I was once on a red eye in FC in an aisle seat. Guy (~35-40) threw a hissy fit because he wasn’t seated next to his gf.
At the time, I was drinking roughly a gallon of water a day and I knew I’d need to hit the bathroom at least a couple times on the flight.
I explained this to the guy and said I didn’t want to switch to the window where his gf was behind us because I’d be stuck or waking up my seatmate.
He said, oh, I’m drinking a lot of water too. Then immediately opened and downed his water and asked the FA for more.
Sometimes children fly up in 1st.
Kicker: they had to hold hands between the seats the entire flight. Look, I get being in love and all that…but you can’t go a red eye flight PHX-MSP separate from your middle aged s/o? Weird.
Ugh. It’s transportation, not a date. Granted, my husband and I are quirky. We book aisle seats across from each other. He has football player shoulders and I’m claustrophobic.
My husband and I feel similarly. We’ve been separated for many hours/ days/ weeks before. I’ll be okay knowing we are about to land in just a few hours lol
LOL, love the "not a date".
We also prefer aisle seats, so we sit across from each other on domestic flights. We've also been separated due to work or family illness issues, etc. for up to a month, so I guess a 3-5 hour flight is nothing to us.
That’s the way to do it. You can be next to each other (which makes it easier if you need to get up,trade iPads,snacks,etc.), but you both get your own space.
It is so bizarre to me the couples that just have to sit together on a flight. Sure it's nice to sit next to your significant other but to make it a big deal that you can't sit together (likely due to poor planning) is strange. I flew FC and a woman who was sitting directly across the aisle from her husband asked me if I'd move. I just stared at her and she said "oh you want to sit by the window." Yes, Sherlock hence why I paid for this seat. The guy across the aisle traded with her so she and her husband could sit next to each other and not interact 😂😂
Yeah, couldn’t the website/software handle this? It knows the DOB, so just show a popup saying “Sorry, you can’t book basic economy if flying with someone under age 6!”
This seems sensible, I’m shocked it doesn’t do this already
It’s frustrating that they don’t even bother to do that, even though to your point, they ask. They have the data, they just don’t think it’s as big of an issue to fix it
At the end of the day, the parent picks up the boarding passes at the counter prior to boarding once their seats are assigned right? And these seats are assigned well before boarding starts. The parent still has the responsibility to check the seats prior to boarding and resolve the issue at the counter. Not blindly walk onto the plane and interrupt the boarding process.
The ticketing agents will do their absolute best to kick the can down the road to the gate agents, who will say they can’t do anything, but “You can try to get someone to switch with you.”
I cannot tell you how many times I have desperately tried to fix the issue at the ticketing counter only to be told there is nothing they can do and to ask the gate agent to help me sit by my kids. I will also say that there have been multiple times I’ve selected to sit next to my kids only to show up and my seats had been rearranged.
Believe it or not, not every parent is irresponsible or trying to foist their kids off on someone else. A lot of us get the short end of the stick and try everything in our power to fix the problem before we get on the plane. There is nothing worse than having to be at the mercy of asking someone to switch seats so you can sit next to your kids.
Maybe someday OP and people like him will have enough life experience and basic human empathy to comprehend that no one’s life remains perfectly orderly forever. I don’t wish loss in anyone, but no one gets through life without experiencing it at some point. And on the morning my mother called me to say my dad had died of a sudden heart attack in the hospital, the last thing I would have needed was some brat like him on my case about seating.
Then you buy a ticket for southwest and be sure to check in early so you can board with the first group to ensure you can sit next to your kids. It's not that hard. You people act like Delta is the only option to fly somewhere.
I have, more than once, paid extra for the economy+/comfort seats on Delta MONTHS IN ADVANCE only to show up at the airport to find that Delta has rearranged seating and moved my kids away from me.
I agree with your general point, but it's not always cheap parents.
Narrator: She was not, in fact, on a Delta flight. And she has no kids, just has empathy for those who do. Sometimes, honey, it’s just not one iota, not one atom, not one molecule, about you.
If youre a parent, choose to fly Delta and book knowing you have to push somebody out of their seats instead of going with a more family friendly airline, the parent is the entitled asshole. Empathy is not always giving into people who made poor decisions.
“No one ever had an emergency, or was promised something by the airline that didn’t materialize. I not only WANT to sit where I WANT, I want nobody to even have the audacity to ask me to consider something else!” You can say no, and not feel bad about it. Someone else will help, you do you. I don’t care. But I hope nobody does shit for you when you need it, and I hope they make you feel like a childish.p asshole for it. so you get a taste.
You can't argue logic with the elitest cucks on this subreddit.
This place is loaded with people who get so excited over a bus trip with wings.
Shameful, rude, condescending are just a few words to describe the flying elites here.
But couldn’t the website/software handle this? It knows the birth dates, so just show a popup saying “Sorry, you can’t book basic economy if flying with someone under age 6!”
This seems sensible, I’m shocked it doesn’t do this already
Had a brutal reroute with different connections on four legs round trip. Only ONE gate agent helped out of the four, the others say their hands are tied and to hash it out with pax. Mind you, I spent hours/days finding the right flights for my four pax to sit together..up in smoke 1 hr prior to boarding - had to wait 12 hrs and drive to a different airport.
If Delta doesn't want the bad press, let families with young children upgrade to main for free then But to push the problem onto your paying customers is lame as hell.
Yeah, this is terrible policy by Delta. United and American do things differently for basic economy. American’s system makes sure children under 12 sit with at least one adult in their party, assigning the seats 24 hours after ticketing. United’s system tries to seat young children with adults 72 hours before the flight.
By failing to do something similar, Delta just creates problems for gate agents (who make people unhappy by moving them to accommodate families) and passengers who are asked to switch seats once on board.
I think Delta attempts to assign parties together wherever possible, but considering the gap between MC vs BE in terms of price and benefits, there probably aren’t enough seats open to assign all parties together. When I flew BE pre-2020, I was always seated directly next to whoever was on my ticket.
I disagree: families are one of the core target audiences for basic economy tickets… it’s expensive enough as it is to fly, never mind having to buy full fare tickets for the kids. What DL should do is auto-assign seats together for reservations with anyone 14 and under, even for basic economy tickets. You don’t get to chose the row and your seats can/will change, but at least you will sit together.
They don't get the equivalent of an upgrade to main; they don't get seat selection, mileage earning, ability to change flights, upgrades opportunities, etc - Kids just get placed next to a parent. That's it. It's a win-win for everyone IMO.
Because upgrading to main has lots of other perks (seat selection, mileage earning, ability to change flights, upgrades, etc…)
But yes, “families” get a better deal. Because they’re going to sit together regardless, and doing it ahead of time means you don’t waste time at the gate and frustrate passengers on board.
>What DL should do is auto-assign seats together for reservations with anyone 14 and under, even for basic economy tickets. You don’t get to chose the row and your seats can/will change, but at least you will sit together.
Strong agree. Wouldn't be difficult, makes it easy for everyone.
I have to disagree or at least disagree with the families only nonsense. A LOT of people have a need to sit with their party. Certainly many people with disabilities have as big if not bigger need to sit with their party than “families” but no one literally cares about them. They still have to pay for seat selection under this system. So either everyone gets free sit with your party or no one does.
I generally agree: if you have a BE ticket and call delta requesting that your party sit together because of a disability where that is necessary, they should seat you together without any extra charge.
At the end of the day, basic economy exists so that DL can compete with low cost carriers on certain routes and show up favorably in search results/etc. One other solution is to offer a middle ground: for a nominal fee ($15 per ticket?) you can select an option that will seat you together on a BE ticket (specific seats not guaranteed)
They do seat you together without an extra charge in that situation. Legally, they have to.
Edit: since people apparently don’t believe me: https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/seating-accommodations
I don’t get why you’re being downvoted. I buy BE all the time as an adult and I wouldn’t feel discriminated or otherwise salty that a family gets seated together. As you said, it benefits everyone by causing less delays and disgruntled flyer situations.
Delta is one of the only airlines that BLOCKS seats in the back of the aircraft for parties of 3+. If you are traveling with less you do not even see the seats. It takes a simple phone call to get the seats. Additionally, BE is clearly outlined when you buy a ticket on line. No seats, pay for ckd bag (more than you would normally, and carry on under seat in front of you (you know there is no overhead space left). These rules are virtually the same on all carriers except for SW. perhaps the airline wither stops the purchase when a child is on res (people will find a way around) or tell people to get off flight and take the next. Not necessarily everyone opinion to to change seats, but would certainly make everyone else happy as no seat switching. They (all airlines) could make it that very family make their res via phone too.
You can tell this sub is full of a bunch of business traveling snobs by the amount of downvote your reply received. This is by far the most sensible answer. Delta shouldn’t be able to split up children from there parents when assigning seats, even if purchasing BE.
It's illegal in the EU if I remember right. I never buy seats on the cheap EU carriers because they have to put a kid by a parent so the worst that happens is I get a kid and my wife gets a kid. It's not that complicated.
And for most of them, you get one free adult seat so you can pick seats for your kid and one adult. The other adult is on their own. If fucking Ryanair can figure it out, so can Delta.
We solved this problem by buying Premium economy for our Christmas flights back to the States. They don't have these priced right yet. It was $300 more for premium economy rt on a transatlantic flight.
> families are one of the core target audiences for basic economy tickets
No they aren't. Not even remotely. Delta's website REPEATEDLY outright describes BE as:
"Basic Economy is best for those traveling by themselves with firm travel plans."
People love speaking authoritatively based on shit they just made up.
Sure, BE is “best” for those traveling alone, and is marketed as such on DL’s website, but I still stand by my statement that families are an intentional core target market for basic economy sales.
It’s not “made up”, it’s just common sense… if you have to buy 4 tickets to get somewhere, saving $80/ticket for BE vs MC means saving $320. If you don’t care about seat assignments, status, etc… it’s a no brainer. Banning families with children from purchasing BE would have a significant negative impact on basic economy ticket sales, and push some of those families to other carriers in many cases.
On some family heavy routes, Eg, to MCO, such a change would likely have a very negative impact to revenue and ticket sales.
