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Woman Refuses To Switch Seats With A Man So He Can Sit With Family, Flight Attendant Intervenes
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Woman Refuses To Switch Seats With A Man So He Can Sit With Family, Flight Attendant Intervenes

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Flying can be annoying enough without other passengers doing their utmost to make your life more difficult. A woman turned to the internet for advice when a family attempted to guilt trip her for demanding they get out of her seat. Instead of the father moving to the seat he paid for, he was insistent on sitting in her place.

The barrage of passive aggression and dirty looks she got from the family later was enough to make her second guess herself, so she went online to see what other people thought about the entire situation. Readers shared their own stories with entitled fliers.

Air travel can bring out the worst in people

Image credits: Gerrie van der Walt / unsplash (not the actual photo)

A woman went to the seat she paid for only to find it occupied by a man who didn’t want to move

Image credits: Jason Toevs / pexels (not the actual photo)

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Image credits: Nicole Geri / unsplash (not the actual photo)

Image credits: Anon

Air travel is a blessing and a curse

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Image credits: John McArthur / unsplash (not the actual photo)

Many of us have a love-hate relationship with air travel. On the one hand, it’s an incredible marvel that allows us to literally reach most of the globe. On the other hand, it can be tiring, expensive, and frustrating. For example, let’s think about OP’s situation. Not her finding her (paid for) seat occupied, no, from the start of her trip.

After all, air travel means getting to the airport in the first place, which is often easier said than done. Airports are generally outside of town, requiring an expensive taxi ride or a longer trip on public transport. And that’s just before you check in luggage, if any, get through security and any other lines that might be in place.

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This can always be quite annoying, as some folks treat airports as a sort of free-for-all, complete with week-old socks, screaming babies, and line after line, plus that incessant, bizarrely incomprehensible voice telling random, late passengers to please get to their gate. If you are too early, congratulations, you can pay an ungodly amount of money for a burger, if you are late, congratulations, you get to run in a public place.

Flying brings its own list of discomforts

Keep in mind, at this point, you have not even stepped foot in the airplane yet. But at long last, it’s time to board. Which means waiting until the folks in first class get on. Interestingly, both this wait and literally walking past the first class section has been shown to increase a passenger’s frustrations, which can at times manifest in what is now sometimes called “air rage.”

This is all to say that OP would have every reason to be in a conflictual state of mind, particularly after paying extra to avoid a certain seat, only to find her more costly seat already occupied. It’s worth noting that the fact that OP paid extra to avoid the middle seat indicates that she might have a worse relationship with flying than the majority of us. So if she really is this uncomfortable on a flight, depriving her of a small, expensive luxury is pretty entitled.

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Let’s face it, flying can be uncomfortable. There is a constant noise, dry air, it’s either too hot or too cold and there is simply never enough legroom. Other passengers (particularly the younger ones) make all sorts of noise, your ears might pop or clog up at some point, and, remember, this is all only after the hustle and bustle of the airport.

OP did the right thing by remaining calm and collected

Image credits: Sofia Sforza / unsplash (not the actual photo)

There already have been cases of this sort of anger spilling over into fights, arguments, and just general disruption that make the experience worse for everyone. So OP should not feel at all guilty for summoning a flight attendant to get this man to move. She herself states that it was a short flight, the child could live without their parent in sight for that long, unless, somehow, they had yet to develop object permanence.

Fortunately, most readers agreed and told OP as much in the comments section, some examples of which can be found below. If anything, given the fact that air travel perhaps gives her more stress than most, she can be applauded for keeping her cool and not contributing to another tale of air rage.

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Most folks sided with OP

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Others shared similar stories

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Justin Sandberg

Justin Sandberg

Writer, BoredPanda staff

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I am a writer at Bored Panda. Despite being born in the US, I ended up spending most of my life in Europe, from Latvia, Austria, and Georgia to finally settling in Lithuania. At Bored Panda, you’ll find me covering topics ranging from the cat meme of the day to red flags in the workplace and really anything else. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, beating other people at board games, cooking, good books, and bad films.

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Justin Sandberg

Justin Sandberg

Writer, BoredPanda staff

I am a writer at Bored Panda. Despite being born in the US, I ended up spending most of my life in Europe, from Latvia, Austria, and Georgia to finally settling in Lithuania. At Bored Panda, you’ll find me covering topics ranging from the cat meme of the day to red flags in the workplace and really anything else. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, beating other people at board games, cooking, good books, and bad films.

Mantas Kačerauskas

Mantas Kačerauskas

Author, BoredPanda staff

Read more »

As a Visual Editor at Bored Panda, I indulge in the joy of curating delightful content, from adorable pet photos to hilarious memes, all while nurturing my wanderlust and continuously seeking new adventures and interests—sometimes thrilling, sometimes daunting, but always exciting!

Read less »

Mantas Kačerauskas

Mantas Kačerauskas

Author, BoredPanda staff

As a Visual Editor at Bored Panda, I indulge in the joy of curating delightful content, from adorable pet photos to hilarious memes, all while nurturing my wanderlust and continuously seeking new adventures and interests—sometimes thrilling, sometimes daunting, but always exciting!

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Marla
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If the father wanted it, he could have offered to pay the difference

Blackhalo64
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

He also could have been nicer about it, rather than acting like an entitled A*****e!

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DarkViolet
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

NTA. You paid for the seat; the father didn't. Maybe next time he'll remember to plan ahead, and not presume to harass another passenger into giving up a seat to which he wasn't entitled. The nerve!

Joann Hart
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Nah, he's a bully and thinks rules don't apply to him. Good thing he didn't push it any further and end up off the flight

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Marla
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If the father wanted it, he could have offered to pay the difference

Blackhalo64
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

He also could have been nicer about it, rather than acting like an entitled A*****e!

Load More Replies...
DarkViolet
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

NTA. You paid for the seat; the father didn't. Maybe next time he'll remember to plan ahead, and not presume to harass another passenger into giving up a seat to which he wasn't entitled. The nerve!

Joann Hart
Community Member
9 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Nah, he's a bully and thinks rules don't apply to him. Good thing he didn't push it any further and end up off the flight

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