The cost of modern air travelkeeps getting higher, and we’re not just talking about the prices. Putting up with increasingly invasive TSA checks, shrinking seats, and parents who don’t know how to control their kids all seem to be part of the deal, too.
One woman who struggles with flying planned ahead and paid extra for a window seat. Things went south, though, when a mom with two kids demanded she switch seats with her. She refused, but now she’s asking an online community if it was a jerk move.
More info: Reddit
RELATED:Modern air travel seems to be getting worse by the flight, as this woman found out the hard way
She’s not good with flying, so she always books a window seat, claiming it helps with her airsickness
When she got to her seat for a 10-hour international flight, a mom with two kids asked if she’d switch seats with her
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The mom expected her to switch to a middle-row seat further back in the plane, so the woman politely refused, explaining why she needed the seat
Things got awkward when the mom got nasty about it, so now the woman has turned to netizens to ask if not giving up her seat makes her a jerk
When OP booked a 10-hour international flight, she paid extra for a window seat to help ease her anxiety and motion sickness. When she arrived at her seat, however, two children were already in the row, and their mother soon approached, asking her to switch seats so she could sit with her kids.
The request was polite at first, but when OP explained she needed the window seat for her own comfort, things took a sharp turn. The mom grew irritated, insisting her children were young and needed her nearby. OP stood firm, repeating that she’d specifically booked the seat for a reason.
Throughout the flight, the entitled mom made pointed comments to flight attendants and even gestured toward her while muttering about “compassion.” Ironically, the kids were totally fine: entertained, calm, and chatting with each other. OP even offered them snacks and kept things polite, despite the tension.
Now she’s left wondering: did she do the right thing? A colleague says she had every right to keep her seat, especially since she paid more. One of her friends, however, thinks she should’ve “done the nice thing.” But is kindness really about giving up your needs to fix someone else’s poor planning? Netizens weighed in in the comments.
OP’s story is not uncommon. Thanks to mobile phones and social media, there’s plenty of proof of mid-flight friction, with a few full-blown air rage incidents thrown in. Just what is it, though, that makes some people forget their manners the minute they get on board a plane? We went looking for answers.
In her article for Thrillist, Sophie-Claire Hoeller writes that flying stresses like long lines, security scrutiny, being told to take off shoes and fasten seat belts all make people feel like they lack control, which leads to fear, anxiety, and ultimately acting out.
“Few things can leave you feeling less in control than flying. Someone else is driving, you can only get up when you have permission, there’s a lot of noise, you’re often left in the dark,” says clinical psychologist Dr. Ramani Durvasula. “When we feel out of control, our emotions get out of control too. It’s a recipe for rage.”
Patrick Smith, who blogs for askthepilot.com, says that in previous decades, when flying was a lot more expensive and exclusive, you didn’t have gangs of inebriated college kids flying off to Cancun for the weekend. “Right or wrong, passengers don’t feel an obligation to behave as politely as they once did,” says Smith.
We’d say OP did well to stand her ground, especially considering she already has anxiety around flying. Let’s hope the experience taught the problematic parent to plan better next time so she doesn’t end up acting like the world owes her something again.
What would you have done if you’d found yourself in OP’s shoes? Should she have switched seats, or did the mom get what was coming to her? Tell us what you think in the comments!
In the comments, readers swiftly agreed the woman was not the jerk in the equation and slammed the entitled mom for her poor planning and bad attitude
