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The reason you may be forced to take a middle seat on the plane – even when there are empty rows

Longtime Southwest travelers will remember the old days (also known as four moons ago) when passengers could pick any available seat on the plane. Now Southwest works like almost every other airline: You pay, or gamble, for a seat assignment, and you’re assigned a seat at check-in.

This is where some flyers have problems. People who choose not to pay for a specific seat assignment may find themselves sitting in a full row in the back seat of the plane, even if there are plenty of available seats. Sometimes when passengers try to move to the less crowded part of the plane, they are told it is not allowed.

“I understand, there are reserved seats now, but we can’t move to empty seats, can we?” reported a Redditor. “I’m on my fourth flight today and I’m exhausted. I’m right in the middle seat of the row, but half the plane is empty. I moved seats and the flight attendant forced me to move back. WTF?”

another one The last incident went viralIt shows an airline employee telling a passenger that they must stay in their assigned seat or be kicked off the flight. In some cases, flight attendants He said passengers could not move due to weight imbalance.

This type of conflict may be new for Southwest, but it has been playing out behind the scenes for other airlines since the advent of commercial flying. Edgar Mora, former pilot and chief aviation instructor at San Jose State University, said every airline and every pilot pays close attention to weight and balance before takeoff.

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“It’s checked by dispatchers, it’s checked by loadmasters, it’s checked by pilots. So most of the time it’s triple checked,” Mora said.

Where people sit on the plane is an important factor in balancing the plane’s center of gravity, as is the location of the plane’s cargo. If the weight is not properly balanced, the aircraft may not take off safely.

Even small changes in weight distribution (such as a group of people switching seats) can have a noticeable effect.

“We can sense any movement inside the cabin as the flight attendant drives around in a small car,” Mora said. “We even joke about it [in the cockpit] Like, ‘Oh, someone’s going to the bathroom.'”

The plane’s autopilot technology usually compensates for these changes in weight distribution mid-flight, so as a passenger you don’t feel a thing.

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Mora said that in terms of safety and fuel efficiency, it is better for the center of gravity to be at the back of the plane, so you use premium seats in the front and denser economy seats in the back.

It’s not uncommon for airlines to assign seats with weight balance in mind, and we often don’t even realize it’s happening. “As passengers, we don’t notice this because the plane is usually stable when full.”

He assumed this probably happened naturally under Southwest’s old open seating policy. If a flight were only two-thirds full, passengers would likely be spread out fairly evenly, naturally balancing the flight.

While the importance of center of gravity is common knowledge for flight crews, it may be new information for fliers, especially Southwest travelers accustomed to more freedom.

“Basically, I see both customers and flight attendants starting to get used to this new normal,” he said. Sean CudahySenior aviation reporter for The Points Guy.

Cudahy and Mora suggested checking with the flight attendant before moving seats to avoid any problems.

“Weight and balance are critical during takeoff, so we ask Customers to remain in their assigned seats prior to takeoff,” a Southwest spokesperson said in a statement to Nexstar.

The spokesperson said disputes between passengers and airline staff over seat assignments are not common, and “We continue to improve our policies to best serve our customers.”

Nexstar’s Michael Bartiromo contributed to this report.

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