'I was told to stop reclining my seat on a plane - but I wanted to sleep' (original) (raw)

Everyone knows travelling can be tiring, which is why one passenger tried to make sure they got a good night's sleep - unfortunately it wasn't welcomed by another person on the flight

People regularly debate this topic (stock image)

Anyone who has been on a long-haul flight before will know how tiring they can be. Some people try to think of ways to make the journey seem faster - and this is why many opt for going to sleep. Aeroplane seats are fitted with the recline option to assist with this, but it can often lead to annoyance from other passengers.

Detailing a journey of a recent flight, one passenger has shared their confusion after being asked to stop reclining their seat. Despite agreeing to the demand the exchange left a "bad aftertaste" in the passenger's mouth who is desperately trying to work out if he was the "a***hole" in the situation or the other traveller.

In a Reddit post, user SuccessfulSaladBowl explained how he was travelling on a seven-hour red-eye flight, and had waited until it had fully taken off, the lights were off and everyone else was sleeping to recline their seat. However, as soon as the seat was reclined, another passenger knocked the seat and demanded it be put up right again.

The poster added their confusion at this and initially assumed they may have been an explanation as to why the other passenger wasn't happy, however in his post, he said: "I was confused at first and didn’t want to do I asked him why. He just told me he was simply annoyed by it."

Not wanting to get into an argument and make a scene on the plane, the Reddit user did as they were asked and straightened the seat up. Now, a few weeks after the flight, the passenger is wondering if they were the ones in the wrong or the other person. They continued in their post and asked: "I didn't want to make a scene so I just did what he request. But it left a bad aftertaste. I was thinking maybe I should just ignore him and recline the seat anyway. But felt I was being an a***hole if I do that. Am I really?"

People have quick to jump to passenger's defence and claim they are "not the a***hole" in this situation. One person said: "The seat is designed to be used that way, and everyone knows it. You have every right to use it as designed." Another added: "7 hours is such a long time to not recline your seat. I could maybe excuse if it was a 1 or 2 hour daytime flight, but even then, it’s your seat. I’m sorry you got stuck with such a c****y arrangement".

A third person said: "I would have called the flight attendant. You paid for a seat that reclines. The guy behind you paid for a seat where the seat in front of him reclined. Both of your tickets were purchased in full light of these facts so nobody can be surprised. If the guy behind you doesn't want a seat reclining into his area, he can upgrade his own seat to the front of the aeroplane where there is more room. Economy seats are already uncomfortable and reclining makes it a bit more bearable."

However, there were some who disagreed with the poster and felt they were in the wrong, saying that you should never recline your seat on a plane. One person said: "Everyone who has been on a plane knows that there's barely enough room already. Just because you can recline your seat, doesn’t mean you should."

Another added: "I never recline my seat, and I hate when people in front of me recline their seat. I wouldn’t say anything to them, however, because I know they're "allowed" to."

Do you think people should recline their seats on a plane? Let us know in the comments below