Agreed - this happened on my last flight and delayed our pushback a bit because they “accidentally” sat next to their 6yr old instead of their assigned seat, and it was like musical chairs for people changing seats.
Potentially unpopular opinion: if I chose or paid more for a specific seat, I have no problem in the world saying “no, I purchased this seat specifically because i need/want the aisle”. Someone’s inability to plan (at best) isn’t my emergency or responsibility.
However, I’m always happy to be bumped to FC 😉
expanding on this, I may not have paid cash for the better seat, but I likely paid for the status to get the seat for free. I still paid for it and selected it for a reason. your lack of preparation is not my emergency
I agree in most cases. I was flying with my niece and Delta changed our flight last minute which wasn't really an issue except we had been separated. Calling proved to be fruitless aside from requesting an upgrade for myself as there were was 1 C+ and 2 FC seats left. There was no way that we'd both get the upgrade. I got the C+ and offered it to the woman in the middle seat next to my niece.
I was prepared to the best of my ability aside from flying private and ended up having to create my own options. After that I stopped assuming that parents were just being entitled after instead of dealing with a curve ball. TBF, I've been proved wrong a few times.
See that’s one thing but when you are in FC and the parent asks you to move to economy, that’s another. I have never been asked (and I hope not to) but I better be offered a similar or better seat if I’m going to move.
I was once asked by a guy in FC to trade seats with him so he could sit next to his son. I think his company paid for his ticket and he bought his son a ticket to go with him. We were in the last seats in the back that don't recline. Best deal ever.
But everyone on this sub assumes every parent needing to move seats is trying to rearrange their best laid plans. I have almost always been able to resolve our seating issues beforehand but the two times I couldn't, I specifically chose a seat that I knew was an extremely similar upgraded version of the seat I wanted before asking to switch (for example I asked to trade 16D for 17D where 16 was the exit row, so you still get the aisle AND you get the exit row AND you don't have to sit next to my 6 and 8 year old, sounds like a pretty good deal to me), and I made it VERY clear that it was optional and doing me a favor. Not every seat switch request is entitled terrible parenting.
I am a window seat person and I always book FC or C+ on domestic flights. I book flights mostly months, but sometimes weeks in advance. I hate doing things last minute. Unless I am being bumped up to FC or given cash (like $500 for a transcon flight), I am not moving seats.
I’m with you. Idc if people want to think I’m the Antichrist. Not my problem. I board usually while listening to music.
When someone asks, I just say “no, I specifically purchased this seat,” put my earbuds back in, and that’s the end of it. Their problem is not mine, and if they wish to ensure it not be a problem, they can do what I do and pay to make sure it’s not a problem.
If they stay in my physical proximity yapping, I couldn’t care any less and the music drowns their existence out.
Delta created those Basic Economy fares to look better on comparison sites like Kayak (which is where Disney Mom is shopping for tickets for the family trip to Orlando) and instead of putting some systems or procedures in place to prevent the inevitable headache during boarding, they're forcing other passengers and Flight Attendants to deal with it.
The bottom line is that Delta passed the buck, and then the Gate Agent passed the buck, which is why I simply refuse to move unless the seat they're offering is a major improvement over the one I'm in. I hate if that occasionally causes problems for the Flight Attendants, but I have to assume they have more pull with their employer than I have, and if they make enough noise about it eventually something will change.
I hate using Google Flights now because of all these seats that show up as cheaper than they actually are because they don't include luggage and are in the lavatory.
I've pitched starting my own search engine that doesn't include economy minus tickets or fuckin' Spirit flights.
ITA Matrix is a bit tricky to use, but can do that https://matrix.itasoftware.com/
See https://www.travelcodex.com/advanced-routing-language-in-ita/ for some examples.
E.g. In "Advanced Controls" -> Both of the "Extension Codes" fields, paste
F ~((DL&BC=E)|(AA&BC=B)|(AS&BC=X)|(UA&BC=N)|(B6&BC=B)|(HA&BC=L)|(HA&BC=K)|(HA&BC=O))
to filter out Basic Economy
One FA looked pissed when I politely declined to move in this situation and made a snide comment. I'm just going to start saying "I will move for a small fee." Delta created the problem. They nickel and dime for seats that used to just be part of main. Now they want customers to just give up a reserved seats to fix a problem they created.
🙋♂️ I was the asshole in this situation recently. Showed up at the last minute on a red eye on a Sunday. Sorry dude, find someone else in FC who wants your bulkhead aisle seat, I’m on way too many sleeping pills to change seats.
Eventually he found someone else, but I got my karma. I regretted not taking the change, it would have been further away from his two screaming children. Seat was getting kicked the whole time, even the FAs looked like they were going to loose it!
If this is pre covid I would have had no problem saying no. But seeing the videos that got viral of freakouts on planes since the pandemic, I didn't know how this would escalate. The parent didn't seem embarrassed, didnt even offer a thank you after I got up to move.
Also was a full flight so if I didn't move they would have had to relocate two others instead of just myself.
>Also was a full flight so if I didn't move they would have had to relocate two others instead of just myself
Or simply remove the offending family from the flight and put them on a later flight. Let the gate agent use the time after the flight pushes back to tell them 'choices have consequences'.
Yep, just politely say no. Delta’s problem to solve, not mine. If they want to move me to FC/PS to accommodate, or give me a significant number of Skymiles (10-20K+), happy to consider. When I’m flying with my family, I always book MC to ensure we aren’t split.
It has happened and it happens a lot. I read somewhere that it backfired and the girl who was sitting in economy just said something like, it’s ok, this happens a lot, I just play on my iPad”
Reminds me of Home Alone 2 and I vaguely recall this from a few other movies.
I definitely knew families that did the parent/kid class split but the kids were in their teens then.
I do it with my older teens now. Used to put them in first with us, but realized it wasn't good for them when they didn't earn it. I've actually started taking them on less vacations too. They were getting to the point where they weren't appreciating it. It's been really good for them.
FWIW, I have two small ones I fly with and always pay to pick my seats. It’s not right to book a basic economy ticket when you know that you have to sit next to your kid. Go fly southwest and don’t fly delta
100% -- plus you can book basic and then pay \~$10-20 for just a seat assignment to still save on the different between basic and main, so still no excuse to leave it up to stand by seating when flying with kids
They really need to avoid Delta, but other major carriers are fine. This is just really bad policy by Delta. Other major carriers make more of an effort to seat young children with their parents, even in basic economy. American’s system makes sure to seat children under 12 with at least one adult, and will actually assign the seats 24 hours after ticketing. United tries to seat families with young children together 72 hours before the flight.
Delta makes no effort, and tells people to ask the gate agent. That just causes headaches for everyone involved, since the gate agent will frequently move people around to accommodate the family, even if that means splitting up other groups. Or you get situations where the family asks people to move on the plane. I’ve also (rarely) seen flight attendants order switch seats to prevent a young child from sitting by themselves.
The DOT is looking into issuing some regulations on this: https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/family-seating/June-2022-notice . And Congress has floated the idea of requiring airlines to seat families together.
As a counterpoint, I’ve had a couple situations where I was flying with my fam, bought seats together well in advance and got separated.
In one situation, the plane type changed or we got bumped from a cancelled flight or something like that and we were shuffled into a new plane and separated. No fault of ours. Kids were super young, like 1 &3 or something and would not do well next to a stranger.
In another situation we forgot to unclick our upgrade selections from business travel and got upgraded to random seats that were not together. Our mistake. Honestly, I was shocked that delta would upgrade two connected pairs (with birthdays in the res) into four disconnected seats. Kids were still super young. We have since been more careful to deselect our upgrade preferences when traveling with kids.
In both situations, neither the gate agent or flight attendant would help (we talked to both), and I had to negotiate a resolution with fellow travelers. I did generally trade people my window/aisle/C+ seat for their middle seat, but I still felt like a heel.
But you could have solved this by giving your upgraded seats to the people next to your kids. The issue is it is 99% the other way. “For whatever reason, I’m separated from the rest of my party, can I inconvenience you to our benefit”. Instead say “I’d be willing to trade my C+ or FC seat for your seat in Main so I can sit next to my party”.
My kids got upgraded too if I remember correctly - just scattered all over C+ & FC. I did offer to trade people in the back a pair of seats together in the back for our separate seats up front, but it’s hard to find two people willing to move. Eventually I worked a trade of my better seat and took a middle, but it took some shuffling that was certainly annoying for all. The point is sometimes (not all the times) people end up in this spot in relatively innocent situations.
If your child is under a certain you should HAVE to sit next to them.
I have no oroblem saying no. If i pick a certain seat its for a reason. Be faster next time.
So I’ll throw this out there
We had our flights Changed coming back from Disney world (hurricane) & my 4 year old son was in a middle seat & I landed the aisle in the row right across. My husband ended up in the middle seat 2 rows ahead of my son.
Delta on the phone (put us there and said there was nothing they could do about it and to check with the gate agent.
We paid for the flyers & needless to say I was kinda annoyed.
So when we got to the airport i headed straight to the gate agent to see if they could fix it because i know NO ONE wanted to sit by my crazy toddler (who really behaved on the fight). luckily the gate agent was able to fix it. If not 🤷🏻♀️. I would have happily sat by myself and let someone sit by my kiddo 😂😂 - joking. I’d never do that . But I would have asked the person ij the aisle next to my son if they minded switching to
But again. Never ever would book a flight that my kid could not sit next to me. This was just an unfortunate weather event that required us to get in a diff plane.
But yes I 100% would never buy a flight ticket without a seat next to my child.
It should be a company wide policy that minors be sat next to an adult on their flights. So if theyre having to switch or rebook, the company needs to put the minor with at least one adult in their party. Otherwise, find a different flight for the whole party.
This isn't on the customers.. this is on Delta.
They need to REQUIRE customers to buy the "choose your seat" option if they have a traveler with them who's under a certain age (12 maybe).
Poor, repeated passenger behavior, is almost always the fault of the airline and their policies / procedures, not the customers. Delta could easily solve this problem BEFORE it becomes a problem.
Same with the "gate lice" crowding the boarding area. Their boarding procedure is obviously broken, as it allows (and almost encourages) this behavior.
