Imagine this: You hear flight staff announce that the boarding door has closed as you notice several empty airplane seats in the rows near you. Naturally, you wonder if it’s okay to move to an empty seat to give yourself and fellow passengers more room and make for a more comfortable flight (I know I’ve wondered this).
As it turns out, however, you can’t just switch to an empty airplane seat. If a flight attendant has ever told you no, it may be because there are real safety and policy reasons behind keeping passengers in their assigned spots. Daniel Bubb, former airline pilot and Professor-In-Residence at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, shares the real reasons airlines might not let you switch to available seats. Bubb specializes in teaching courses in commercial aviation and airport history.
Why you can’t just move seats
According to Bubb, the primary reason airlines may decline your request to move to an empty seat is for safety and weight distribution purposes. “Passenger weight can substantially affect an airplane’s weight and balance, especially on small planes like regional jets or turbo propeller-driven passenger planes. Many passengers don’t know this, but when they book their flights, their seat request is entered into another computer system that calculates the airplane’s weight and balance. This is done for safety reasons, such as ensuring that the plane can take off, burn fuel evenly, and land,” he says.
In most cases, Bubb says flight dispatch will calculate the weight and balance through a computer system based on the aircraft’s weight that includes passengers, fuel, luggage, and cargo. “If the flight dispatch doesn’t do it, the First Officer will do the calculations. The Captain will review the paperwork before approving it,” he says.
Fare differences and seat fees
Beyond safety and weight distribution, many airlines won’t allow you to move to empty seats due to fare differences and seat fees.
“Airlines are trying to maximize profit,” says Bubb.” “Imagine that you paid full fare for a Business/First Class seat, and someone who did not pay full fare occupied another seat in that section. That passenger could upset you, especially if you are a frequent traveler who pays full fare for premium seats. Unless there is a very unusual situation, such as a medical event, flight attendants will not let you sit in those seats. The difference in fare between an Economy fare and a First class fare could be thousands of dollars.”
“When passengers book their tickets, they will see opportunities to select their seats and upgrade their seats. The rules will appear in small print. If an unusual situation or family members want to sit together, the airline might not enforce the rules, provided that those passengers are sitting in the same section (Economy/Business/or First Class). The majority of the time, however, airlines enforce the rules.”
When you can move to an empty seat
While you can’t just move to an empty airplane seat on your own, Bubb says it’s never a bad idea to ask a flight attendant or a customer service representative to see what they can do.
“If the aircraft’s weight and balance are not within safe parameters, the flight attendants will move the passengers. The Captain also might take on less fuel and leave some luggage behind. Flight Attendants will know when to let someone switch seats if the Captain requests and approves it, and if not, as long as the person who is moving is seated in the same section (Economy, Business/First Class) that they purchased,” he says.
