I’m flying calmly, window seat, thinking — an hour and a half flight, everything will be fine. A woman is sitting in front of me, a bit heavy, in a colorful sweater. The plane had just taken off when she, without looking, suddenly throws her seat back.
I’m like — oh! — because my knees got crushed by the seat.
“Excuse me,” I say politely, leaning forward, “could you raise your seat a little? I’m really cramped.”
She didn’t even turn her head:
“It’s more comfortable for me this way.”
I take a couple of seconds to process the answer, try to move my legs — no chance. I decide I won’t just leave it like that. I press the call button for the flight attendant.
A girl in uniform comes up:
“How can I help?”
“You see,” I explain, “the passenger in front of me reclined her seat so much that my legs are pinned. I can’t even move.”
The flight attendant politely leans toward the woman:
“Sorry, but perhaps you could raise your seat a bit so your neighbor is more comfortable?”
The woman turns around with a look like I personally ruined her vacation:
“My back hurts. I paid for my seat, which means I can sit however I want.”
The flight attendant is clearly holding herself back from rolling her eyes:
“We ask everyone to consider the comfort of all passengers.”
In response, the woman slowly, with a demonstrative sigh, raises her seat a couple of centimeters.
“Happy now?” she throws over her shoulder.
“Well, my legs haven’t grown back yet, but it’s better already, thank you,” I smile.
She snorted, and the flight attendant gave me a barely noticeable wink and walked away.
About thirty minutes after the first “attack,” I was almost relaxed. And then — bam! — her seat flies back again. My knees are under pressure again.
“Seriously?” I say out loud, but she doesn’t even move.
At that moment I realized — diplomacy no longer works. I decided to take action and get back at this rude, arrogant woman. Here’s what I did.
Continuation in the first comment
I took a deep breath, slowly leaned forward and… gently lowered my tray table.
Not with a bang, not with force — just slowly, carefully… all the way down.
And then magic happened: her seat jerked forward sharply, as if someone punched her in the back. She jolted, turned around angrily:
— What do you think you’re doing?!
I shrugged:
— Sorry… it’s just more comfortable for me this way.
She opened her mouth to snap back, but just then the plane hit a bit of turbulence. Her cup of coffee, sitting proudly on her tray table, slid — and half of it spilled right onto her stomach.
She squealed, jumped up, shaking her blouse and muttering curses under her breath.
At that moment, the same flight attendant walked up.
— Is everything alright? — she asked with an innocent smile.
The woman pointed at me, furious:
— He did it! He lowered his tray table on purpose and I—
The flight attendant looked at me, then at her. Then calmly said:
— Ma’am, your tray table must be upright during turbulence. That’s a safety rule. If you left it down — the responsibility is entirely yours.
The woman’s jaw dropped, but no sound came out.
The flight attendant continued:
— And speaking of safety… you reclined your seat again without warning. That also violates safety rules. You must keep your seat in the upright position for the rest of the flight.
The woman turned pale with rage:
— But I—
— For the rest of the flight, — the attendant repeated firmly. — It will be comfortable and safe for everyone.
The attendant stood over her with such confidence that the woman didn’t dare argue.
With slow, trembling fingers, she raised her seat… all the way up.
And that’s how she sat for the remaining hour — straight, silent, and motionless.
I stretched my legs, poured myself some water, and finally relaxed for the first time during the flight.
As we exited the plane, the flight attendant gave me a barely noticeable smile:
— Some lessons in manners can only be learned this way.
I smiled back — diplomacy doesn’t always win,
but respect never loses.
