I would 100% agree.”
Please note: The following Reddit post contains strong language.
The passenger refused to relocate and informed the cabin crew of the truth, resulting in the family being compelled to return to their allocated seats.
He continued: “I didn’t budge. The son and wife had to stay in the economy, and his father spent almost four hours muttering passive-aggressive comments. Whenever I took off my headphones, he was still going..
“Like what the f**k. But shoutout to the stewardesses (another one had to come, because they refused to go back to their seats) for staying professional.”
Commenters on the post were appalled by the family’s audacity, particularly as the father could have swapped with an economy passenger to keep his family together but was unwilling to sacrifice his premium seat.
One individual remarked: “He didn’t give up his seat for his family, just wanted you to.”
Another chimed in: “It’s wild how some people feel entitled to what others paid extra for. Lying about being your family? That’s next-level manipulative. You had every right to your seat and your space. Props to you for standing your ground, and huge respect to the flight attendants for backing you up.”
A third commenter suggested: “The family 100% booked like this on purpose. Get three business class upgrades for the price of one. They probably saw a ‘travel hack’ on TikTok and then were mad when the scam didn’t work. Good on you for not budging.”