The debate over reclining seats during air travel is a hot topic that has stirred up controversy among passengers. Recently, a well-known furniture company renowned for their cozy reclining chairs, La-Z-Boy, has stepped into the fray with a unique campaign to #BanReclining in flights. Their humorous video, released in late November 2024, humorously urges people to save their reclining for home and abstain during flights.

Although La-Z-Boy's initiative is essentially a clever marketing strategy to promote their iconic reclining chairs, it also includes a petition where individuals can show their support for preventing seat reclining on airplanes. In just one month, the petition has garnered an impressive 186,000 signatures, as reported by Pilotcenter.net News. Nelly Martinez Garza, Senior Director of Consumer Marketing at La-Z-Boy, stated, “Our #BanReclining campaign is simple: Just because you can recline doesn’t mean you always should.”

As airline seats shrink and passengers expand, the dispute over reclining rights persists. In a recent incident on a Cathay Pacific flight from Hong Kong to London in September 2024, a dispute erupted over a reclining chair, leading to verbal abuse and seat shaking. The involved couple was subsequently banned from flying with the airline. Complementing this, a survey by Harris Poll in October 2024 revealed that 41% of Americans would approve of a ban on reclining seats during domestic flights, particularly among older individuals and the younger age group of 18-35.

One could argue that reclining seats are a source of annoyance for many flyers, especially on short-haul flights. A study by the data intelligence company Morning Consult identified reclining chairs as one of the top 10 pet peeves of travelers, with 30% expressing they were "very bothered" and an additional 32% feeling "somewhat bothered." Interestingly, a survey by YouGov in 2023 demonstrated varying attitudes towards seat reclining across different regions, with European passengers most irritated by the practice and UAE flyers the least.

While reclining seats can potentially disrupt a flight, passengers are reminded to consider the comfort of their fellow travelers before taking advantage of this feature. Etiquette coaches advise passengers to be considerate of others' personal space when reclining their seats. Notably, passengers flying on low-cost airlines like Ryanair, Spirit, and Allegiant may not be as affected by this issue, as many of these carriers have chosen to install non-reclining seats to increase cabin capacity and avoid conflicts over reclining.