Middle seat selectors... Why do you do it?

[trippin_the_rift]

Since being Platinum One, in my few flights behind the curtain - I've not once had a shadow. Like, it's never existed at any point from booking to boarding.

I tend to grab prime position (4A, 23B), and yet on every flight someone decides "oh, 4B looks like a good seat", or... "23A looks good". Last week I was shockingly allocated 10C on a 737.. checked expertflyer and noticed 10B appeared to be a shadow along with 10-15 others on the plane. I get onboard and some Silver FF is in 10B, while there are completely unallocated rows in 8 and 9. I have a flight today where someone decided to jump in the middle seat (srsly wtf?) and it's forced me to move elsewhere.

Seriously - who selects a middle seat? Why do you do it? It ruins the journey for yourself and those next to you. There are PLENTY OF BETTER SEATS!!!

Edit Note to QF: Where's my shadow?

 

[medhead]

I can understand taking 4B/E on a 73H, but 10B! That's outta control.

 

[oz_mark]

How do you know that they 'selected' 10B, and it wasn't just assigned to them?

 

[moa999]

If 4B/4E or the equiv 3B/3E on DJ are available I will take them in preference to my normal window.
Apart from that never.

 

[TheInsider]

Alot of people don't select their seats on the kiosk and just continue and take what ever is given to them.
Pays to select your seat after booking!

 

[medhead]

If 4B/4E or the equiv 3B/3E on DJ are available I will take them in preference to my normal window.
Apart from that never.

I used to do that. But I don't anymore. Having an aisle is worth more to me than having the leg room. I also noticed that often when I was in 4B/E that some of 5,6 B/E would be empty. So I might have been better off sticking in row 5,6 aisle seats.

 

[trippin_the_rift]

How do you know that they 'selected' 10B, and it wasn't just assigned to them?

Why are staff assigning them prime seats next to their most valuable FF'ers?
Problem++;

 

[oz_mark]

Why are staff assigning them prime seats next to their most valuable FF'ers?
Problem++;

Is 10B prime seat? It may just have been the theoretical seat that Altea came up with.

 

[trippin_the_rift]

A prime seat is anything next to a platinum or higher. What makes it a premium seat is WHO is in the area...

I had written a more in depth reply of how to fix this, but since this is a public forum, and I've already given QF at least five opportunities to take advantage of this - I'm not going to bother.

 

[zachary.august]

A close friend of mine is WP1 and he says that when he travels DOM Y he always has a shadow ie 4A occupied 4B blocked 4C occupied. I think my CL status negates my WP1 but in DOM Y I have had 4B,4C blocked (checked expertflyer):shock:

 

[munitalP]

My usual situation when a CL is next to me is a free centre seat. I would say 35-40% of my flights I have an empty seat next to me in Y.

 

[boylero]

I hate middle seats and so do my wingmen when I get one ;-)

 

[muppet]

I never learn my lesson either. Have chosen 4D and 4F for a MEL -AKL flight.
It's wide open ATM - but I know some muppet will choose 4E and leave 5/6 CD all free as happened on a recent CBR MEL flight. In fact on that flight 5 CDE and 6 BCD were free and he was in 4B - what a muppet. But still - I should know better (although QF could leave it blocked when its wide open like that).

 

[mella2007]

A friend of mine always selects the middle seat. She said she feels safer when she is enclosed by other people around her. I've told her she's nuts

 

[RickyT84]

I tend to grab prime position (4A, 23B), and yet on every flight someone decides "oh, 4B looks like a good seat", or... "23A looks good". Last week I was shockingly allocated 10C on a 737.. checked expertflyer and noticed 10B appeared to be a shadow along with 10-15 others on the plane. I get onboard and some Silver FF is in 10B, while there are completely unallocated rows in 8 and 9. I have a flight today where someone decided to jump in the middle seat (srsly wtf?) and it's forced me to move elsewhere.

Seat 23A is fair game though (heck I would select this myself if it is available when I forgot to do my T-80 seat allocation) but I agree that selecting 4B/4E is kinda stupid especially if there are plenty of seats still available in the cabin.

 

[greenfish]

Seriously - who selects a middle seat? Why do you do it? It ruins the journey for yourself and those next to you. There are PLENTY OF BETTER SEATS!!!

Have you tried striking up a conversation with the middle seat snaffler? Probably the best way to find out for sure.

I've ended up in the middle seat a couple of times due to flight changes and no aisle seats left...... never had it happen where there were aisle seats elsewhere on the plane.

 

[Pleb Status]

It has been my experience on more than one occasion where a WP decides to take 4B/4E when the plane is not that full and it appears a shadow has been cast over those sitting in the window and aisle.

I like the legroom in row 4 as well but I would take another row with an empty middle seat any day over a middle row 4 seat.

 

[richie9x]

My theory is a lot of the time 4B and 4E are filled manually. I have come to that conclusion from talking with people who end up in these seats. The next gen check in system seems to do a good job of keeping them free. However check in and service desk staff rightly or wrongly seem to be quite happy to fill them even when there are window or aisle seats available near the front. This mainly seems to be passengers on international connections, passengers on connections that orginated from small airports without self check in, passengers who missed a flight/connection or asked to be moved on to an earlier flight.

 

[trippin_the_rift]

Like a member here pointed out to me today... it's likely staff who are doing someone a favour by giving them a seat with more legroom - but not realising they are adding another nail in the coffin of QFF for those high status members.

 

[mannej]

If you are dead set wanting the middle seat free, why don't you buy yourself a comfort seat?