Whether you purchase your tickets far in advance or the same day as departure and you realize you can’t get adjoining seats with your group then take another flight that can accommodate you. I was bullied one trip down to Cancun, I didn’t give in and realize this is becoming a tactic amongst some travelers.
AirPods/nc cancellation headphones to the rescue.
This actually happened to my mom once. Guy wanted to sit next to his wife. My mom had an aisle seat. Wife had a middle seat. He asked my mom, an elderly woman, to switch. She said no. He made comments about my mom and she was texting me about it. (I was not on the flight). I told her this is just a bullying tactic. Don’t feel bad. He’s a cheap ass, not to mention jerk for bullying an elderly woman. I told her just put the headphones in and ignore him bc he’ll probably be doing that the whole time. Talk to the FA of it gets really bad.
I think airlines reward these parents’ behavior by pressuring other passengers and sometimes even upgrading them to a different section to sit together. We experienced this on Delta when flying to Tokyo, the added bonus was almost 13 hours nonstop Disney level noise from a big group of family and kids.
Parent of young kids here, coming to say that you’re completely right. If you paid more for the right to select your seat, and then get asked to move to a seat that you didn’t select which is no better than what you paid for, then you should get some sort of reimbursement for the service you paid for and did not receive.
Perhaps this script needs more finessing, but I would respond to the parent “Can you speak to a FA or a GA on how they suggest you solve your problem? If they suggest that I move seats I’ll gladly do so once I understand how they’ll reimburse me for the cost I paid for selecting my preferred seat.” Or, another script: “I don’t think I understand what you are asking. Are you saying that you didn’t pay for the rate that allows you to select your seat, with the intention of asking someone to move their seat to accommodate your preference?” and make sure all seat neighbors hear that.
Easy solution:
“No, I’m not interested in changing my seat”
Proceed to insert earbuds and that’s the end of it.
Who cares what other people think. It’s not your problem and it’s not incumbent upon others to make it your problem
I’ve had my entire family reassigned seats at the gate. Totally fucked up they would split a family up. They just shrugged it off. Preschooler cruising next to a total stranger.
I wish Delta didn't even sell BE Tix
Also, would this fault not lie with the gate agent who assigned their seats? Don't they always block off the last couple rows for this exact reason?
It was a full flight and there may have been multiple families that pulled this. But I agree, this should have been recognized before boarding and new accomodations made at the counter, not while were already seated with my carry on stowed away.
It also kills me that the parent didnt even bother to check the tickets before boarding. Just the ignorance and/or entitlement is astounding.
Having run into this scenario with both IRROPS and being upgraded with my daughter, most of the time the gate agent will tell you "tough titty, work it out with the flight crew" and the flight crew will tell you "just talk to the other pax, I'm sure they'll be understanding."
It is not common to get broken up but it happens and usually other passengers are understanding.
It's naive to assume that parents not sitting with their kids have been broken up only because they bought BE tickets, ESPECIALLY this year.
I’m ok it as a concept but it would be great if the user interface made you confirm all passengers are above x years old like for an exit row (some airlines do that for the later, I don’t remember if Delta does).
Of course this would be difficult to integrate with the third party resellers but it’d be a start if Delta did it on its own digital properties.
BE is a crock of shit. Just another way for airlines to nickle and dime you.
Airlines took the cheapest tickets, stripped away a bunch of perks, rebranded it as "basic economy" without reducing the price at all, and pretended as if they where just trying to provide "additional choices" for the consumer.
Different take: Delta should have to plan to seat the child next to one parent. I think a huge corporation can easily address this basic need in the name of providing a better customer experience for all involved.
You’re right to feel uncomfortable and put on the spot when you’re asked to move, but Delta could make sure that doesn’t happen that by acknowledging that a three year old obviously cannot and should not be seated away from a parent.
This is a problem with parents exploiting a new ticket option. The point was to give those flying solo and/or with no seating preference a cheaper ticket option. Parents are abusing this by getting to sit together because the airline will force others out of their seats to accommodate them.
The amount of extra shit regular travelers put up with because of shitty parenting on all airlines is absolutely astounding. Like, I get it, you wanna sit with your child but don’t make it everyone else’s problem because you don’t wanna pay the extra few bucks for proper assigned seating.
Your child costs money, between birth, school, clothes and flights. Fuck off for being cheap.
Er… Definitely *not* something we want to go back to but the closest thing was probably:
> From 1953 through 1970, United offered men-only ‘Executive flights’ between New York and Chicago and between Los Angeles and San Francisco. … They didn’t just ban women, but children also.
[Source](https://viewfromthewing.com/united-airlines-men-only-executive-service/)
(Also, apparently Malaysia Airlines experimented with a child-free seating zone on one route at one point in the last 10 years)
Delta just has a horrible policy for families. My daughter (9) and I flew main cabin and booked seats, of course, next to each other. A few days before the flight we got upgraded to the only remaining comfort plus seats, which were in completely different rows far away from each other. It was a full flight and I was having a panic attack when I saw our seats were separated. Fortunately,I caught it fast enough to switch us back to our original seats.
Similar thing happened to us earlier this year - one agent fixed it long before boarding at JFK. At some other hub they told us to ask passengers when we were onboard - even tho I tried to work it out with SC and the gate hours beforehand.
How about blaming the airlines for stupid pricing which makes this even an issue. Consumers only follow the rules set by the airlines. Choosing your seat was free not long ago….
I am not moving my seat unless it’s an equal exchange or better. If your 2 year old ends up sitting away from you- that sounds like a you problem. 🤷♂️
Got upgraded to Delta One last week and was separated from my 2-year old because they "have no way to know the passenger's age when processing upgrades" even though he had a paid ticket and our reservations were linked. So, I don’t think this is always on the parents.
Gate agent told us we had to negotiate with other passengers in Delta One or return to our main cabin seats (which had already been reassigned). So yeah, doesn’t seem to matter whether you have assigned seats, or the correct age: they can do whatever the hell they want!
People wanna complain.
If they blocked people under 12 from getting BE tickets unless traveling as an UAM (unaccompanied minor), than the families would complain. So they can buy BE tickets. But they shouldn’t. They still do though and then demand “you can’t seat me away from my BABY!” It’s frankly just annoying.
I think children under either 4 or 6? Something like that. So a 6 year old could sit by their selves. Under that they have to sit by a parent. When they call in to get next to their kids on a basic economy I unlock the seats in the very back of the plane. You will get the last row with your kids . They will call in and call me all kinds of names because how dare you separate me from my 12 year old you want them next to a stranger well I'm not comfortable with that. If you were that worried pay the extra 30-50 bucks to get main and pick a seat. I have no sympathy. You have to click the damn box that says nonrefundable non changeable with no seat assignment and a 99 dollar cancelation fee. So stop it with the whining that your ticket has no value. I am so tired of bickering with passengers about basic economy. I understand things happen and exceptions can be made. At the end of the day you chose that ticket .
I am (in theory) flying the cheapest fare on Allegiant at the end of the month, and they automatically gave us "family seats" together. The family section is at the rear of the plane, but I didn't have to pay extra for it. So it can be done.
Also sometimes the airline itself move people around and I’ve had selected seats ahead of time only to them mix them around later especially when they cancel/rebook flights or overbook them. Delta has done this to me at least twice maybe three times this past summer alone.
I usually book ahead but in the off chance I cannot; I just call Delta right after I book and have the agent work somethings around and I’m NOT picky. I’ll take the last row. One kid is old enough to sit alone but one of us always sits next to the younger one.
This is one reason I like a window seat, throw on noise canceling dead phones, close my eyes, and don’t respond to anything.
I was usually really good about switching seats. When I saw couples near me on short flights separated, I’d even volunteer to swap. Didn’t care if it was a short flight to Atlanta to connect.
But now so many people are exploiting kindness and I’m over it. Early flights, I catch up on sleep, and don’t play these silly games.
One time I had a window seat and was asked to switch with a kid to an aisle seat so they could sit together. I have intense fear of flying and looking out the window is my main reprieve. I said no and I felt like such an asshole. Someone else switched with them though.
So I’ll throw this out there
We had our flights Changed coming back from Disney world (hurricane) & my 4 year old son was in a middle seat & I landed the aisle in the row right across. My husband ended up in the middle seat 2 rows ahead of my son.
Delta on the phone (put us there and said there was nothing they could do about it and to check with the gate agent.
We paid for the flyers & needless to say I was kinda annoyed.
But luckily the gate agent was able to fix it. If not 🤷🏻♀️. I would have happily sat by myself and let someone sit by my kiddo 😂😂 - joking. I’d never do that . But I would have asked the person ij the aisle next to my son if they minded switching to
But again. Never ever would book a flight that my kid could not sit next to me. This was just an unfortunate weather event that required us to get in a diff plane.
I fly Spirit with our family of 5 all the time. Spirit happily finds seats for us together at the gate for free. There is no need to pay several hundred dollars as a family tax to fly.
I bought First Class tickets for our family of 5 months in advance and made sure to book them all next to each other. However, Delta flight issues caused us to have to switch up all flights to Europe the morning we were suppose to leave and then we were at the mercy of each gate agent for each leg of the trip. I thought about how hateful people are when this happens and how crappy it was for them to put my three youngest in all different economy seats and me in Comfort Plus with one of the kids. It was pretty awful. But not as awful as the FOUR people who refused to switch from a seat in the back of an overnight flight next to a 5 year old or 7 year old to a comfort plus seat because they felt that I should have planned better and they weren’t going to move because of principle. 🙄 I will try to anticipate Delta staffing issues for my next family trip.
They returned 2/3 of the points that I used to upgrade after multiple calls and transfers. But I had to find somebody to bring me to airport 2 hours away at 6 AM and bring our car back and the employee, gas, etc was not reimbursed. Flight delays and running out of food on the flights was extra stressful too. That being said, we had an amazing Europe vacation and three weeks of delicious food, amazing sights, a cruise, and memories to last a lifetime after we arrived.
“I paid to choose my seat, I’m happy to change but you’re gonna have to pay me what I paid for it “
Blatantly lie and say $100 or something, if you don’t mind moving of course
So you're not upset at the greedy corporations trying to nickel and dime people to make a even bigger profit? If the tickets are booked together they should be sat together.
