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Home » Travel » How To Guarantee A Blocked Middle Seat When You Fly
Travel

How To Guarantee A Blocked Middle Seat When You Fly

Matthew Klint Posted onAugust 7, 2020November 14, 2023 13 Comments

a woman sitting in an airplane

Some airlines guarantee they will continue to block middle seats while others make no promises. But you don’t have to rely on an airline to ensure you have a blocked middle seat: whatever airline you fly, no matter the flight, you can secure an open seat next to you by buying a second seat.

A Foolproof Blocked Middle Seat Guarantee: How To Always Have An Open Seat Next To You…

As common sense as it sounds, that seems to be lost on a lot of people. CNBC, for example, published a story today entitled, 63% of U.S. consumers are willing to pay more to have seats blocked—here are the airline policies on this. The poll comes from American Express and I do not doubt it. But I have good news for those 63% of consumers: you don’t have to leave it to chance or fly an extra connection on Delta, JetBlue, or Southwest.

As long as you buy a day or so in advance, you can ensure you always have an open seat next to you by buying it. Let’s first, however, look at what airline seat blocking polices are.

Which Airlines Are Blocking Seats?

  • Alaska Airlines – makes an effort to block seats, but does not guarantee it
  • Allegiant Airlines – will sell flights to capacity
  • American Airlines – will sell flights to capacity
  • Delta Air Lines – middle seats blocked through September 30, 2020
  • Frontier Airlines – will sell flights to capacity
  • Hawaiian Airlines – makes an effort to block seats, but does not guarantee it
  • JetBlue – middle seats blocked through October 15, 2020
  • Southwest Airlines – open seating, but flights only booked to 2/3 capacity, so no change to sit next to a stranger through October 31, 2020
  • Spirit Airlines – will sell flights to capacity
  • United Airlines – will sell flights to capacity

Now, back to the topic at hand. Unless you are buying at the very last minute on one of the rare flights that are full, you can buy and immediately reserve two adjacent seats at once. Call the “passenger” in the second seat EXTRA/SEAT. Sadly, you won’t be able to earn miles on that ticket.

I write this because the aforementioned poll says passengers are willing to pay more to have seat blocked. If you are looking for a cheaper option, then perhaps you should check out Delta, JetBlue, or Southwest which may be a tad pricier but won’t require you to buy two seats.

But here’s one more hint. We read complaints or see pictures of the occasional full flight on social media, but those flights tend to make headlines because they are so rare. It’s a dreary time for the airline industry and U.S. airlines are operating at load factors themselves that virtually guarantee you a middle seat.

Feel free to buy the extra seat for peace of mind, but a recent United trip that included four hub-to-hub flights demonstrated how demand continues to suffer. There was no guaranteed middle seat blocking, but no one had a stranger next to them.

CONCLUSION

Yes, you really can buy an extra seat..or even the whole row. In that sense, you always have an option to social distance on an airplane if you care to.

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About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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13 Comments

  1. James Reply
    August 7, 2020 at 3:57 pm

    Not true. Many reports of passengers buying an extra seat and not getting it. The reported ones have to do with big customers.

    • Christian Reply
      August 7, 2020 at 4:46 pm

      What does “many reports” mean? Got some verifiable specifics? Otherwise it’s like saying that your best friend’s cousin’s roommate’s uncle had something happen once – purely anecdotal and almost impossible to verify.

  2. Ryan Costantin Reply
    August 7, 2020 at 3:57 pm

    Purchasing only the middle seat won’t get you 6 feet of separation. You’d need to buy the aisle seat and the window and middle seats behind you as well.

  3. Jeff Reply
    August 7, 2020 at 4:10 pm

    On United you will get base award miles. You will also get the baggage allowance for 2 passengers

    “If you buy a second seat on United or United Express®, you’re eligible to earn award miles equal to the number of base miles for the flight. Members aren’t entitled to Premier® qualifying earnings and associated Premier benefits on the extra ticket purchased. ”

    “Checked bag allowances are determined by the number of seats purchased. When two seats are purchased for one customer, the checked bag allowance is doubled.”

