People who travel by air frequently are mostly cordial and civil with each other during flights.
But occasionally, behavioral flashpoints arise among passengers. For example, requirements such as wearing masks — often when mixed with alcohol consumption — can fuel conflicts.
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One other matter of air travel etiquette has been getting some attention recently: the question of whether or not it is rude to use the reclining function of an airplane seat.
The debate is most often the result of two people with competing interests. One person wants to recline for comfort, while the passenger behind them is suddenly cramped when the seat in front of them is reclined.
Sometimes, however, more than just comfort can be compromised. A Delta Air Lines (DAL) passenger once had his laptop broken by a reclining seat.
@Delta small note for the suggestion box, maybe have a little warning sign or someway to prevent my laptop from being destroyed when the person in front of me reclines their seat. pic.twitter.com/QHmphXiDhH
— Pat “Beave” Cassidy 🦫 (@HardFactorPat) February 26, 2020
"If you don't want the passenger in front of you to recline, politely ask them not to," suggested travel expert Gary Leff on View From the Wing. "And if they want to recline and you don't want them to, consider whether it's worth your while to make not reclining worth their while. Many years ago all it took was $5 (offered with a parent’s permission) for me to convince a child seated in front of me not to recline so that I could work effectively on my laptop."
There are a few points to consider
Leff made the argument on Feb. 23 that passengers reclining their seats are simply exercising an important right, especially on long flights with seats that are not padded sufficiently.
"Recline works to distribute passenger weight and reduce back stress," he wrote. "Reclining is also a basic right when it's a feature of your seat (certain airlines like Spirit and Frontier feature seats they call 'pre-reclined' — i.e., that do not recline).
Leff offers three rules to follow that he believes are true to proper etiquette.
- "Don't recline during mealtime."
- "Try not to recline unless it serves a real purpose (if it doesn't actually benefit your comfort, don't recline)."
- "Let them (the person behind you) know you’re going to recline, and do it gently."
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The one thing passengers should not do
Leff also mentions a behavior that apparently is practiced far too commonly when passengers recline their seats: intentionally bothering the reclining person in front of you.
"Whatever you do, though, don't go all vigilante on the seat recliner in front of you by turning the air vents on full blast and aiming them at the top of that passenger's head," he wrote. "And don't push the seat that's reclined in front of you, either. That's just a recipe for conflict."
That said, an American Airlines (AAL) passenger posted some thoughts to Reddit last August reflecting an opposing view. Those comments have since been removed by moderators.
"If you recline your seat you are diminishing the space that the passenger behind you has. I don’t know why planes even have the option," the Reddit user had written.
"And if you pull this s--- imma tug on ya seat and kick yo seat and do whatever I can to make yo trip miserable," they added. "You entitled jerk. Don't recline. Don't. Just don't. When you recline your seat, what the F do you think happens to the person behind you?"
Leff urged people to behave with more civility when it comes to the controversy over seat reclining.
"We're in tight quarters up in a plane," he wrote. "A little patience and grace, and we'll all get through this together."
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