Eliminate reclining airplane seats.

[SarahD]

They don't really recline enough to do much, anyway. Just use upright seats and get rid of the conflict.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/09/opinions/reclining-seat-rage-airplane-passengers-poole/index.html

[doc03]

1. I am only 5'10" but have less than an inch to spare, just as well eliminate them. If

we stood up on a plane they could cram in a couple more rows.

[brooklynite]

19. Already conceptualized

[Initech]

28. WTF! That's nightmare fuel!

[jimfields33]

2. Travelers demanded cheap flights.

Absolutely can’t complain when they make the flights cheap to match price.

[Hekate]

7. I absolutely can complain when it is unsafe and physically agonizing for me to fly

The flying public was sold a bill of goods

[ProfessorGAC]

12. Problem Is, As Jimfields Suggest...

...is that the public only responded to really low cost flights. The costs involved haven't gone down.
I just checked Trivago & found 18 flights from Chicago to Miami for $199 & under, as low as $105.
When my wife & I flew into Miami a couple times in the 90s, the tickets were nearer to $300 each. And that was 30 years ago.
I have no dog in the fight here. I flew a lot for my job, so I'm done with airliners. And, when I flew often it was almost always in first or business class because of both company policy & having a zillion flyer miles.
I do think reclining seats are a hangover from the days of expensive, less full flights on planes holding fewer total passengers. Eliminating them is ok by me. Or not.
Because the cost is so much higher, this idea probably won't apply to biz & first passengers.
It's pretty simple business that you pack planes when people won't buy the $500 ticket, but 3 people will buy the $200 seat.
I'm not seeing a simple answer for the airlines.

[brooklynite]

20. What were they sold, other than the cheapest ticket available?

Those "golden age" planes came with their own price...

[Hekate]

25. Pfft. I never experienced that at all. I was always frugal. I remember how and why it changed...

The changes were a marketing decision, and we were sold a bill of goods.

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[TheFarseer]

10. I will gladly be semi-uncomfortable

For a couple hours to make the flight more affordable, but that’s just me.

[marybourg]

22. No, it's not just you; it's the majority of the

flying public.

[Shermann]

26. I'd rather they skimp on the flight's safety features. nt

[Jilly_in_VA]

3. Absolutely eliminate them

I'm only 5'2 and the get to me. I can't imagine how you taller people feel when your knees get smashed.

[progressoid]

29. I'm 6'1"

I don't have a problem with the knee smashing. I actually like the reclining. After about an hour, my lower back needs that couple inches of reclining to relieve the stress on my back.

[moonscape]

31. This! My lower back needs it, makes

a big difference.

[sakabatou]

4. Even for long hour/night flights?

[ret5hd]

8. hey, if you want anything other than...

“the greyhound bus experience” you need to buy a first class seat. or better yet, fly private and shut yer whine-gob! what a plebe.

[Hekate]

14. Did you forget the sarcasm thingy? I have traveled Greyhound, & the seats have been large, well spaced...

… easy to get in and out of, and with a toilet in the back of the bus. I was able to read a book, adjust the seat somewhat, and doze off.

I don’t even know if Greyhound still exists frankly, but it wasn’t at all a bad way to get from here to there, and was incredibly cost-effective.

[brooklynite]

21. Yes, and I wouldn't recommend it for more than four hours...

&pp=ygUXZ3JleWhvdW5kIGNyb3NzIGNvdW50cnk%3D

[Hekate]

23. One reason I fly is that I have to get from the West Coast to the East Coast when I travel...

I would’t take a bus or drive a car for that distance. The train would take a lot of extra planning — and time.

However, the first time I moved to California I periodically took the Greyhound from Ontario, Calif to visit my grandmother in San Diego. As an adult I periodically took the coastal train from Santa Barbara to San Diego or San Clemente to see relatives or for my job. I have to say I enjoyed it. These trips were over in about half a day.

The only reason I don’t flat out vow that my flying days are over is a couple of intractable but beloved people who live on the other side of the continent, that I haven't seen since before the pandemic.

The reason I am tempted to swear off flying is all the reasons I’ve stated in other posts. I’m only 5’3” and not obese, but I am well into my 70s and have all the age-related crap that goes along with that. I also remember when flying was not cheap, but it was comfortable.

As I said already: Fight among yourselves, people, and make the CEOs gloriously happy.

[codfisherman]

30. Greyhound

Been coast to coast on Greyhound maybe five or six times 25 years ago. Great people, great times, the tighter a budget you're on the better. I highly recomend it. I also recomend that everyone should work in a busy restaurant busting suds (dishwashing) for at least a few weeks to round out their skillset.

[Arthur_Frain]

5. I'm six foot.

It's one reason I don't fly anymore.

[Hekate]

6. You should probably look up Deep Vein Thrombosis and airline travel. Arthritis and airline travel.

The disabled and airline travel. Tall people and airline travel. Children and airline travel.

This issue of non-reclining seats is an entirely manufactured problem — created by the airlines themselves. The airlines CHOOSE this configuration for no other reason than to make more money.

It’s not just agonizingly uncomfortable — it is unsafe. And what do we the passengers do? Take the bait and fight among ourselves.

[gay texan]

9. Bingo! N/t

[Croney]

11. I have a reason to wish the person in front of me would bring their seat back.

It moves my movie closer to me so I don't need my glasses. If it's a flight with no screen, then it's just annoying.

[Skittles]

13. it's too bad people don't use common sense / empathy

if there's a large person in the seat behind me, I never recline

kids and smaller folk - maybe

[MotownPgh]

18. People don't care about anyone but

themselves and their personal comfort. So I guess decisions have to be made. My tennis knees kill me flying. I take several standing breaks and haven't flown long distance (over 6 hours) in awhile. My knees are my problem.

[budkin]

15. Absolutely

BYE BYE

[Hekate]

16. Make the airline CEOs happy, people: fight among yourselves & pay no attention to how THEY are screwing you

SMDH

[Jirel]

17. No.

They do enough. There need be no conflict, except from people who engage in a variety of other rude behaviors as well. You don’t think it matters? That’s nice. You can forego it.

[Ms. Toad]

24. Nope.

I have a decades long back injury. The reclining seat makes the flight tolerable. The last time I did not have a reclining seat, I was in agony for 2-4 weeks. I can barely tolerate sitting upright for takeoff and landing, and since that intolerable flight have received a medical accommodation of a reclinable seat on every flight

If the ability to recline is removed, it will likely mean the end of flying for me.

[bif]

27. And how about boarding from the back to the front?

Plus how about a rear door for exiting?

[Xolodno]

32. Airlines have no incentive to make your trip more comfortable.

Letting your seat recline is just a selling point. When I was on a British Airways flight, when I got my meal, they had to tell the person in front of me to stop reclining as it was impossible to put the tray down. Good thing they didn't store anything under their seat, I would have been kicking it out.

It's in the airlines interest to put as many butts into seats you can possibly fit into the plane. That means less flights to a destination, less pay for additional pilots, less pay for stewards, less maintenance on planes, less gate employee's, etc. They pass some of that savings to you with lower fare's while the Exec's get a larger bonus.

They have no intention to fix the problems, why should they? As long as Joe and Jane Consumer are still willing to travel this way, nothing is going to change. On short flights, I'm willing to put up with the inconvenience. Long flights, I seriously look at the price difference for upgraded seats and shop around. What amazes me, how some will take a longer flight just to save twenty bucks. Two hours vs. a stop over that results in a four hour trip? Sometimes the best fare, isn't the best fare.