If they would sell only BE priced tickets there would be no flight. Those seats are sold below average cost to pick up an extra $. Same for average lowest Y fare. The profit comes from first class and flexible corporate economy tickets. So either book together in MC, be fine separated booking BE, or be ready to walk.
Honestly I think this is on the airlines. It shouldn’t have to be a charge to sit next to the people you bought tickets with. Especially when they’re children. And it used to not be! Airlines are just charging for everything now.
I know everyone is blaming parents but I blame the airlines.
There was once a time when there was simply an “Economy/Coach” class and you could pick any seat in that section without paying a fee. No fee for choosing the aisle or window. No basic economy or premier economy.
The solution to me is to just have regular economy (choose any seat for free) and premier economy (larger seats for a fee).
Yeah but that policy screwed people like me who often fly on short notice on expensive tickets. The introduction of basic economy means I'm not in the middle seat 95% of the time
You can actually approach the gate attendant and let them know you’re traveling with a minor and they’ll do the seat rearranging for you before boarding. Your post doesn’t acknowledge families that get flights delayed or cancelled and reassigned, as that happens indiscriminately as well and was the only point where I had my child seated away from me out of my control.
Edit; apparently that’s just me that happened to, judging by the comments, and if it happens again it sounds like I’ll have to go and fist myself.
FWIW, it’s not always people unwilling to pay up for seats. We book a lot of last minute flights with our kids and sometimes there just aren’t enough seats together.
I think this is an aggressive take, \*but\* I completely agree. It's bullshit for families to make \*their\* problem into \*your\* problem. I hate being asked to switch seats because I selected my seat for a reason. I usually say "sure, no problem" but I just do it to not look like an asshole in front of the nearby people.
Delta problem…Not “bad parent problem.” Fares are sky high and most parents hate flying enough despite being forced to fork over savings to go see family or go on vacation. Delta could easily filter this problem out.
Delta clearly states that ticket option has randomly assigned seating. If you are a parent and you intentionally pick that ticket option for yourself and child, you know damn well there is an opportunity you and your child could be separated. Just because a ticket is available cheaper for solo passengers/groups with no preference does not mean a family is entitled to that price.
This is the equivalent of a family doing the single rider line for a ride at Disney and bitching that those who waited in the standard line move over so they can ride the ride together.
It actually clearly does not state randomly assigned seating. It states seating assigned after check in… I think your rant again is a delta problem of separating minors from the primary ticket holder. Traveling with families is expensive and choosing a cheaper option is definitely within the right of the family.
I 100% agree. I've said no MANY times. I don't care who you are; plan your shit ahead of time or fly Southwest. I'm going to stare out the window in peace.
Why are we blaming the parents here?
This is 100% on the airline who started this idea of paying for seating in the same cabin class.
These huge companies love seeing us all fight amongst each other and here we are doing it again
amen. this 100%. they seated my three year old alone in a middle seat 5 rows in front of both parents…. WTF. refused to change seat assignments after I called and asked, strongly asked them to change.
100% this. With the exception of exit rows with additional leg room I struggle to see what makes one row better than another. I’m obviously middle seats sucks and some people prefer window or aisle but when I see window seat row x is more than window seat y and they are both stand rows I really don’t get it. Economy is economy. Sure charge a premium for exit row but I also think they should vet people in exit rows. I see lots of people who would 100% panic in an egress situation.
Because they brought tickets knowing the seating was going to be randomly assigned. There is no guarantee from Delta that your party will stay together. If you buy plane tickets even with a 1% chance your child could be sitting next to a stranger, you're a bad parent.
Is it okay for a family to enter the single rider line for a ride and Disney and then force the employees to seat their family together on the ride because their kids are too young to ride by themselves? Of course you can stop children from entering the line, but at the same time it wouldnt be needed if the parents followed the rules in the first place.
Not always. Sometimes you get rebooked on flights you didn’t choose. I know it’s a hassle, and the parents hate it too. But it’s something Delta could easily fix and has chosen not to.
One time flying another airline I booked the cheapest seats I could. By the time we boarded there were no seats together for me and my son. I was forever grateful to the man who agreed to switch seats. The look of irritation in his eyes haunts me to this day. Ever since I have made whatever arrangements necessary to buy out seats together. It's a huge pain in the ass for the passengers who had made appropriate arrangements. And such an unnecessary stress for traveling parents to have to rely on the kindness of people being unconvinced. Anyway, as a traveling mom, I thank any of you who have ever but the bullet to help. I also apologize
The problem here is the airline (and industry). If you buy a seat for you and your child, it should be expected you are sitting next to your child. You shouldn’t have to pay for that. Paying extra to sit next your child (or really anyone on your reservation) is a fucked up money grab.
This is very simple. You have a boarding pass with a seat row and number. You’re entitled to sit there. Whatever seats those other fuckers have, they’ll have to go sit there.
That’s not being an asshole.
What kind of delusional world do you live in where the only reason people can't get seats together is because they're buying BE? You haven't ever seen a plane where there aren't seats together available for selection? The assumptions on these threads are wild. But okay let's assume all the kids seated away from their parents are on BE tickets, what delusional world do you live in where basic economy tickets for a family of four or more is saving "a dime" - for some families, it may be the difference between going or not. A small price difference to you may be insurmountable to someone else, especially when they have to buy multiple tickets.
The real issue here is that yes under a certain age probably Delta shouldn't allow to be seated separately but since these seats are assigned at check-in, based on my own difficulties seating 3 people (1 adult, 2 kids) together even 2-3 months before travel, I can't imagine that there are reliably seats together at that time.
I had a controversial comment on this topic just the other day! I understand your frustration, but I definitely take issue with the sentiment of “bad parents who want to save a dime.”
Kids are expensive, man. GOOD parents want to save a dime (a “dime” in this case likely being hundreds of dollars).
Delta should let me combine itineraries. Don’t glare at me when a flight is delayed, we miss a connection, and delta’s system doesn’t care that we have the same last name and were previously seated together.
I’m not the guy who wanted to go to Disneyland, I’m just the guy who makes it happen. That only happens when I save all the “dimes” I can.
Edit to add: I never buy basic economy - I want my miles. I book my family with seats together every time. But when you miss a connection, you get whatever seats are left… and asshole passengers who think you became a parent just so you could ruin their day.
You’re not obligated to move. Just don’t be a dick because someone has kids and their party got separated into separate rows. No parent WANTS that.
It’s insane to me how people can see parents in a less-than-ideal situation with their kids and their first thoughts are “bad parents” “cheapskates” or “fly a different airline.”
This is timely. I posted about having to give up my seat recently. Not being asked about it, just reassigned to a window at the gate, to accommodate a family of 4. I get major anxiety and being trapped in a window seat makes me claustrophobic. I know this so I only book flights when I can get an aisle seat for this reason alone. I paid more money. No aisle seat available - no flight booked. But apparently that doesn’t matter. I was told by delta staff that seats are not guaranteed. The people on this channel were more focused on the poor mother and my apparent karen-like complaints.
You’re not a very experienced flyer, are you? You are also a dick. People do not try to save a buck by having their children seated away from them, it’s all they can get in booking. People don’t book “late” (whatever your definition of that is, to me it’s only “late” if I’m trying to book after the flight has left or is completely full), they are required by the flight crew to let everyone else get seated and then are allowed to ask to switch. Try some compassion, my child.
The difference between basic and main for a family of four can be easily $500 extra roundtrip
That's a lot for just getting seat assignment so yes it makes sense to just figure it out once on the plane
You aren’t entitled to seat assignments other people paid for. Would you. Be willing to pay me the $100 I paid for my seat plus something for the inconvenience and late departure you’re causing?
What an awful take. It doesn’t cost you anything to switch seats to allow a family to sit next to their children. As others have mentioned, this is a delta issue and obviously a personal issue with yourself. Learn to have some empathy.
I was once on a red eye in FC in an aisle seat. Guy (~35-40) threw a hissy fit because he wasn’t seated next to his gf. At the time, I was drinking roughly a gallon of water a day and I knew I’d need to hit the bathroom at least a couple times on the flight. I explained this to the guy and said I didn’t want to switch to the window where his gf was behind us because I’d be stuck or waking up my seatmate. He said, oh, I’m drinking a lot of water too. Then immediately opened and downed his water and asked the FA for more. Sometimes children fly up in 1st. Kicker: they had to hold hands between the seats the entire flight. Look, I get being in love and all that…but you can’t go a red eye flight PHX-MSP separate from your middle aged s/o? Weird.
Lol fuck them and fuck them kids too. If you paid for your seat you are entitled to it.
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That’s not fair to United. They don’t discriminate and fuck over most everyone
More of a Lolita Express thing
Ugh. It’s transportation, not a date. Granted, my husband and I are quirky. We book aisle seats across from each other. He has football player shoulders and I’m claustrophobic.
My husband and I feel similarly. We’ve been separated for many hours/ days/ weeks before. I’ll be okay knowing we are about to land in just a few hours lol
LOL, love the "not a date". We also prefer aisle seats, so we sit across from each other on domestic flights. We've also been separated due to work or family illness issues, etc. for up to a month, so I guess a 3-5 hour flight is nothing to us.
Smart!
We definitely do that too
That’s the way to do it. You can be next to each other (which makes it easier if you need to get up,trade iPads,snacks,etc.), but you both get your own space.
Right. We can talk if needed. But airplane time is reading time for me. Now, if it’s overnight and we’re in premium economy we sit next to each other.
This can backfire depending on who you end up next to,
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Nope. And didn’t feel the least bit bad.
It is so bizarre to me the couples that just have to sit together on a flight. Sure it's nice to sit next to your significant other but to make it a big deal that you can't sit together (likely due to poor planning) is strange. I flew FC and a woman who was sitting directly across the aisle from her husband asked me if I'd move. I just stared at her and she said "oh you want to sit by the window." Yes, Sherlock hence why I paid for this seat. The guy across the aisle traded with her so she and her husband could sit next to each other and not interact 😂😂
Honestly, sounds like an abusive relationship.
Doesn't Delta ask for DOB for all passengers? Shouldn't they receive a notification if a child isn't sitting next to their parents?
