Dear Moneyista,
On a recent American Airlines AAL flight to California, I used my frequent flyer miles to purchase an upgrade to a back-to-back seat with much more legroom. It was about 6,900 miles – or about $70 if you paid cash.
The flight was about a third empty and there was no one sitting in front of me in the “pay more for more legroom” row, and there was no one in the front row (which I think was the exit row, which costs even more for an upgrade).
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After the flight attendant announced that everyone was on board and that the doors were closed, two women – a mother and a daughter, as far as I know – moved from the standard SPRINTED seats to the two “extra paid” seats and sat down. in each (not even seats together in the same row). The flight attendants didn’t say anything to them.
Once the flight reached cruising altitude, the daughter (who was about 20 years old, I estimated) lay down on all three seats and slept there for the entire flight. Again, the flight attendants said nothing.
I felt slighted because I paid for my seat (and I’m a very loyal American Airlines customer). I wrote to the airline to explain what had happened and asked for my miles to be refunded. They responded via email but did not refund my miles. It was like they hadn’t read my email,
After a little time, I realized that — in addition to being out of shape — an interesting and contradictory message is sent by allowing this practice: First, don’t buy an upgrade, even with miles, if the flight isn’t appearing complete.
Then, once the flight is almost fully boarded, make sure you have checked for empty seats and have a strategy to quickly move to the empty “pay more” seats as the “doors closed” announcement is made, if not before! If someone boards late and has one of these seats, simply return to your standard seat.
Also, if the entire “pay more” line is full, go crazy and take everything, lying down as soon as the plane is at cruising altitude. (God forbid someone would be charitable and offer one of the “extra paid” seats to someone who might actually need it.)
Customers who are loyal and follow the rules, and use their AA miles to upgrade accordingly, don’t really matter – our loyalty is worthless. Furthermore, flight attendants apparently don’t care if someone moves to a “pay more” seat.
But here’s an interesting question: How would they have reacted if one of these women moved to a business class or first class seat? I’m sure AA doesn’t want it to go viral that everyone behaves like these two women did. Finally, do customer complaints and requests carry any weight these days? Somebody really Read them?
A side note: the same thing happened to me on a JetBlue JBLU flight to California a few years ago. Same scenario, except the defaulting sprinter didn’t lie down as two of the seats were already occupied. When I contacted JetBlue, they he did refund my cash payment for the update!
OK, so I know I’m obsessed with this. That is true! And, right or not, I took a photo of the young girl sleeping soundly across the three rows.
A traveling man
Dear Traveler,
Buckle up, buckle up – and prepare for some turbulence.
Yes, it’s fair to get some extra wiggle room at 30,000 feet. You paid the equivalent of $70 for an upgrade to a more comfortable seat and two people saw an opportunity and took advantage. They were able to sit in one of their seats with ample legroom for free. The flight attendants either didn’t care or turned a blind eye, or thought those empty seats could very well be used by someone, but they weren’t usurping those seats from someone who paid $70.
You paid for a seat with “more legroom,” true, but you also paid for the guarantee of a seat with more legroom. Airlines have ad hoc policies when it comes to who sits where. They have the flexibility to move someone to an exit row seat because they are strong or willing enough to open the emergency door if necessary. They can stretch their legs as a reward. If you were upgraded to first class and a passenger cried, would you sheepishly return to economy class?
The line between ethics and etiquette is sometimes blurred. Did they hurt anyone by occupying these positions? No. Of course, the airline didn’t get the $70, but these two passengers saw an opportunity and took it, literally and figuratively. They probably had fun doing it and it made the flight more rewarding. Plus, they may not want to overpay like you do. (I sent your comments to American Airlines and JetBlue, and neither responded.)
The correct way to approach this would be to ask, “Can I do this line after the doors close?” In the interest of goodwill, attendants may say yes. If the change is to a premium economy line, the airline may choose to decline because it could harm the goodwill of the customer who paid for the extra legroom (you). Flight attendants are there for your safety and may not pay attention to every seat-jumping passenger, but I have seen them refuse and approve such requests.
There are similar situations of breaking the rules or taking advantage of them where I’m on your side of the moral argument. Get this couple – paraphrasing the comedian Henny Youngman, please someone take them! – who made $1,000 by opening and closing credit cards. They took advantage of the rewards system and possibly helped increase costs and transfer fees for everyone else. It’s equivalent to buying clothes and returning them after one use.
And now a confession: A few years ago, a standby passenger boarded my transatlantic flight and looked at the aisle seat in my three-seat row. There were other empty seats, so I said, “Don’t even think about it!” He replied, “What?” I said, “I have a whole fight to rest and now you’re going to ruin it.” I asked if he was a secret agent (he said no, obviously), but he sat down. “I like you!” he said, and sat down. (Maybe he was a secret agent and wanted to keep an eye on me.)
One final note: taking their photo was probably a step too far. I understand that you were upset that this mother-daughter duo behaved in a way that you believe was clumsy or “grabby,” but there is a lot of citizen journalism where people publicly shame citizens with viral photos and videos. A TikTokker recently revealed a passenger with a wedding ring talking to a woman on a flight who was allegedly not his wife. Fortunately, you didn’t go that far.
Even if you’re in premium economy, you better be a first class guy.
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