General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Airplane Etiquette [View all]MineralMan
(146,288 posts)in their 40s or 50s. I'd have declined to move to a center seat in that case, as long as neither person had any obvious medical problems. If they had been in their late 60s or 70s or even older, I would have switched seats. Couples can sit apart for four hours, in my opinion, and giving up an aisle seat for a middle seat is a big deal, especially if the particular middle seat will be extra uncomfortable, due to the adjacent passengers.
I'm 73 years old. I book window seats in an exit row, whenever possible. My wife likes aisle seats. If we're booking a flight and get to choose seats, we don't mind sitting apart to get our seat preferences. It's not like we don't see and talk to each other every day. I would absolutely never ask anyone to give up his or her seat for me. Never.
I'm sure the man who asked you did so because he was uncomfortable in his assigned seat and thought he'd take a chance that you'd switch with him. You did, which is commendable, on the basis of etiquette. However, you didn't have any obligation to do that, and it would not have been rude to insist on keeping your assigned seat.
Four hours is not a huge amount of time. Most couples spend at least that much time away from each other every day. It's just not a big deal if you don't have some medical problem that requires someone's attention. I'd have said, "I'm sorry, but I'm not willing to trade this aisle seat for a middle seat on this flight." And that should have settled it.
On the other hand, if a child is involved or an elderly person who looks frail, I'd switch seats. In some cases, family members need to sit with each other for a number of valid reasons. But not for a 40s or 50s couple.