Elderly woman offers stranger $100 to switch seats on flight — his response leads to wholesome ending

While seat-swapping debates often center around entitled requests, one passenger recently had a different kind of exchange that left him both surprised and amused. Reddit user u/bald_head_scallywag recounted a moment from his recent flight from Boston to Atlanta. He was seated in first class on a 75S configuration with lay-flat seats. As he approached his assigned aisle seat (1C), he noticed an elderly woman struggling to place her bag in the overhead compartment. Offering help, he soon realized she was seated right next to him in 1D.

Immediately after settling in, the woman made an unexpected request. "She immediately said she'd pay me $100 to swap seats because she feels claustrophobic in the window seats in this particular seat configuration," the user wrote. Although he preferred aisle seats, the passenger agreed to switch. "I told her that I'd gladly switch for free as long as she wouldn't complain about letting me out if need be," he said. While he declined the offer of money, the woman insisted she wanted to do something nice in return. "We chatted for the rest of boarding about our jobs and family, but I thought the payment thing had been settled," wrote the man.

However, the moment they landed in Atlanta, the woman once again pressed to give him the money. He "tried to refuse again, but she told me to take it and give it to my kids but to explain to them how being nice to others can lead to something nice in return." The user further said, "I eventually relented and took her money, but I probably won't tell my kids that because then they'll expect me to pay them anytime they do something nice." The lighthearted and wholesome story resonated with many readers. u/CantaloupeCamper said, "If someone insists multiple times about something like that, I’ll just do it."

u/Spare-Security-1629 jokingly suggested, "Just get their contact info and wait until you've fallen on hard times and call them and say, 'About that $100 you offered 6 years ago...'" u/PrizeRecognition2537 commented, "Thanks I needed to read something positive today! You made my day." u/colbiekellay pointed out, "'Then they’ll expect me to pay them anytime they do something nice' made me giggle." Reflecting on the situation, the user shared that this was a first-time experience for them despite being a frequent flyer. "In all honesty, I wasn’t thrilled about it because I like being able to get up without disturbing anyone, but she just seemed like such a kind person so I decided to do it,” he told Boredpanda.

"I typically fly 1-3 round-trips per month, but I haven’t really had to deal with seat swapping and seat stealing too much. I think the best approach is for people to stay in their assigned seat until they can discuss it with their fellow passengers," he explained. The man also noted that proper seat-swapping etiquette matters. "Sitting down in the wrong seat and making yourself comfortable under the assumption that someone will switch is bad form. The person asking should also approach the situation knowing they may be told no and that it’s ok. If you’re asking someone to switch to a worse seat, you also need to be prepared to sweeten the pot somehow," remarked the man about how to settle seat-swapping issues.