Man ends up stuck between family with baby on plane after dad refuses to swap seats

‘He stuck his headphones in, ate an entire pack of Haribo and didn’t talk to her for the entire two hour flight,’ tweets passenger

A man was left baffled when he found himself sitting between a couple with a baby on a plane - because the father refused to swap seats to be next to his partner and child.

Sam Neve, a Lego Group employee, says he located his middle seat, only to find that a couple were seated either side of him, with a baby on the woman’s lap.

He claims he offered to swap with the father, but the other man preferred not to move.

Mr Neve tweeted: “Just boarded a flight and I’m sat with a couple and their baby, but the husband refused to give up his aisle seat so I’m now just… in the middle of them?”

The tweet, which has already received 142 replies, was posted on Thursday 10 November.

Mr Neve expanded on the man’s behaviour: “He stuck his headphones in, ate an entire pack of Haribo and didn’t talk to her for the entire two hour flight.”

Some followers were tickled by the father’s decision to sit away from his child, while others argued there could be another explanation for the man’s behaviour.

“Maybe that’s why he booked the aisle seat in the first place, perhaps he wanted a couple of hours to eat his gummy bears in peace. No law saying he should sit next to his partner, Maybe it wasn’t even his partner, who knows?” wrote one user.

“Maybe he has a type of claustrophobia/confined spaces problem. It does exist and can cause panic attacks, you shouldn’t necessarily assume he’s just being awkward!” came another theory.

However, not everyone was a fan of the stranger’s parenting style.

“Jeez. He must be fun for her to live with,” wrote one woman.

“Staggering that no one considers what is most comfortable for the child is to have both parents sharing the care on a flight... If you are a father it’s not about your preference for an aisle seat, it’s about what is best for your family,” added another.

Many people commented that the couple were likely hoping the middle seat in their row would be vacant so they could have the whole row for the family to spread out.

“It’s a strategy used by couples with babies in the hope the middle seat won’t be booked, sneaky!”

Meanwhile, some related to the couple’s independent approach to travelling.

“My BF and I book an aisle and a window if we can’t get a double as that’s what we both prefer,” wrote one woman.

“He sticks his headphones on immediately and zones out so we barely speak. It really confuses anyone in the middle when I suddenly thwack him on the head to tell him it’s mealtime.”

Earlier this week a Reddit post accusing a passenger of “manspreading” on a flight sparked a debate about good etiquette when travelling.

Elsewhere, a video of a passenger reclining their seat on a flight reignited the age-old debate about whether it’s reasonable or rude to tilt your seat back while in the air.