[canucklad]

For me this practice reeks of corporate blackmail, simple as!
Regardless of what airline, on whatever continent, it’s simply shabby!
Yet another ancillary fee designed to boost profits rather than delivering an acceptable level of service for the price paid. And as FDOS points out, if you’re a family travelling you’re likely to already be paying top end school holiday prices, add APD into the equation and most families budgets are already stretched, before they even get to an airlines creative add-ons.
Then there’s the other side of the coin.
Do I want to be paying a legacy high fare, to find that I’m sitting next to hyper active 13 old, separated from their guardians for 10 hours, and all because a corporate accountant has invented a family together guarantee tax.
And as I’ve said before, as travellers the more we accept these add-on’s that we used to take for granted as part of the fare, the more those accountants will seek to find new ways of fleecing our wallets and purses.

[AMcWhirter]

One wonders if other airlines will follow the lead set by Swiss and charge even more for seating which is especially popular ?

In long-haul business class Swiss will soon charge a further Sfr 99 to 199 (about £79 to £179) on top of the fare if solo passengers want a ‘throne’ seat.

Swiss introduces “throne” seat reservation fee

[DavidSmith2]

On a Eurotraveller flight last night from London to Tirana, seated in 13C (2nd emergency exit row). A full flight and a young couple in 13A and B. Even before the seatbelt sign was switched off, their friends from a few rows back came over and handed over their 18-month-old child to the couple. This then happened 3 or 4 more times in the next hour as the baby was passed from one to another, then screaming until he/she was moved on again.

Leaving aside the manners etc of the people involved, the BA crew came through with the drinks and food. One of the crew asked the other if a child had been given an exit row seat. The other said no and that the mother was a couple of rows back. Yet neither of them saw it fit to ask that the child be returned to a non-emergency exit row. I may be wrong, but I do not think the requirements of emergency row passengers apply only to take off and landing and they should have instructed that the baby be removed.

Am I right?

[capetonianm]

I injured my toe a couple of days before a BA longhaul flight in business, on which I was booked in an emergency exit window seat upstairs on the 747. I could hardly walk due to the pain and on boarding I told the cabin crew that I would be very slow going up the stairs. One offered to take my bag for me, which was kind, and I was helped upstairs. At no point did they question if I should be sitting in an emergency exit row.

[FrDougal]

To the best of my knowledge anyone can occupy an exit row during the cruise. Iv seen it myself a number of times when the crew have removed ineligible individuals from the seats during take off and landing but allowed them to return during the cruise.

[FDOS_UK]

I’m not BA crew (or staff) so cannot comment with authority, but from what I’ve picked up over the years

1 – exit rows have certain requirements for takeoff and landing only

2 – not every row of seats has enough oxygen masks to permit an infant on the lap (4 masks needed on a block of 3 seats)

So not necessarily a problem, so long as row 13ABC had 4 masks available.

[SimonS1]

[quote quote=827938]I injured my toe a couple of days before a BA longhaul flight in business, on which I was booked in an emergency exit window seat upstairs on the 747. I could hardly walk due to the pain and on boarding I told the cabin crew that I would be very slow going up the stairs. One offered to take my bag for me, which was kind, and I was helped upstairs. At no point did they question if I should be sitting in an emergency exit row.

[/quote]

As an experienced traveller, I presume you said to them “I have a foot injury and can hardly walk, is it OK to sit here?”

What was their response?

[PeterCoultas]

Remember a US east to west coast flight some years back when a pax was almost carried on by two others and all three placed in an exit row. The passenger by the exit door was shouting that he couldn’t go home as he’d made such a mess of some presentation. He wanted to die. Mentioned to the (United) stewardess that it didn’t seem to sensible to have this idiot next to the overwing exit and all three were removed to seats at the back before we took off. That seemed to me to a decent response.

[capetonianm]

No, I didn’t make any comment. I realise that this will invite sniping at me from some but here’s why :

The cabin crew were aware of my discomfort and felt it appropriate to leave me in an exit row.
The chances of an evacuation are virtually nil.
In the event of an evacuation, I would have been quite able to overcome the pain and move fast enough to save my backside.

[SimonS1]

[quote quote=828179]
In the event of an evacuation, I would have been quite able to overcome the pain and move fast enough to save my backside.

[/quote]

Maybe that is what they thought too.

[Author]

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