Skyscanner has conducted a poll to answer that elusive question that has perplexed philosophers and travelers and traveling philosophers for ages: what is the perfect seat on an airplane? Well, wonder no more. The answer is 6A.
More than 1000 passengers completed the poll and, not surprisingly, picked the first six rows as the most preferred due to noise, speed of exiting, and better access to food and drinks.
There were some surprises however. Sixty-two per cent of the respondents said they would prefer an even seat. The most intriguing for me was the one percent of passengers who said that they would choose a middle seat over a window or an aisle seat. I am not sure I want to sit next to the person who wants the middle seat.
This is the biggest news since Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy revealed that the “Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything” as 42.
Of course, since no standard coach seat comes with leg room anymore or ability to open a laptop, perfection is a relative term.
Source: Telegraph
Window seat, exit row, preferably over the wing. But it doesn’t matter. No flying for me since TSA can radiate me by taking nude pictures and/or grope me. I’m afraid I’d end up in jail for assault if they touched me where they hadn’t outta.
@Luna: I agree that flying can be pretty miserable, but airlines are a commercial organization trying to make a profit, right? If laws were passed to make flying comfortable, we would all be paying first-class rates. For some people, that pay for their own flights, that would mean a lot MORE misery than a few uncomfortable hours in a plane: Less ability to visit their family and loved ones, more restricted vacations, an inability to attend special events like weddings or funerals or graduations.
I’m fine with the tradeoff as it stands, it lets more people get where they want to be, and if you want to be comfortable, you can pay more.
Now is not the turn of the century, where going from A to B was a struggle ! Cramming people is NOT healthy !!! And that pi…. Me off ! When the seats were designed people were not that obese, instead of accommodating to people’s height and width of today, they make the space smaller ! I am a very frequent flyer and have seen plenty of aircrafts around the World with greater respect to economy passengers. Safety for health and comfort ?? Safety is a granted thing of today and so should decent seats be !
Luna said:
“I don’t know how the airlines get away with this torture?”
And let me guess: The fact that they are the safest mode of transport on the planet pisses you off, too.
Now the puzzle should’nt be WHERE the
Best seat would be ! They should ALL be
Best seats ! I don’t know how the airlines
Get away with this torture ? Where is the
Human protection law. I’ve never known a
Country with so many laws for everything else
but the poor passengers health and comfort.
Probably the least favorable row is the one I prefer, the last row. There’s nobody kicking the back of my seat or thrashing about with the tray table. I’ve found the service to be quite good in the back of the plane also.
What next pricing based on distance from 6A?
Now if you want to know the SAFEST seat, see this study.
Basically, be on the aisle, within five rows of an emergency exit. For us coach travelers, that means close to the wing or in the very back. A window seat instead of an aisle seat reduces your chance of survival by 7%.
Its ” funny ” how people refer and compare themselves to animals, and accepts to be flown around the way they are being transported ! and pay for it too ! ever heard of protesting, boycutting and confrontations with re presentatives of places like IATA ? Its a disgracefull subject, that only thrieves, because its being allowed to.
Hello puzzling…. How are ya…. Haven’t seen you in awhile….m
The perfect seat depends on the plane: http://www.seatguru.com
I know few frequent travelers who prefer window to aisle seats. As Nal mentions, exit rows tend to have more legroom, although sometimes the width is more constrained if the tray table is in the armrest, and if there are multiple exit rows often the more forward row will not recline.
Of the domestic airlines in coach, JetBlue has the most generous standard seating and charges low fees for extra-legroom seats positioned near exits and front of the plane.
I actually prefer the aisle, I have paid extra to get the aisle seat. I do not mind getting up, to let others in or out (but if I am not on the aisle, I always feel like I am imposing), I like being naturally first into the aisle when we land, I like being able to access the overhead bin or hit the head at whim, I like having the aisle to stretch an arm or a leg.
There is very little to see outside the window, IMO. Sight seeing from a mile up is mildly interesting but for the most part I do not find it produces very memorable moments. In fact on one flight where I had a good window for sight-seeing, I traded with two kids that wanted to see the Grand Canyon.
Nal,
There is always extra leg room in the emergency exit rows…… 6A…… Hmmmm……
Emergency exit row seating – if you can get it. Got it both ways on my last trip to Dulles.
@TalkinDog: No, dude, window is for exhausted road warrior who wants something to lean on while she sleeps. 6A is the window.
Nothing is worse than the dog crate. Except a dog crate on the roof of a Romney vehicle, preferably not an American Motors vintage under Georgie boys term. A good support dog should have his/her own aisle seat, preferrably in 6A with a good view of the foxes. If you were a humanoid in a prior life and now a support dog you still like a good view of the two legged foxes workin the aisle. More insights later.
The middle seaters are the fatsos. That is why it is prudent to get behind them in line when boarding. Folks in 6A want to see the stewardess walk by. Window is for schmucko. Over the wing is more balanced. Aisle seat over the wing is more fair and balanced. A fox going up and down the aisle makes that more fair and balanced.