The Internet Has Strong Feelings Over Airline Passenger Refusing to Swap Seats So a Mom & Teen Could Sit Together

This passenger’s viral TikTok has sparked a fierce debate: when should you give up your assigned seat on a plane so a family can all sit together?

Anyone who’s ever stepped foot in an airport knows the stress of traveling by air—and the entire experience gets significantly more stressful when you’re traveling with your family (not to mention when your family includes small children!). But how much leeway should passengers give to families to help them have a smoother trip? That’s the question at the center of a fierce TikTok debate, sparked by one woman’s viral video.

TikTokker Surya Garg posted a video saying she had met “the absolute worst person” to sit next to on a flight, and then went on to share the story.

@surya_garg

for real like was I wrong #nyc #airplane #airplaneseats

♬ original sound – Surya Garg

“I feel like this has been a big debate on TikTok recently which is like, if you’re sitting in a seat and someone with a family comes up to you and says, ‘hey, will you switch?’ — do you switch or not?” she says in her video.

Garg added that in most cases, especially if the family has small kids, she’s happy to swap. In this case, though, the other passenger had just one person with her: her teenage son. Garg described him as “16 or 17 years old” and over six feet tall.

“This was not her child. He’s her kid, but like, he’s an adult,” she added.

What’s worse is that the woman was asking Garg to give up her window seat for a middle seat—several rows back. That would be a tough sell under any circumstances, but considering the “child” in question looked to be a pretty self-sufficient, older teen, Garg refused. She said the other passenger then spent the rest of the flight cursing at her. Yikes.

Garg’s video blew up, and most of the comments were firmly on her side.

“Honestly, you’re not wrong. I think the kid has to be 12 or younger in order for me to move. Otherwise don’t even ask,” one viewer wrote.

Another added, “Bestie I wouldn’t even give up my window seat for a middle for a mom w a toddler.”

It’s a tricky situation. Many commenters called out the mom for her failure to plan ahead, but depending on the airline and how you booked your tickets, it isn’t always possible to reserve seats together—or it may cost more for families to sit together, depending on the age of the kid(s) in question. Plus, not everyone flies enough to understand the steps they need to take to ensure they get seated together as a family.

At the end of the day, Garg was perfectly within her rights to stay in her assigned seat—no one is ever required to move for another passenger, no matter the situation. But the debate about when (and if) passengers should swap seats to help each other out is sure to rage on.