Plane seat swap: ‘Indian man asked me to…’: US technician says passenger escorted off plane amid seat swap drama
A US technician said a passenger approached him and asked him to swap seats on an international flight, sparking a debate over flying etiquette after a post went viral on social media.Saran Shanmugam, an Indian-American and director of the Information Technology Division of the Biophysical Society, was traveling to India on a Middle East Airlines flight. To stay comfortable on the long flight, he reserved an aisle seat in advance. He said an Indian man traveling with him asked Shanmugam to switch to an aisle seat so the man’s brother, who was sitting in the middle seat in the other row, could sit with him.Shanmugam rejected the request. “I just said no. He approached a male flight attendant and started making demands. The flight attendant took him off the plane, and the whole family looked on. After a few minutes, he was allowed in. Never again heard him peek or glance in my direction. I thought the airline staff guaranteed him a lifetime commitment,” Shanmugam wrote in a post on X. The passenger’s persistence reportedly prompted the crew to briefly intervene. According to Shanmugam, the man was briefly escorted off the plane before being allowed to reboard. After returning, the passenger made no further attempts to contact Shanmugam about exchanging seats.The incident quickly went viral, with social media users debating passengers’ rights, seating etiquette and how airlines handle on-board disputes. Many commenters supported Shanmugam in keeping his reserved seat, while others debated whether it was polite to accommodate other passengers during the flight.
Social media reaction:
- I also always reserve my seat in advance because I prefer the aisle. One time I had a different mother who wanted to sit with her young children. I sincerely think that people need to learn to book seats in advance to avoid any hassle.
- I’ve encountered this many times. My answer has always been that I would trade the aisle seat for another aisle seat.
- Reasonable requests are okay (this is not). I’ve always been at both ends of the spectrum. I’ve been offered seats a few times and once Indigo mentioned giving me a seat.
- Reminiscing about the days when common Indians could still ride trains, the aunties asked to go back to the lower bunk. Or asking some stingy kid if he could share the bottom bunk with me because the family didn’t buy a ticket for the kid.
