Plane Passenger Says Person in Middle Seat Reached Over Them to Close Window Shade: 'No Flying Etiquette'

Mar. 15, 2025

Photo:Getty

Getty

One traveler is asking Reddit whether or not he overreacted to what he deemed a fellow passenger’s very rude behavior.

The “avid window seat traveler" vented about a recent interaction with a fellow passenger onReddit, explaining that on a flight from New York to Denver, he was traveling with his cat in a Comfort+ window seat. But as soon as the flight took off, “the middle seat passenger, without even acknowledging me or asking me in any way or shape, reaches over and shuts the window closed.”

The poster notes he didn’t “have headphones on" so it would have been simple to speak to him, but instead the middle seat passenger “had to go over me very rudely to shut it closed" and then proceeded to take a nap.

“In all my years traveling, I have never had this happen to me,” confessed the user. “At most, other passengers would ask (rudely or nicely) to close the window if it was bright or if they felt uncomfortable.”

The user said he “would typically honor these requests," though he notes, he “feels as a window seat traveler, especially one that has paid and selected the seat specifically, it’s [his] choice whether to close or open the window. If they wanted to be in control of the window, they should’ve paid for the window seat!"

The user concluded the post with his swift response to the shade shutter in this scenario: “I reopened the window and he keeps looking over at me 😂.”

Stock image of a male passenger on a plane.Moment RF/Getty

Moment RF/Getty

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Several Reddit users agreed with the original poster.

“Yeah respect for personal space and common courtesy has gone out the window these days….👎. No pun intended! Middle seat d—- should have at least asked.”

Another user admitted that they too would have “reopened the window immediately.”

Thankfully things didn’t escalate beyond a silent tiff in this case, but what should a traveler do in a similar situation to handle a pushy fellow passenger civilly?

PEOPLE previously spoke with travel advisorNicole Campoy Jacksonof Fora Travel, who emphasized that alerting aflight attendant is the best option to help in any situationwhere two passengers can’t see eye to eye.

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“If you’re arguing over whether you can have it open for the next 20 minutes before the initial descent, for example, that would be helpful to know," Jackson said. “If you’re arguing over something like keeping it closed mid-flight to rest while someone else wants it open for photos, it can just help to have a trained, third-party person to negotiate and keep everyone happy.”

source: people.com