Experts already warn us that flying will never be the same after the pandemic. Flight prices are nowhere near as cheap as they used to be, many airports are often still understaffed, and planes are packed to the brink. No wonder airlines are charging insane prices for the good seats.

Speaking of seats, a 22-year-old woman got into a weird situation after boarding a 9-hour international flight. A girl was sitting in the author’s window seat, and being stressed and not wanting to look rude, the author was ready to give up her seat. But a phone call from her dad changed the whole situation.

A woman shared an incident on the AITA subreddit about how she made a child cry by taking the seat that she paid for on a flight

Image credits: leungchopan (not the actual photo)

Image credits: friends_stock (not the actual photo)

Image credits: Anon

“I don’t deal with confrontation very well sometimes,” the author of this story who wanted to remain anonymous told Bored Panda.

She continued: “And at that moment I was already feeling emotionally vulnerable about leaving home. I have read about things like this happening so often, but I did not expect for it to happen to me, so while I know I should have said something immediately I panicked and stressed out.”

“Instead of making the situation more uncomfortable, I would have just sat at the aisle seat and been miserable for the rest of the flight. My family knew that and that is why my dad refused to end the call until I had spoken up for myself and gotten into my correct seat,” the woman behind this story told us.

She said she is glad she stood up for herself. “I had been looking forward to the window seat but I felt bad cause the girl started crying and it’s never nice to see someone crying because of something you’re involved with indirectly or directly.”

Image credits: ijeab (not the actual photo)

The author also wanted to point out that there were no more snide remarks from the girl’s father. “We actually spoke during the flight and he seems like a nice man. The girl was able to look out during the flight. All in all, I just wanted to say that I had no more problems during the flight.”

When asked if flying has been feeling more difficult lately, the author of the story confirmed that soaring prices have definitely made it harder to fly. “Both international flights I took over the last 10 days were fully booked, but I’ve been diligent enough about booking the tickets in advance,” she said and added that she has also been very fortunate that her parents can afford “to fly me to and from, so I’m very grateful for them.”

Plane seats and their shrinking size have become a heated issue for travelers

Image credits: DC_Studio (not the actual photo)

For long-haul and long-distance flights, choosing a seat wisely may be a game changer. But if you are a frequent traveler, you know very well that seats often feel not just small, but tiny. So how are you supposed to sit back, relax and enjoy your flight?

Apparently, in 2022, the Federal Aviation Administration received more than 26,000 pieces of input related to airline seat sizing shared from a wide variety of commenters. They ranged from frequent and infrequent flyers to airline lobbyists, lawmakers and passenger rights advocates.

With the tiny seat problem in fully packed planes, the question of whether it’s okay to recline your seat is more relevant than ever before. But this survey showed that more than two-thirds of passengers, or 77%, think it’s rude. Meanwhile, more than 27% said they would still lean back, but politely ask if it was ok first, and just over 3% said they didn’t care and would recline without warning anyway.

The seating data shows how passengers have migrated from window to aisle seats and back throughout the years

Image credits: Chalabala (not the actual photo)

Interestingly, the seating chart data from ExpertFlyer’s Seat Alerts app discovered an interesting tendency with passengers shifting from window to aisle seats, and back to window from 2013 to 2019.

According to Katy Goshtasbi, researcher and behavioral expert at Puris Consulting, the trend makes perfect sense, but it’s not such a good thing. “As a researcher, it signals to me that there is a societal trend emerging that is not positive at all. Our use of technology is isolating people and making them feel lost, which makes many withdraw even more. And a window seat is a great place to hide.”

Measures have already been taken to bring people back at least a decent standard of comfort when flying with Congress passing the Seat Egress in Air Travel Act, or Seat Act. It is part of the FAA’s reauthorization bill that was signed into law in 2018, requiring the agency to issue regulations on minimum seat requirements “that are necessary for the safety of passengers.” Find out more about the Seat Act to find out how it may affect your flying experience here.

Many people supported the author and said that she did nothing wrong

Others took an opportunity and shared similar experiences

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