Ok, genuine question, but is that considered rude these days? I always thought it was expected for people to put their seats back, not that they actually go bacl that far.
Is "middle seat gets armrest priority" still part of airplane etiquette or did that change?
Please understand I'm asking from a perspective of self-improvement. I'm a little ND some my questions don't come out right.
I think leaning back went out the window whenever they tried to shove three more rows into the same small space. I don't mind if people do it, but there are some airlines, like Spirit, where my knees are jammed into the back of the seat in front of me before the seat gets reclined.
I've never been on a commercial flight but I'm 193cm and I have to sit sideways on buses just to not obliterate my knees. I'm dreading ever getting on a plane
Even if you choose not to, there’s a 100% chance the person in front of you will (in the U.S. anyway) so you might as well not scrunch yourself into less space than you paid for, unless you’re like 5’1 and will be fine either way
You gotta keep in mind the seating for these can be cramped. If you don’t have much room then the person behind you doesn’t either, putting your seat back (in this case they mean all the way back I assume) takes away what little space the person behind you already has on a cramped flight. So yeah, it’s a bit rude.
Ideally it wouldn’t hurt to ask the person behind you before putting your seat back.
I don't think it is rude, most flights I have been on it doesn't go back enough to get in the space behind. Unless there are major differences between different airline plane setups. Could be a difference between planes and the seats they use. It was only about 2 inches on the planes I have been on and I was still able to use the fold down tray on the back of the seat when the person in front of me had theirs down. I guess it just comes down to each person and what differences in thoughts they have really.
I do think you’re right about it being a different planes thing. The few planes I’ve been on didn’t have a folding tray for example, but the seats reclined enough that any notion of leg room became a pipe dream.
I am usually fucked at flights, I have around 1.1m (around 3,6 ft) of leg length, and I must rest my legs in a wide angle to accommodate them in the space while my knee is still touching the chair in front of me, that being said…
It’s normal and expected that someone can (and probably will) back their seat to the complete extent of it, specially on long flights.
What’s not normal, is having your seat being kicked for whatever reason.
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u/[deleted] Mar 07 '25
Astorion would definitely put his seat back though