A video about a couple on a plane who declined a chance to be seated together has gone viral on TikTok.
The clip was shared by Miami-based Sydney Miller (@sydmiller_), who frequently travels to New York City for work. She owns a fitness platform called HOUSEWORK, which is "a workout method I created seven years ago, which combines Pilates and cardio sequences all choreographed to the beat of the music," she told Newsweek.
The video, which has amassed 2.5 million views since it was shared on October 13, shows Miller seated on a plane in October. Miller was traveling home from New York to Miami on an American Airlines flight where she was seated next to "a young couple in their thirties I would guess," she said.
She recalled "When I sat down, they asked if I would be interested in switching to the window seat, which I didn't want. I usually prefer the aisle so I can get in and out to the bathroom easily.
"I declined, but said I would take the aisle if they wanted to be together. And they declined that and said they would stay in their current seats, which I thought was interesting," she noted.
Neither the woman nor the couple were out of line in terms of plane etiquette, according to a June 2023 survey of 1,000 plane passengers in the U.S. and Canada.
The survey, conducted on behalf of the travel booking website Kayak, found that passengers believe "you are allowed to ask to switch seats if you ask politely," because 54 percent of travelers "have a soft spot for common courtesy."
Passengers also said you are also allowed to ask to sit next to a family member, partner or friend because 58 percent of travelers "have a grain of empathy," the survey found.
Travelers are bound to face seat swapping dilemmas as planes get packed, with air travel showing no signs of slowing down in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era.
The load factor—the percentage of available seats an airline sells on its flights—reached a record high of 86.2 percent in August, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) reported in October.
Travel is forecast to also reach "record highs" in 2024, with global tourism spending projected to reach U.S. $2 trillion, according to Euromonitor International, the market research firm.
'We Are Strangers on a Plane'
A note overlaid on the viral video says "Ended up in middle seat surrounded by a couple who didn't want to switch to be next to each other bc [because] neither wanted the middle and honestly I respect it."
Miller told Newsweek that the couple "remained quiet throughout the entire flight—they really didn't interact until we landed."
The poster booked her seat at the last minute and only a middle seat was available, the poster said, noting "normally I would never sit in a middle seat but it was all that was left."
A caption shared with the post says "I kinda get it and respect putting themselves first what but what do you guys think."
Viewers on TikTok praised the couple's response to the woman in the viral clip, with several sharing their own experiences.
Nishiboheme said "I respect it so long as the couple aren't talking over me or constantly passing things between each other."
Melissa Moody said "We do this too. He wants the window, I want the isle. We are strangers on a plane."
User beecacaj noted "Yah I'll see him when i get off the plane. I'm not taking the middle seat."
Asha said "LOL. I've been that couple! I sleep through flights and we pack our own carry on bags so we don't really talk. Might as well be more comfy."
"My husband falls asleep within ten minutes of takeoff. I don't mind sitting alone," said
tatochip16.
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