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Nottingham Post
Nottingham Post
Entertainment
Karen Antcliff & Grace Hoffman

Passenger refuses to 'unrecline' plane seat for 'cramped' mother and child after nightmare flight

Airline seating has become a contentious issue over the last few years. The desire for window seats, for parties to sit together, a lack of leg room... the list goes on. However, the latest outburst from a fellow passenger concerns children on a flight.

One woman claims she had enough of one child ruining her fifteen-hour travel experience and so decided to take action after seat 'kicking' and hair 'pulling' drove her to the brink. The anonymous user said they reclined their seat back mid-flight and refused to move it upon the request of a struggling mother.

According to a report in the Mirror, the woman aired her views and experience on popular forum site Reddit. The account of her experience then sparked a huge debate.

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The aggrieved passenger explained: "I had a fifteen-hour flight that began at 8pm and had been planning to sleep throughout the flight to help the time go by, as well as catch up on sleep after travelling for 24+ hours."

The woman went on: "On the flight, there was a mom, dad, and a child that was about three years old (older than the under-two limit for a child to sit in a parent's lap for free, for sure).

"Throughout the first two hours, the child kicked my husband and I's seats, stood up on their parent's lap to grab my hair and pull on my shirt, and shoved the papers in the back of the seat in between our seats, poking us with the papers.

"Occasionally, I got a break from the child kicking me when she switched to her father's lap, though at that time she began kicking my husband's seat. We remained quiet as we know it probably is difficult traveling with children.

"Finally, when the child was sleeping, about four hours into the flight, I decided I, too, could rest. I reclined my chair, about three-quarters of the way, not fully, but enough to be comfortable for my sleep. But, since the child was larger than the normal under two years old for lap-sitting, it wasn't as comfortable for the mother.

"Immediately, she tapped my shoulder asking me to move my chair up so she could be comfortable. And I'm sure having a child in your lap is not as pleasant, especially when they're larger and on a long flight. I, however, remained in the reclining position, as I felt that I had put up with her child making me uncomfortable for hours and preventing me from sleeping when I was in need of it. However, in doing so, I made the mother more crammed in her seat, as she needed space for both of them," they added.

Seeking advice, the woman questioned whether she was in the wrong for refusing to give up the seat.

Since detailing the ordeal on Reddit, the woman's post has raked in more than 1,300 comments - where people were admittedly torn over the decision. One person wrote: "I'll recline my seat as I damn please and I don't care if I'm an a**hole for it."

On the other hand, someone else penned: "Reclining a seat is in most cases an a**hole move, sorry not sorry. Just because the function is available, does not mean anyone should use it."

Have you experienced a 'nightmare' flight? What's your opinion of the woman and family's actions? Let us know in the comments below.

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