A social media post sparked a debate about on-board etiquette after a US-based technician said he was approached by a passenger who asked him to swap seats on an international flight.Saran Shanmugam, an Indian American and director of information technology at the Biophysical Society, was traveling to India on a Middle Eastern airline. He reserved an aisle seat in advance for comfort during the long flight. He said one of the passengers, an Indian man, asked Shanmugam to switch his aisle seat so that the man’s brother, sitting in the middle seat in another row, could sit together.Shanmugam refused the request. “I just said no. He approached a steward and started demanding.
The flight attendant took him off the plane while his entire family watched. Minutes later, he was allowed in. I never heard a sound or a look from him again. “I assumed that the airline staff had secured a lifetime commitment from him,” Shanmugam wrote in a post on X.
The passenger’s insistence reportedly led to a brief intervention by the cabin crew. According to Shanmugam, the man was escorted off the plane for a short period before being allowed to return.
After returning, the passenger made no further attempt to communicate with Shanmugam regarding the seat exchange.The incident quickly went viral, with social media users discussing passenger rights, seating etiquette, and how airlines handle disputes on board. Many commenters supported Shanmugam retaining his pre-booked seat, while others debated whether accommodating his fellow passengers was a polite practice during flights.
Social media reactions:
- I also always reserve my seat in advance because I prefer the aisle. I once swapped with a mother who wanted to sit with her young children. I honestly feel that people need to learn how to reserve their seats in advance to avoid any hassles.
- I’ve encountered this many times. My response was always that I would trade my aisle seat for another aisle seat period.
- Reasonable requests are ok (this was not). I’ve been on both sides of this. I was given my seat several times and as soon as Indigo mentioned it was my request.
- Way back when the aunts asked to go back to the lower platform when ordinary Indians were still able to travel on trains. Or I ask if a snotty child can share the lower berth with me because the family hasn’t purchased a ticket for the child.