Between single passengers who refuse to give up their seats for children and a boyfriend who refuses to pay extra to sit next to his partner, summer airfare can be said to have caused a lot of controversy this year.
The most recent travel story was captured by TikToker Gamze Esen, when she posted about her boyfriend choosing not to choose a seat on their flight for an extra fee. On July 21, Esen captured a video of her boyfriend standing in the line waiting to board a private plane. Her on-screen caption reads: “All couples are sitting together, but your man doesn’t think paying the extra 10 euros to pick a seat next to you isn’t worth it.”
10 euros will be worth 11.08 US dollars.
Esen’s post, which has since received more than 4.6 million views on the app, has sparked outrage on the internet about airlines charging fees to assign seats on planes. Nearly 4,400 users who commented agree that they don’t want to spend money to convert either.
“As a rule, I don’t pay extra for a seat, the flight is expensive enough,” admitted one viewer, while another wrote: “Think about it. For those 10 euros, you can drink five cups of coffee during your vacation. I’ve already thought about it.”
“That’s perfectly fine for me. We have a whole vacation to spend together,” one candid added, while a follower declared: “Good bro. Be responsible with your money. Time apart will be good for you.
Meanwhile, other TikTok users consider Esen’s boyfriend’s decision a “red flag”. One comment that received more than 25,000 likes argued that spending the extra money could keep them from wasting precious time with a stranger.
“No, I am paying 10€. If the plane crashes, I don’t want to spend my last minutes with a stranger,” they wrote.
independence Contacted Esen for comment.
The conversation around additional fees for airline seats is nothing new. President Joe Biden commented on the issue when he delivered his State of the Union address in February, exposing airlines that make families pay more to sit next to each other.
And it’s not like the seat conversion price is just a few dollars. Based on a report by IdeaWorks and CarTrawlerThe estimated revenue of eight U.S. airlines is estimated at $4.2 billion per year.
Thankfully, after President Biden’s speech, Frontier Airlines announced that every passenger under the age of 14 will now be seated next to at least one parent for free. Tourists Conde Nast records the same change with United Airlines, only they don’t guarantee a child will sit with the family. Instead, they will provide clear options for families who want to sit together.
Esen’s video comes after several posts went viral on TikTok in which passengers were praised for refusing to exchange first-class tickets for kids who wanted to sit with their parents. Recently, Dr Sabra (@lifewithdrsabra) candidly explained how she sat in the seat she paid for, even when a flight attendant asked her to swap seats with a child.
Viewers agree that Dr. Sabra is not responsible for ensuring the child can sit with their parent, but rather, it is the responsibility of both the parent and the airline.
