Brenda

I noticed that Fodor ask this question and gave some options. This is one not included but that can be the most irritating. Has anyone out there ever had the person in front of them on the plane suddely let their seat back and the seat hits you in the knees or cause your drink to spill on the tray.

Kath

I never know what to do about reclining my seat. On the one hand, if they didn't want you to recline your seat, then why'd they give you the option? You're supposed to recline your seat right? But I HATE it when the person in front of me does it. I feel like I'm in a flying coffin. So I don't do it ... unless the person in front of me does it and then I do, which really isn't fair for the person behind me.

And I hate Bistro bags ...

Rachel

It's rather disturbing when the guy (or lady) in front of you 'disturbs the peace' and rocks that seat back as if it were a huge boulder that comes flying 'out of the blue' into your personal space!!! That was a funny question. My drink never got spilled, but sometimes I'm working on that dinky tray table and I nearly get bonked in the nose or forhead (depending how diligently I'm engrossed in my work-head further down or what)...by the seat back! AND, I hate the NAME Bistro Bag more than the contents. Rachel

touche

When someone in front of me puts their seat back, I get up a lot of times and grab their headrest to pull me out of my seat. I also put my knees on the back of the seat (believe me, the person can feel it).

Dick

Here is a good idea. Take the (rock hard) banana that automatically comes with the Bistro Bag, and bonk the person reclining so far back. After you have knocked them out, you can "return their seat to an upright position". They will never now the difference. It is the best use of the banana as well.

Dick

x

So you are saying that despite the fact that the seat is reclinable, that we are supposed to keep it up-right throughout the flight? Why not lock those puppies down then?

Grasshopper

Ooo, that is my biggest pet peeve. I try as a rule never to let my seat back, unless it's an overnight flight and the person is asleep and I want to sleep too. I usually get a bulkhead seat (thanks to frequent flying) and it just plain seems mean to intrude on the people behind me's space when I have so much in front of me. Yet, I've had seat mates, tiny tiny people, who immediately put the seat back as soon as they can.

Trains in Europe have seats that when you recline the seat the seat bottom slides forward and you get a reclining by losing YOUR knee room and not the person behind you's knee room. Why can't planes be like that.

JEN

Im with Grasshopper.
ADD; Bratty children who think its a toy.

Laura

We just flew to Hawaii and back. What irritates the hell out of me is when you just get to sleep on an overnight flight and the idiot behind you decides to get out of their seat for one reason or another and grabs the top of your seat to pull him/herself up. We had two empty seats behind us until a woman decides she is going to put her crying 5-6 year old boy behind us so he can lay down across the two seats. The little monster either cried or whined most of the night. The mother kept coming back to her little monster all night to check on him. Each time she did this she would yank on the tops of our seats and start talking to him, not whispering, talking. Oh, what I wanted to say to that rude, inconsiderate witch and her little gremlin of a son.

If you are the blonde lady on flight 6 from ogg to dfw on 10/3, you need to learn some lessons in manners and your son is a snotty little brat.

The last time I flew this flight I had some very obese girl with severe gas problems behind me. She kept getting up all night to use the restroom and again she was tugging on the seat to be able to get up. Perhaps, I should smear peanut butter or some other gooey substance such as cairo syrup over the top of the seat, curl up into a ball with my little airline pillow and sleep the night away next time.

xxx

I've never been bothered when the person in front reclines their seat. I mean, give me a break, it's only a few inches!!!

this

It bothers me when people whine about a seat when they are paying $300 to fly across country. Get over it people,put your seat back. Let the person in front put his back.

Grasshopper

How tall are you? I'm 5'9". My knees don't have a couple of inches of room.

And frankly, I'm a lot more patient on domestic flights. It's the 11 hour international flights that can be killers (literally!)

OliveOyl

The worst I've experienced occurred during one those now defunct inflight meals. The girl in the seat in front of me was tired, not hungry, so put her seat allll the way back, then took her loooong curly hair and flipped it over the back of the head rest, so it all hung down ending about 3" over my food tray. What a brainless act--even if I had not been eating!

more room please

I agree with 'touche', I have done the same, grabbed the seat when getting up etc. It is so damned rude, there is no space anyway. I just couldnt conceive putting my seat back and pinning in the person behind. Its ignorance and a lack of consideration, as demonstrated by some of the replies (Ive paid $$ so why shouldn't I - selfish selfish)

get

Touche..more room please..you are the worst. Seats recline for a reason and you are bitchin' about it. Kicking a seat,pulling down hard on it? How childish and selfish. If it means that much,buy a first class ticket.

travellyn

I got a big kick out of OliveOyl's story. It was funny and disgusting at the same time. Did they give you another meal? How gross did her hair get?

I don't really mind the reclining people too much, but then I'm only 5'4". I rarely recline the seat myself. I hate it when people pull my hair while hauling themselves out of their seats, whether I'm reclining or not.

xxx

The thing that bothers me most is when I sit in coach and see all the people in first. I should be up there.

Touche

Hey getaclue, people put their seats back from the moment the plane takes off until it lands. Anyone that wants that much luxury should pay the extra money to sit in first class.

doc

Passengers who have a last row seat,but put their bag in the front row overhead compartment.

Traveller

The reclining of the seat ranks right up there with people who bring their unruly, screaming kids on airplanes. That is so annoying. I pay good money for an airline ticket and therefore should have the right to a quiet flight. I realize that thoise with the noisy children are also paying for their ticket(s), but it does not give them the right to disturb others.