14-hour international flight. I specifically paid $150 extra for an exit-row window seat months ago because I'm 6’2” and need the legroom.
I get to my row. A woman is sitting in my seat with a toddler on her lap.
I show her my boarding pass: "Hey, I think you're in my seat."
She looks up. "I need to sit next to my husband. He’s in the middle seat across the aisle. You can just take his middle seat."
I looked at his seat. Row 42. Stuck between two strangers.
I said: "No thank you. I paid extra for this legroom."
She snapped: "Are you seriously going to separate a mother and child over a window? Have some compassion."
I didn't argue.
I called the flight attendant over. Showed my receipt and pass.
The flight attendant told the woman she had to move back to her assigned ticketed seat.
The woman threw a massive tantrum, took 10 minutes to move her bags, and spent the first hour of the flight glaring at me across the aisle while her husband muttered insults.
Halfway through, the guy next to me says I should have just given it up to "keep the peace."
No. Your husband could have paid $150 to sit next to you. My height isn't your poor planning