Dad Flat-Out Lies and Tricks Passenger Into Swapping His Aisle Seat
Ah, seat-swapping: a constant source of in-flight drama and interminable arguments over airplane etiquette. In a vacuum, asking for a seat-swap would be fine at best and slightly cringey at worst. But the askers just can't help but turn these requests into major drama: they don't take no for an answer, they offer ridiculously unfair trades, they try to find ways to guilt people into swaps, etc. Sometimes, particularly crafty passengers will resort to out-and-out trickery to get what they want!
Alex Bennet witnessed some straight-up seat-swapping duplicity while on a recent flight to Arizona, sharing her eyebrow-raising story on TikTok on March 10. Her anecdote just goes to show that some people will play dirty to swing a seat swap, and you shouldn't trust people just because they ask nicely!
What @justalexbennett described is a classic mix of social engineering and just straight-up lying. The dad approaches the man in the aisle seat and says he wants to sit with his kids, working the sympathy angle. He then asks the guy if he'd be willing to swap "aisle" seats with him, and there's the lie. The aisle seat being offered actually belonged to some poor, unsuspecting lady, and when she got back, the tricked passenger had no choice but to sit in the middle. The dad had successfully finagled his way into a dishonest seat upgrade- and Alex was shocked.
Alex had high praise for the "victim" here, who took the L and accepted his middle seat in stride. Speaking personally, though, I don't think I'd be so polite, and when Aex asked her followers their thoughts, many of them responded likewise.
"Deal breaker. If he wouldn't be willing to switch back, a flight attendant would be called," declared @boeing727200.
"A plane is the only place you won't catch me being a people pleaser. My seat is my seat," another user agreed.
"I never understand when parents don't PURCHASE all of the seats together... They expect everyone who ACTUALLY PAID for their seats to move," vented @pikecourt.
Should You Even Ask for a Seat-Swap?
The debate over seat-swapping is one of the oldest and longest-running arguments concerning airplane etiquette. Some people think that there's a right way to ask for a seat swap, while others think that you shouldn't even bother. I used to be firmly in the former camp, thinking that if you offer an equivalent exchange and can accept "no" for an answer, it's not a big deal to ask. Recently, though, after seeing all the drama and duplicity seat-swap requests lead to, I'm not so sure where I stand anymore.
It doesn't help that air travelers, flight attendants, and even travel etiquette experts seem divided over this issue. Last fall, Christopher Elliott opined in USA Today that seat-swap requests are only acceptable if the requester wants to sit with young children or an elderly relative who needs care. But again, this "compromise" doesn't really cut down on the seat-swapping drama. At least half, if not more, of the seat-swapping stories I've covered involved parents who used their kids as a pretense to try and bully (or trick) people into bad seat-swaps.
If you have a certain seat in mind, or want to sit next to family, you should get that sorted out when you're booking your flight. If you absolutely must ask for a seat swap, though, most people agree that the seat being offered should be equivalent or better for the other person, and that you should back off immediately if they turn you down. Oh, and if you're willing to trick a nice, accommodating person into a bad seat-swap, you're a jerk- full stop.
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