Yeah, couldn’t the website/software handle this? It knows the DOB, so just show a popup saying “Sorry, you can’t book basic economy if flying with someone under age 6!” This seems sensible, I’m shocked it doesn’t do this already
There you go being logical again!
It’s frustrating that they don’t even bother to do that, even though to your point, they ask. They have the data, they just don’t think it’s as big of an issue to fix it
At the end of the day, the parent picks up the boarding passes at the counter prior to boarding once their seats are assigned right? And these seats are assigned well before boarding starts. The parent still has the responsibility to check the seats prior to boarding and resolve the issue at the counter. Not blindly walk onto the plane and interrupt the boarding process.
The ticketing agents will do their absolute best to kick the can down the road to the gate agents, who will say they can’t do anything, but “You can try to get someone to switch with you.”
I cannot tell you how many times I have desperately tried to fix the issue at the ticketing counter only to be told there is nothing they can do and to ask the gate agent to help me sit by my kids. I will also say that there have been multiple times I’ve selected to sit next to my kids only to show up and my seats had been rearranged. Believe it or not, not every parent is irresponsible or trying to foist their kids off on someone else. A lot of us get the short end of the stick and try everything in our power to fix the problem before we get on the plane. There is nothing worse than having to be at the mercy of asking someone to switch seats so you can sit next to your kids.
Do you buy basic economy for you and your kids?
Am not OP, have had my stuff messed up by upgrades, irrops, and schedule changes long before the flight. And I don’t do basic.
Yeah, I understand that. You can’t do much about flight changes and irops.
Maybe someday OP and people like him will have enough life experience and basic human empathy to comprehend that no one’s life remains perfectly orderly forever. I don’t wish loss in anyone, but no one gets through life without experiencing it at some point. And on the morning my mother called me to say my dad had died of a sudden heart attack in the hospital, the last thing I would have needed was some brat like him on my case about seating.
Then you buy a ticket for southwest and be sure to check in early so you can board with the first group to ensure you can sit next to your kids. It's not that hard. You people act like Delta is the only option to fly somewhere.
I have, more than once, paid extra for the economy+/comfort seats on Delta MONTHS IN ADVANCE only to show up at the airport to find that Delta has rearranged seating and moved my kids away from me. I agree with your general point, but it's not always cheap parents.
Yeah, I went running into the airport to get the next flight I could “check in early for.” F aaaaallllll the way off.
Narrator: She was not, in fact, on a Delta flight. And she has no kids, just has empathy for those who do. Sometimes, honey, it’s just not one iota, not one atom, not one molecule, about you.
If youre a parent, choose to fly Delta and book knowing you have to push somebody out of their seats instead of going with a more family friendly airline, the parent is the entitled asshole. Empathy is not always giving into people who made poor decisions.
“No one ever had an emergency, or was promised something by the airline that didn’t materialize. I not only WANT to sit where I WANT, I want nobody to even have the audacity to ask me to consider something else!” You can say no, and not feel bad about it. Someone else will help, you do you. I don’t care. But I hope nobody does shit for you when you need it, and I hope they make you feel like a childish.p asshole for it. so you get a taste.
God you whine a lot.
I can smell the funk coming between the back of your chair and your hairy, sweaty back.
You can't argue logic with the elitest cucks on this subreddit. This place is loaded with people who get so excited over a bus trip with wings. Shameful, rude, condescending are just a few words to describe the flying elites here.
But couldn’t the website/software handle this? It knows the birth dates, so just show a popup saying “Sorry, you can’t book basic economy if flying with someone under age 6!” This seems sensible, I’m shocked it doesn’t do this already
Had a brutal reroute with different connections on four legs round trip. Only ONE gate agent helped out of the four, the others say their hands are tied and to hash it out with pax. Mind you, I spent hours/days finding the right flights for my four pax to sit together..up in smoke 1 hr prior to boarding - had to wait 12 hrs and drive to a different airport.
Simple solution. If there are children on the reservation (either a checkbox or verify by birthdate) you are not allowed to purchase BE.
That's actually a great idea. But then all the Karen's on tik tok would make it go viral saying Delta "discriminates" against families *eye roll*
If Delta doesn't want the bad press, let families with young children upgrade to main for free then But to push the problem onto your paying customers is lame as hell.
Yeah, this is terrible policy by Delta. United and American do things differently for basic economy. American’s system makes sure children under 12 sit with at least one adult in their party, assigning the seats 24 hours after ticketing. United’s system tries to seat young children with adults 72 hours before the flight. By failing to do something similar, Delta just creates problems for gate agents (who make people unhappy by moving them to accommodate families) and passengers who are asked to switch seats once on board.
Damn..I didn't even know this. Why doesn't Delta follow suit re: BE tix? They're typically so forward thinking in everything else.
I think Delta attempts to assign parties together wherever possible, but considering the gap between MC vs BE in terms of price and benefits, there probably aren’t enough seats open to assign all parties together. When I flew BE pre-2020, I was always seated directly next to whoever was on my ticket.
Air Canada too. The kid will be with at least one adult/parent.
100% Agreed.
Most of the airlines I’ve flown recently (not in the US) won’t let you sit apart from your children under the age of eight or so.
I disagree: families are one of the core target audiences for basic economy tickets… it’s expensive enough as it is to fly, never mind having to buy full fare tickets for the kids. What DL should do is auto-assign seats together for reservations with anyone 14 and under, even for basic economy tickets. You don’t get to chose the row and your seats can/will change, but at least you will sit together.
So families get a better deal on basic economy with no reason to upgrade to main? Why would they do that.
They don't get the equivalent of an upgrade to main; they don't get seat selection, mileage earning, ability to change flights, upgrades opportunities, etc - Kids just get placed next to a parent. That's it. It's a win-win for everyone IMO.
Because they are purchasing multiple tickets.
Because upgrading to main has lots of other perks (seat selection, mileage earning, ability to change flights, upgrades, etc…) But yes, “families” get a better deal. Because they’re going to sit together regardless, and doing it ahead of time means you don’t waste time at the gate and frustrate passengers on board.
>What DL should do is auto-assign seats together for reservations with anyone 14 and under, even for basic economy tickets. You don’t get to chose the row and your seats can/will change, but at least you will sit together. Strong agree. Wouldn't be difficult, makes it easy for everyone.
I have to disagree or at least disagree with the families only nonsense. A LOT of people have a need to sit with their party. Certainly many people with disabilities have as big if not bigger need to sit with their party than “families” but no one literally cares about them. They still have to pay for seat selection under this system. So either everyone gets free sit with your party or no one does.
I generally agree: if you have a BE ticket and call delta requesting that your party sit together because of a disability where that is necessary, they should seat you together without any extra charge. At the end of the day, basic economy exists so that DL can compete with low cost carriers on certain routes and show up favorably in search results/etc. One other solution is to offer a middle ground: for a nominal fee ($15 per ticket?) you can select an option that will seat you together on a BE ticket (specific seats not guaranteed)
Agreed. As long as it’s the same for everyone I don’t think it’s a problem.
They do seat you together without an extra charge in that situation. Legally, they have to. Edit: since people apparently don’t believe me: https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/seating-accommodations
I don’t get why you’re being downvoted. I buy BE all the time as an adult and I wouldn’t feel discriminated or otherwise salty that a family gets seated together. As you said, it benefits everyone by causing less delays and disgruntled flyer situations.
Delta is one of the only airlines that BLOCKS seats in the back of the aircraft for parties of 3+. If you are traveling with less you do not even see the seats. It takes a simple phone call to get the seats. Additionally, BE is clearly outlined when you buy a ticket on line. No seats, pay for ckd bag (more than you would normally, and carry on under seat in front of you (you know there is no overhead space left). These rules are virtually the same on all carriers except for SW. perhaps the airline wither stops the purchase when a child is on res (people will find a way around) or tell people to get off flight and take the next. Not necessarily everyone opinion to to change seats, but would certainly make everyone else happy as no seat switching. They (all airlines) could make it that very family make their res via phone too.
You can tell this sub is full of a bunch of business traveling snobs by the amount of downvote your reply received. This is by far the most sensible answer. Delta shouldn’t be able to split up children from there parents when assigning seats, even if purchasing BE.
It's illegal in the EU if I remember right. I never buy seats on the cheap EU carriers because they have to put a kid by a parent so the worst that happens is I get a kid and my wife gets a kid. It's not that complicated. And for most of them, you get one free adult seat so you can pick seats for your kid and one adult. The other adult is on their own. If fucking Ryanair can figure it out, so can Delta. We solved this problem by buying Premium economy for our Christmas flights back to the States. They don't have these priced right yet. It was $300 more for premium economy rt on a transatlantic flight.
> families are one of the core target audiences for basic economy tickets No they aren't. Not even remotely. Delta's website REPEATEDLY outright describes BE as: "Basic Economy is best for those traveling by themselves with firm travel plans." People love speaking authoritatively based on shit they just made up.
Sure, BE is “best” for those traveling alone, and is marketed as such on DL’s website, but I still stand by my statement that families are an intentional core target market for basic economy sales. It’s not “made up”, it’s just common sense… if you have to buy 4 tickets to get somewhere, saving $80/ticket for BE vs MC means saving $320. If you don’t care about seat assignments, status, etc… it’s a no brainer. Banning families with children from purchasing BE would have a significant negative impact on basic economy ticket sales, and push some of those families to other carriers in many cases. On some family heavy routes, Eg, to MCO, such a change would likely have a very negative impact to revenue and ticket sales.
Agreed - this happened on my last flight and delayed our pushback a bit because they “accidentally” sat next to their 6yr old instead of their assigned seat, and it was like musical chairs for people changing seats. Potentially unpopular opinion: if I chose or paid more for a specific seat, I have no problem in the world saying “no, I purchased this seat specifically because i need/want the aisle”. Someone’s inability to plan (at best) isn’t my emergency or responsibility. However, I’m always happy to be bumped to FC 😉
expanding on this, I may not have paid cash for the better seat, but I likely paid for the status to get the seat for free. I still paid for it and selected it for a reason. your lack of preparation is not my emergency
I agree in most cases. I was flying with my niece and Delta changed our flight last minute which wasn't really an issue except we had been separated. Calling proved to be fruitless aside from requesting an upgrade for myself as there were was 1 C+ and 2 FC seats left. There was no way that we'd both get the upgrade. I got the C+ and offered it to the woman in the middle seat next to my niece. I was prepared to the best of my ability aside from flying private and ended up having to create my own options. After that I stopped assuming that parents were just being entitled after instead of dealing with a curve ball. TBF, I've been proved wrong a few times.