    • Tennen Reply
      August 8, 2020 at 7:10 pm

      @Matthew, you should update your post to include this info. AFAIK, Alaska also has a similar policy – you get award miles and checked bag allowance for the extra seat. You can even use your companion cert.

  4. Jerry Reply
    August 7, 2020 at 5:12 pm

    @Matthew, this is great advice for those seeking it and you laid it out well. I do have two questions though.

    1. Doesn’t the contract of carriage state that seat assignments are never guaranteed?

    2. In a situation where the flight is overbooked wouldn’t Extra/Seat be immediately IDB’D?

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      August 7, 2020 at 5:40 pm

      Jerry, you are correct on #1. That said, the chances are slim and in those cases you can jump onto the next flight. Not sure about #2. May depend upon a status. Good questions, but likely very low-risk events especially now.

  5. Stuart Reply
    August 8, 2020 at 1:29 am

    I still don’t get how American and United missed the boat on this. With flights averaging around 30%-40% (and September looking dismal) the few flights that are full are hardly a trade off for the extra 10% loads you would get on the majority of flights by the people who will book the empty middle airline first. At the minimum you could say, “Middle seats blocked on all flights excluding the following…” and list the few markets that might be filling planes. How have the number crunchers missed this?

    Really, at the end of the day you have nothing to lose. And you most likely will eke out higher overall loads over the entire system.

    • Pete Reply
      August 8, 2020 at 7:52 am

      Perhaps in the short-term, given the preset airline loyalties, geographical and schedule limitations, the number of people that truly can pick the “empty middle” airline isn’t that high. Delta’s recent losses seem to suggest that.
      Furthermore, when Delta does decide to reopen middle seats, what’s the threshold? 60%, 70%? When there’s a vaccine? Not sure there is an ideal answer financially.

      • Stuart Reply
        August 8, 2020 at 8:33 am

        Valid points. I guess the answer is easy. What was the overall load percentages for each of the Big Four the past month? With that the winning formula is easily revealed. I don’t know where that info is released but I am sure many others do.

  6. Jennifer Ward Reply
    September 16, 2020 at 7:14 pm

    Very disappointed in companies like American that are filling planes to capacity. Its disgusting.

    • CarlRichetelle Reply
      September 23, 2020 at 10:50 pm

      I have been flying back and forth from Connecticut to Florida on Spirit, Jet Blue and South West since May 2020 all flights have been filled to capacity with the middle seats blocked. They arr blocked until October I believe. People are flying again

  7. Laura Reply
    November 10, 2020 at 1:45 am

    We have been flying Southwest between Chicago and FLL for months. We have flights booked through Jan 2021. When I learned that they would be filling middle seats effective 12/1/2020, I immediately called and asked to purchase an extra seat. After being transferred from manager to manager, I was emphatically told that I am absolutely not permitted to purchase an extra seat due to Covid. I inquired as to what circumstance would I be permitted to purchase a second seat? They told me that if I was very overweight I could purchase an extra seat, however if I claim that I am overweight but I am not, they will fill the extra seat that I paid for with another customer. They told me that if I am traveling with a large dog I can purchase an extra seat. I travel with a 15lb dog. They told me that my dog is not considered large enough for them to allow me to purchase a seat for him. I explained that I have asthma and it is risky for me to sit so close to a stranger and that I would happily provide medical records confirming this – their response: don’t fly. I fully understand that they need to sell out full flights to stay in business, and I was pleading to let me give them more money to do that, but I was denied regardless how logical my request was. I obtained a refund from them for my future flights and purchased first class tickets (where there are only 2 seats next to each other) – on a competitor’s airline. While you claim that it is possible to purchase an extra seat on many airlines, I called all airlines that fly non-stop between Chicago and South Florida and none of them would permit me to purchase an extra seat due to concern of Covid. Seems senseless since it would be a win for the airlines and fellow passengers.

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