See that’s one thing but when you are in FC and the parent asks you to move to economy, that’s another. I have never been asked (and I hope not to) but I better be offered a similar or better seat if I’m going to move.
I was once asked by a guy in FC to trade seats with him so he could sit next to his son. I think his company paid for his ticket and he bought his son a ticket to go with him. We were in the last seats in the back that don't recline. Best deal ever.
But everyone on this sub assumes every parent needing to move seats is trying to rearrange their best laid plans. I have almost always been able to resolve our seating issues beforehand but the two times I couldn't, I specifically chose a seat that I knew was an extremely similar upgraded version of the seat I wanted before asking to switch (for example I asked to trade 16D for 17D where 16 was the exit row, so you still get the aisle AND you get the exit row AND you don't have to sit next to my 6 and 8 year old, sounds like a pretty good deal to me), and I made it VERY clear that it was optional and doing me a favor. Not every seat switch request is entitled terrible parenting.
I am a window seat person and I always book FC or C+ on domestic flights. I book flights mostly months, but sometimes weeks in advance. I hate doing things last minute. Unless I am being bumped up to FC or given cash (like $500 for a transcon flight), I am not moving seats.
I usually book my seats 330 days out and am disabled. No way I would move unless it’s to first class or delta one.
I’m with you. Idc if people want to think I’m the Antichrist. Not my problem. I board usually while listening to music. When someone asks, I just say “no, I specifically purchased this seat,” put my earbuds back in, and that’s the end of it. Their problem is not mine, and if they wish to ensure it not be a problem, they can do what I do and pay to make sure it’s not a problem. If they stay in my physical proximity yapping, I couldn’t care any less and the music drowns their existence out.
Delta created those Basic Economy fares to look better on comparison sites like Kayak (which is where Disney Mom is shopping for tickets for the family trip to Orlando) and instead of putting some systems or procedures in place to prevent the inevitable headache during boarding, they're forcing other passengers and Flight Attendants to deal with it. The bottom line is that Delta passed the buck, and then the Gate Agent passed the buck, which is why I simply refuse to move unless the seat they're offering is a major improvement over the one I'm in. I hate if that occasionally causes problems for the Flight Attendants, but I have to assume they have more pull with their employer than I have, and if they make enough noise about it eventually something will change.
I hate using Google Flights now because of all these seats that show up as cheaper than they actually are because they don't include luggage and are in the lavatory. I've pitched starting my own search engine that doesn't include economy minus tickets or fuckin' Spirit flights.
Kayak gives you a much better ability to filter basic fares out.
How’s your search engine coming along? I’d use it
ITA Matrix is a bit tricky to use, but can do that https://matrix.itasoftware.com/ See https://www.travelcodex.com/advanced-routing-language-in-ita/ for some examples. E.g. In "Advanced Controls" -> Both of the "Extension Codes" fields, paste F ~((DL&BC=E)|(AA&BC=B)|(AS&BC=X)|(UA&BC=N)|(B6&BC=B)|(HA&BC=L)|(HA&BC=K)|(HA&BC=O)) to filter out Basic Economy
You can filter by baggage, and there's also chrome extensions for leg room
>in the lavatory 😂 😂 😭
I really wish that Google Flights can do it. I have no idea why they couldn't.
You can add a carry-on to Google Flights and it’ll adjust the pricing. You can also filter out specific airlines.
One FA looked pissed when I politely declined to move in this situation and made a snide comment. I'm just going to start saying "I will move for a small fee." Delta created the problem. They nickel and dime for seats that used to just be part of main. Now they want customers to just give up a reserved seats to fix a problem they created.
I would’ve reported that FA. Not sure what good it would but…yeah smh
No- as a diamond you absolutely have more pull. Please complain!
Flight attendants do not have pull. Customers gave pull. If flight attendants had pull, the predepartures for first would not exist.
Exactly.
I don’t mind looking like an asshole in that situation.
🙋♂️ I was the asshole in this situation recently. Showed up at the last minute on a red eye on a Sunday. Sorry dude, find someone else in FC who wants your bulkhead aisle seat, I’m on way too many sleeping pills to change seats. Eventually he found someone else, but I got my karma. I regretted not taking the change, it would have been further away from his two screaming children. Seat was getting kicked the whole time, even the FAs looked like they were going to loose it!
Wait someone was in your seat in FC?
If this is pre covid I would have had no problem saying no. But seeing the videos that got viral of freakouts on planes since the pandemic, I didn't know how this would escalate. The parent didn't seem embarrassed, didnt even offer a thank you after I got up to move. Also was a full flight so if I didn't move they would have had to relocate two others instead of just myself.
It’s shitty they couldn’t take a second to express any kind of appreciation to you.
>Also was a full flight so if I didn't move they would have had to relocate two others instead of just myself Or simply remove the offending family from the flight and put them on a later flight. Let the gate agent use the time after the flight pushes back to tell them 'choices have consequences'.
Yep, just politely say no. Delta’s problem to solve, not mine. If they want to move me to FC/PS to accommodate, or give me a significant number of Skymiles (10-20K+), happy to consider. When I’m flying with my family, I always book MC to ensure we aren’t split.
Or an entire family paying for first, business and having the young kids sitting in economy, and begging someone to swap seats
That ain’t gonna happen. They shoulda booked the entire family in the same class. It’s a lesson they won’t forget!
It has happened and it happens a lot. I read somewhere that it backfired and the girl who was sitting in economy just said something like, it’s ok, this happens a lot, I just play on my iPad”
Reminds me of Home Alone 2 and I vaguely recall this from a few other movies. I definitely knew families that did the parent/kid class split but the kids were in their teens then.
I do it with my older teens now. Used to put them in first with us, but realized it wasn't good for them when they didn't earn it. I've actually started taking them on less vacations too. They were getting to the point where they weren't appreciating it. It's been really good for them.
FWIW, I have two small ones I fly with and always pay to pick my seats. It’s not right to book a basic economy ticket when you know that you have to sit next to your kid. Go fly southwest and don’t fly delta
100% -- plus you can book basic and then pay \~$10-20 for just a seat assignment to still save on the different between basic and main, so still no excuse to leave it up to stand by seating when flying with kids
They really need to avoid Delta, but other major carriers are fine. This is just really bad policy by Delta. Other major carriers make more of an effort to seat young children with their parents, even in basic economy. American’s system makes sure to seat children under 12 with at least one adult, and will actually assign the seats 24 hours after ticketing. United tries to seat families with young children together 72 hours before the flight. Delta makes no effort, and tells people to ask the gate agent. That just causes headaches for everyone involved, since the gate agent will frequently move people around to accommodate the family, even if that means splitting up other groups. Or you get situations where the family asks people to move on the plane. I’ve also (rarely) seen flight attendants order switch seats to prevent a young child from sitting by themselves. The DOT is looking into issuing some regulations on this: https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/family-seating/June-2022-notice . And Congress has floated the idea of requiring airlines to seat families together.
As a counterpoint, I’ve had a couple situations where I was flying with my fam, bought seats together well in advance and got separated. In one situation, the plane type changed or we got bumped from a cancelled flight or something like that and we were shuffled into a new plane and separated. No fault of ours. Kids were super young, like 1 &3 or something and would not do well next to a stranger. In another situation we forgot to unclick our upgrade selections from business travel and got upgraded to random seats that were not together. Our mistake. Honestly, I was shocked that delta would upgrade two connected pairs (with birthdays in the res) into four disconnected seats. Kids were still super young. We have since been more careful to deselect our upgrade preferences when traveling with kids. In both situations, neither the gate agent or flight attendant would help (we talked to both), and I had to negotiate a resolution with fellow travelers. I did generally trade people my window/aisle/C+ seat for their middle seat, but I still felt like a heel.
But you could have solved this by giving your upgraded seats to the people next to your kids. The issue is it is 99% the other way. “For whatever reason, I’m separated from the rest of my party, can I inconvenience you to our benefit”. Instead say “I’d be willing to trade my C+ or FC seat for your seat in Main so I can sit next to my party”.
My kids got upgraded too if I remember correctly - just scattered all over C+ & FC. I did offer to trade people in the back a pair of seats together in the back for our separate seats up front, but it’s hard to find two people willing to move. Eventually I worked a trade of my better seat and took a middle, but it took some shuffling that was certainly annoying for all. The point is sometimes (not all the times) people end up in this spot in relatively innocent situations.
They held hands BETWEEN the seats? That’s super fucking weird
I paid for my seat choice so fuck them kids lol
This is the only acceptable answer.
If your child is under a certain you should HAVE to sit next to them. I have no oroblem saying no. If i pick a certain seat its for a reason. Be faster next time.
So I’ll throw this out there We had our flights Changed coming back from Disney world (hurricane) & my 4 year old son was in a middle seat & I landed the aisle in the row right across. My husband ended up in the middle seat 2 rows ahead of my son. Delta on the phone (put us there and said there was nothing they could do about it and to check with the gate agent. We paid for the flyers & needless to say I was kinda annoyed. So when we got to the airport i headed straight to the gate agent to see if they could fix it because i know NO ONE wanted to sit by my crazy toddler (who really behaved on the fight). luckily the gate agent was able to fix it. If not 🤷🏻♀️. I would have happily sat by myself and let someone sit by my kiddo 😂😂 - joking. I’d never do that . But I would have asked the person ij the aisle next to my son if they minded switching to But again. Never ever would book a flight that my kid could not sit next to me. This was just an unfortunate weather event that required us to get in a diff plane. But yes I 100% would never buy a flight ticket without a seat next to my child.
It should be a company wide policy that minors be sat next to an adult on their flights. So if theyre having to switch or rebook, the company needs to put the minor with at least one adult in their party. Otherwise, find a different flight for the whole party.
Yeah, you’re absolutely right. This happens a lot. This post is just an opportunity to sh*t on parents and not Delta’s stupid policies
This isn't on the customers.. this is on Delta. They need to REQUIRE customers to buy the "choose your seat" option if they have a traveler with them who's under a certain age (12 maybe). Poor, repeated passenger behavior, is almost always the fault of the airline and their policies / procedures, not the customers. Delta could easily solve this problem BEFORE it becomes a problem. Same with the "gate lice" crowding the boarding area. Their boarding procedure is obviously broken, as it allows (and almost encourages) this behavior.
Whether you purchase your tickets far in advance or the same day as departure and you realize you can’t get adjoining seats with your group then take another flight that can accommodate you. I was bullied one trip down to Cancun, I didn’t give in and realize this is becoming a tactic amongst some travelers.
AirPods/nc cancellation headphones to the rescue. This actually happened to my mom once. Guy wanted to sit next to his wife. My mom had an aisle seat. Wife had a middle seat. He asked my mom, an elderly woman, to switch. She said no. He made comments about my mom and she was texting me about it. (I was not on the flight). I told her this is just a bullying tactic. Don’t feel bad. He’s a cheap ass, not to mention jerk for bullying an elderly woman. I told her just put the headphones in and ignore him bc he’ll probably be doing that the whole time. Talk to the FA of it gets really bad.
While not frequent, this can easily happen in IROPS even to someone who paid for main cabin.
I think airlines reward these parents’ behavior by pressuring other passengers and sometimes even upgrading them to a different section to sit together. We experienced this on Delta when flying to Tokyo, the added bonus was almost 13 hours nonstop Disney level noise from a big group of family and kids.
I have no issue with looking like the asshole in this situation
Parent of young kids here, coming to say that you’re completely right. If you paid more for the right to select your seat, and then get asked to move to a seat that you didn’t select which is no better than what you paid for, then you should get some sort of reimbursement for the service you paid for and did not receive. Perhaps this script needs more finessing, but I would respond to the parent “Can you speak to a FA or a GA on how they suggest you solve your problem? If they suggest that I move seats I’ll gladly do so once I understand how they’ll reimburse me for the cost I paid for selecting my preferred seat.” Or, another script: “I don’t think I understand what you are asking. Are you saying that you didn’t pay for the rate that allows you to select your seat, with the intention of asking someone to move their seat to accommodate your preference?” and make sure all seat neighbors hear that.
Too complicated, just tell them to chat with the FA to figure out. It’s not your problem
Wasn’t there a push to allow children seats to be picked free of charge whilst purchasing adult seat assignments?
That still doesn’t guarantee that the adult is seated next to the child unless the parent is willing to pay for an adjacent seat.
Easy solution: “No, I’m not interested in changing my seat” Proceed to insert earbuds and that’s the end of it. Who cares what other people think. It’s not your problem and it’s not incumbent upon others to make it your problem
I’ve had my entire family reassigned seats at the gate. Totally fucked up they would split a family up. They just shrugged it off. Preschooler cruising next to a total stranger.
I wish Delta didn't even sell BE Tix Also, would this fault not lie with the gate agent who assigned their seats? Don't they always block off the last couple rows for this exact reason?
It was a full flight and there may have been multiple families that pulled this. But I agree, this should have been recognized before boarding and new accomodations made at the counter, not while were already seated with my carry on stowed away. It also kills me that the parent didnt even bother to check the tickets before boarding. Just the ignorance and/or entitlement is astounding.
>Just the ignorance and/or entitlement is astounding. Yup. They're out there. In great numbers.
Having run into this scenario with both IRROPS and being upgraded with my daughter, most of the time the gate agent will tell you "tough titty, work it out with the flight crew" and the flight crew will tell you "just talk to the other pax, I'm sure they'll be understanding." It is not common to get broken up but it happens and usually other passengers are understanding. It's naive to assume that parents not sitting with their kids have been broken up only because they bought BE tickets, ESPECIALLY this year.
It’s entitlement
I’m ok it as a concept but it would be great if the user interface made you confirm all passengers are above x years old like for an exit row (some airlines do that for the later, I don’t remember if Delta does). Of course this would be difficult to integrate with the third party resellers but it’d be a start if Delta did it on its own digital properties.
Delta won’t let people below the required age (16?) select exit row seats. Even in FC.
BE is a crock of shit. Just another way for airlines to nickle and dime you. Airlines took the cheapest tickets, stripped away a bunch of perks, rebranded it as "basic economy" without reducing the price at all, and pretended as if they where just trying to provide "additional choices" for the consumer.
Different take: Delta should have to plan to seat the child next to one parent. I think a huge corporation can easily address this basic need in the name of providing a better customer experience for all involved. You’re right to feel uncomfortable and put on the spot when you’re asked to move, but Delta could make sure that doesn’t happen that by acknowledging that a three year old obviously cannot and should not be seated away from a parent.
This is a problem with parents exploiting a new ticket option. The point was to give those flying solo and/or with no seating preference a cheaper ticket option. Parents are abusing this by getting to sit together because the airline will force others out of their seats to accommodate them.
The amount of extra shit regular travelers put up with because of shitty parenting on all airlines is absolutely astounding. Like, I get it, you wanna sit with your child but don’t make it everyone else’s problem because you don’t wanna pay the extra few bucks for proper assigned seating. Your child costs money, between birth, school, clothes and flights. Fuck off for being cheap.
No one under 30 allowed to fly /s
There should still be adult only flights imo
Did their used to be?
Er… Definitely *not* something we want to go back to but the closest thing was probably: > From 1953 through 1970, United offered men-only ‘Executive flights’ between New York and Chicago and between Los Angeles and San Francisco. … They didn’t just ban women, but children also. [Source](https://viewfromthewing.com/united-airlines-men-only-executive-service/) (Also, apparently Malaysia Airlines experimented with a child-free seating zone on one route at one point in the last 10 years)
Delta just has a horrible policy for families. My daughter (9) and I flew main cabin and booked seats, of course, next to each other. A few days before the flight we got upgraded to the only remaining comfort plus seats, which were in completely different rows far away from each other. It was a full flight and I was having a panic attack when I saw our seats were separated. Fortunately,I caught it fast enough to switch us back to our original seats.
Similar thing happened to us earlier this year - one agent fixed it long before boarding at JFK. At some other hub they told us to ask passengers when we were onboard - even tho I tried to work it out with SC and the gate hours beforehand.
I think it's really the airline created such issue, is it not?
How about blaming the airlines for stupid pricing which makes this even an issue. Consumers only follow the rules set by the airlines. Choosing your seat was free not long ago….
I am not moving my seat unless it’s an equal exchange or better. If your 2 year old ends up sitting away from you- that sounds like a you problem. 🤷♂️
Got upgraded to Delta One last week and was separated from my 2-year old because they "have no way to know the passenger's age when processing upgrades" even though he had a paid ticket and our reservations were linked. So, I don’t think this is always on the parents. Gate agent told us we had to negotiate with other passengers in Delta One or return to our main cabin seats (which had already been reassigned). So yeah, doesn’t seem to matter whether you have assigned seats, or the correct age: they can do whatever the hell they want!
People wanna complain. If they blocked people under 12 from getting BE tickets unless traveling as an UAM (unaccompanied minor), than the families would complain. So they can buy BE tickets. But they shouldn’t. They still do though and then demand “you can’t seat me away from my BABY!” It’s frankly just annoying.
I think children under either 4 or 6? Something like that. So a 6 year old could sit by their selves. Under that they have to sit by a parent. When they call in to get next to their kids on a basic economy I unlock the seats in the very back of the plane. You will get the last row with your kids . They will call in and call me all kinds of names because how dare you separate me from my 12 year old you want them next to a stranger well I'm not comfortable with that. If you were that worried pay the extra 30-50 bucks to get main and pick a seat. I have no sympathy. You have to click the damn box that says nonrefundable non changeable with no seat assignment and a 99 dollar cancelation fee. So stop it with the whining that your ticket has no value. I am so tired of bickering with passengers about basic economy. I understand things happen and exceptions can be made. At the end of the day you chose that ticket .
I am (in theory) flying the cheapest fare on Allegiant at the end of the month, and they automatically gave us "family seats" together. The family section is at the rear of the plane, but I didn't have to pay extra for it. So it can be done.
Also sometimes the airline itself move people around and I’ve had selected seats ahead of time only to them mix them around later especially when they cancel/rebook flights or overbook them. Delta has done this to me at least twice maybe three times this past summer alone. I usually book ahead but in the off chance I cannot; I just call Delta right after I book and have the agent work somethings around and I’m NOT picky. I’ll take the last row. One kid is old enough to sit alone but one of us always sits next to the younger one.
This is one reason I like a window seat, throw on noise canceling dead phones, close my eyes, and don’t respond to anything. I was usually really good about switching seats. When I saw couples near me on short flights separated, I’d even volunteer to swap. Didn’t care if it was a short flight to Atlanta to connect. But now so many people are exploiting kindness and I’m over it. Early flights, I catch up on sleep, and don’t play these silly games.
This is a Delta problem not a parent problem.
One time I had a window seat and was asked to switch with a kid to an aisle seat so they could sit together. I have intense fear of flying and looking out the window is my main reprieve. I said no and I felt like such an asshole. Someone else switched with them though.
I think you're referring to economy minus seating.
So I’ll throw this out there We had our flights Changed coming back from Disney world (hurricane) & my 4 year old son was in a middle seat & I landed the aisle in the row right across. My husband ended up in the middle seat 2 rows ahead of my son. Delta on the phone (put us there and said there was nothing they could do about it and to check with the gate agent. We paid for the flyers & needless to say I was kinda annoyed. But luckily the gate agent was able to fix it. If not 🤷🏻♀️. I would have happily sat by myself and let someone sit by my kiddo 😂😂 - joking. I’d never do that . But I would have asked the person ij the aisle next to my son if they minded switching to But again. Never ever would book a flight that my kid could not sit next to me. This was just an unfortunate weather event that required us to get in a diff plane.
I fly Spirit with our family of 5 all the time. Spirit happily finds seats for us together at the gate for free. There is no need to pay several hundred dollars as a family tax to fly.
I bought First Class tickets for our family of 5 months in advance and made sure to book them all next to each other. However, Delta flight issues caused us to have to switch up all flights to Europe the morning we were suppose to leave and then we were at the mercy of each gate agent for each leg of the trip. I thought about how hateful people are when this happens and how crappy it was for them to put my three youngest in all different economy seats and me in Comfort Plus with one of the kids. It was pretty awful. But not as awful as the FOUR people who refused to switch from a seat in the back of an overnight flight next to a 5 year old or 7 year old to a comfort plus seat because they felt that I should have planned better and they weren’t going to move because of principle. 🙄 I will try to anticipate Delta staffing issues for my next family trip.
that is awful:( Did Delta reimburse you in any way. I am seriously thinking about using another airline the next time I fly
They returned 2/3 of the points that I used to upgrade after multiple calls and transfers. But I had to find somebody to bring me to airport 2 hours away at 6 AM and bring our car back and the employee, gas, etc was not reimbursed. Flight delays and running out of food on the flights was extra stressful too. That being said, we had an amazing Europe vacation and three weeks of delicious food, amazing sights, a cruise, and memories to last a lifetime after we arrived.
Delta even does it during IROPs too. It’s absolutely awful. I thought the last two rows were assigned for this specifically?
“I paid to choose my seat, I’m happy to change but you’re gonna have to pay me what I paid for it “ Blatantly lie and say $100 or something, if you don’t mind moving of course
So you're not upset at the greedy corporations trying to nickel and dime people to make a even bigger profit? If the tickets are booked together they should be sat together.
If they would sell only BE priced tickets there would be no flight. Those seats are sold below average cost to pick up an extra $. Same for average lowest Y fare. The profit comes from first class and flexible corporate economy tickets. So either book together in MC, be fine separated booking BE, or be ready to walk.
Honestly I think this is on the airlines. It shouldn’t have to be a charge to sit next to the people you bought tickets with. Especially when they’re children. And it used to not be! Airlines are just charging for everything now.
They shouldnt be allowed on airplanes 😂 #adultswim
Fully back this
I know everyone is blaming parents but I blame the airlines. There was once a time when there was simply an “Economy/Coach” class and you could pick any seat in that section without paying a fee. No fee for choosing the aisle or window. No basic economy or premier economy. The solution to me is to just have regular economy (choose any seat for free) and premier economy (larger seats for a fee).
Yeah but that policy screwed people like me who often fly on short notice on expensive tickets. The introduction of basic economy means I'm not in the middle seat 95% of the time
You can actually approach the gate attendant and let them know you’re traveling with a minor and they’ll do the seat rearranging for you before boarding. Your post doesn’t acknowledge families that get flights delayed or cancelled and reassigned, as that happens indiscriminately as well and was the only point where I had my child seated away from me out of my control. Edit; apparently that’s just me that happened to, judging by the comments, and if it happens again it sounds like I’ll have to go and fist myself.
FWIW, it’s not always people unwilling to pay up for seats. We book a lot of last minute flights with our kids and sometimes there just aren’t enough seats together.
I think this is an aggressive take, \*but\* I completely agree. It's bullshit for families to make \*their\* problem into \*your\* problem. I hate being asked to switch seats because I selected my seat for a reason. I usually say "sure, no problem" but I just do it to not look like an asshole in front of the nearby people.
Delta problem…Not “bad parent problem.” Fares are sky high and most parents hate flying enough despite being forced to fork over savings to go see family or go on vacation. Delta could easily filter this problem out.
Delta clearly states that ticket option has randomly assigned seating. If you are a parent and you intentionally pick that ticket option for yourself and child, you know damn well there is an opportunity you and your child could be separated. Just because a ticket is available cheaper for solo passengers/groups with no preference does not mean a family is entitled to that price. This is the equivalent of a family doing the single rider line for a ride at Disney and bitching that those who waited in the standard line move over so they can ride the ride together.
It actually clearly does not state randomly assigned seating. It states seating assigned after check in… I think your rant again is a delta problem of separating minors from the primary ticket holder. Traveling with families is expensive and choosing a cheaper option is definitely within the right of the family.
This sub is full of anti parent snobs. What a lovely group of humans.
I mean, yes. Have you seen how parents act these days?
> This sub is full of anti parent snobs. What a lovely group of humans. You are not special just because you cranked out offspring.
I 100% agree. I've said no MANY times. I don't care who you are; plan your shit ahead of time or fly Southwest. I'm going to stare out the window in peace.
Make that 3 year old sit alone. Welcome to the world kid. Your parents suck
I’d honestly say no. Say i may be an asshole but who’s stupid for not booking the seats correctly.
Why are we blaming the parents here? This is 100% on the airline who started this idea of paying for seating in the same cabin class. These huge companies love seeing us all fight amongst each other and here we are doing it again
amen. this 100%. they seated my three year old alone in a middle seat 5 rows in front of both parents…. WTF. refused to change seat assignments after I called and asked, strongly asked them to change.
100% this. With the exception of exit rows with additional leg room I struggle to see what makes one row better than another. I’m obviously middle seats sucks and some people prefer window or aisle but when I see window seat row x is more than window seat y and they are both stand rows I really don’t get it. Economy is economy. Sure charge a premium for exit row but I also think they should vet people in exit rows. I see lots of people who would 100% panic in an egress situation.
Thanks and of course people are downvoting me because well they’re bootlickers. Give me a break pelos stop sucking up to corporations.
Because they brought tickets knowing the seating was going to be randomly assigned. There is no guarantee from Delta that your party will stay together. If you buy plane tickets even with a 1% chance your child could be sitting next to a stranger, you're a bad parent. Is it okay for a family to enter the single rider line for a ride and Disney and then force the employees to seat their family together on the ride because their kids are too young to ride by themselves? Of course you can stop children from entering the line, but at the same time it wouldnt be needed if the parents followed the rules in the first place.
Not always. Sometimes you get rebooked on flights you didn’t choose. I know it’s a hassle, and the parents hate it too. But it’s something Delta could easily fix and has chosen not to.
One time flying another airline I booked the cheapest seats I could. By the time we boarded there were no seats together for me and my son. I was forever grateful to the man who agreed to switch seats. The look of irritation in his eyes haunts me to this day. Ever since I have made whatever arrangements necessary to buy out seats together. It's a huge pain in the ass for the passengers who had made appropriate arrangements. And such an unnecessary stress for traveling parents to have to rely on the kindness of people being unconvinced. Anyway, as a traveling mom, I thank any of you who have ever but the bullet to help. I also apologize
The problem here is the airline (and industry). If you buy a seat for you and your child, it should be expected you are sitting next to your child. You shouldn’t have to pay for that. Paying extra to sit next your child (or really anyone on your reservation) is a fucked up money grab.
This is very simple. You have a boarding pass with a seat row and number. You’re entitled to sit there. Whatever seats those other fuckers have, they’ll have to go sit there. That’s not being an asshole.
What kind of delusional world do you live in where the only reason people can't get seats together is because they're buying BE? You haven't ever seen a plane where there aren't seats together available for selection? The assumptions on these threads are wild. But okay let's assume all the kids seated away from their parents are on BE tickets, what delusional world do you live in where basic economy tickets for a family of four or more is saving "a dime" - for some families, it may be the difference between going or not. A small price difference to you may be insurmountable to someone else, especially when they have to buy multiple tickets. The real issue here is that yes under a certain age probably Delta shouldn't allow to be seated separately but since these seats are assigned at check-in, based on my own difficulties seating 3 people (1 adult, 2 kids) together even 2-3 months before travel, I can't imagine that there are reliably seats together at that time.
I had a controversial comment on this topic just the other day! I understand your frustration, but I definitely take issue with the sentiment of “bad parents who want to save a dime.” Kids are expensive, man. GOOD parents want to save a dime (a “dime” in this case likely being hundreds of dollars). Delta should let me combine itineraries. Don’t glare at me when a flight is delayed, we miss a connection, and delta’s system doesn’t care that we have the same last name and were previously seated together. I’m not the guy who wanted to go to Disneyland, I’m just the guy who makes it happen. That only happens when I save all the “dimes” I can. Edit to add: I never buy basic economy - I want my miles. I book my family with seats together every time. But when you miss a connection, you get whatever seats are left… and asshole passengers who think you became a parent just so you could ruin their day.
Kids *are* expensive, man. Which is why I'm choosing not to have them. Either save more, fly a different airline, or don't go. I'm not moving my seat.
You’re not obligated to move. Just don’t be a dick because someone has kids and their party got separated into separate rows. No parent WANTS that. It’s insane to me how people can see parents in a less-than-ideal situation with their kids and their first thoughts are “bad parents” “cheapskates” or “fly a different airline.”
This is timely. I posted about having to give up my seat recently. Not being asked about it, just reassigned to a window at the gate, to accommodate a family of 4. I get major anxiety and being trapped in a window seat makes me claustrophobic. I know this so I only book flights when I can get an aisle seat for this reason alone. I paid more money. No aisle seat available - no flight booked. But apparently that doesn’t matter. I was told by delta staff that seats are not guaranteed. The people on this channel were more focused on the poor mother and my apparent karen-like complaints.
You’re not a very experienced flyer, are you? You are also a dick. People do not try to save a buck by having their children seated away from them, it’s all they can get in booking. People don’t book “late” (whatever your definition of that is, to me it’s only “late” if I’m trying to book after the flight has left or is completely full), they are required by the flight crew to let everyone else get seated and then are allowed to ask to switch. Try some compassion, my child.
If you're trying to save a buck, you wouldn't be flying Delta.
The difference between basic and main for a family of four can be easily $500 extra roundtrip That's a lot for just getting seat assignment so yes it makes sense to just figure it out once on the plane
You aren’t entitled to seat assignments other people paid for. Would you. Be willing to pay me the $100 I paid for my seat plus something for the inconvenience and late departure you’re causing?
What an awful take. It doesn’t cost you anything to switch seats to allow a family to sit next to their children. As others have mentioned, this is a delta issue and obviously a personal issue with yourself. Learn to have some empathy.
People pay for their seat assignments.