The great debate: In the event you recline your seat while on a plane?

This week, we debate the proper to recline on planes, The National's weekend editor Katy Gillett says the capability to tilt the seat back is there for a reason, while assistant features editor Sophie Prideaux, as a long-legged person, argues why we have to all stay upright.

Katy Gillett: The other day, a video of a guy punching a fellow passenger’s seat when she thought we would recline went viral. Social media users were divided on who was simply in the right. One Twitter user wrote that reclining your seat when in economy was “literally the most selfish, inconsiderate thing a person can do. It literally ruins the travel connection with the individual sitting behind you”. I think that’s an overreaction.

Sophie Prideaux: Firstly, let me just say that punching someone’s seat is a complete overreaction and extremely aggressive. But I really do buy into the sentiment of that Twitter user. I’m not really a recliner and, as a long-legged person, I think it is frustrating when people sitting in front of me are.

Perhaps they should segregate the cabins into reclining and non-reclining sides, then we'd all know where we stand (or sit)

KG: Perhaps as a fairly short-legged person I’m coming from a host to privilege here, but I totally disagree. The seats recline, then we can recline. Your day the aviation experts stop making it possible for us to lay back just a little may be the day I stop pushing that button.

SP: Reclining could make your flight more comfortable, but what about the individual sitting behind you? Long or short-legged, reclining your seat cuts down an already limited level of comfort for someone else and I don’t think that’s fair. If every person on the plane reclined the same amount, then fine, but they should have designed the cabin that way.

KG: In my own defence, I tend to have a look at who’s behind me before reclining. Obviously if the seat is empty, I’ll go all out, but if someone will there be I would only recline halfway (unless it’s a child, because they’re small). I personally don’t mind it when the person in the front reclines, because my seatback screen is adjustable - so the level of brightness isn't affected - and so long as I’m reclined i quickly have the same amount of space I did so when we started.

SP: Exactly, it works when you are reclined, too. However, not every person does and someone, somewhere will probably lose out. I've previously been forced to sit with my knees wedged against the chair before me for eight hours and had to consume my meal with very little space. Even if I reclined, it wouldn’t have changed my leg room situation. Perhaps I am too polite, but I would be a hypocrite to recline considering that I hate it when it happens to me.

KG: But that’s the idea. If the person in front of you reclines, you then recline and the person behind you reclines, you then will all have the same space you all started off with. It’s simply a bit more diagonally proportioned. If you loosen up your legs, I don’t really observe how the angle influences you.

SP: Sitting together with your knees folded is a far more natural position, specifically for long periods of time, and it’s very difficult to achieve that when the seat in front of you is tilted back - especially if you are tall.

KG: Perhaps I am not polite enough, but I think we must take all of the small comforts we are able to get while on the plane. I definitely think everyone should push their seats back up during mealtimes. We are able to all also check how uncomfortable the individual behind us is to begin with, before reclining. Even better, we could even inquire further if indeed they mind if we recline. Would you try doing that the next time you fly? If indeed they say they don’t mind, you then don’t have to feel guilty and you are convenient. It’s a win-win.

SP: Yes, that’s a fair point. And if someone asked me, I'd of course say yes, despite the fact that I know it’s likely to make my very own journey more uncomfortable. Perhaps I need to get over my reclining reservation, but I've always found flying to be significantly less stressful if everybody, myself included, stays upright.

KG: Flying is normally uncomfortable and infuriating (unless you’re relaxing in Etihad business class, like the woman pictured below), but thankfully the seat recline isn't something I get particularly irritated by. What annoys me is people not following simple rules, such as turning off their phones or staying put in their seat during take-off and landing. I don’t enjoy it when anyone runs around or when they encroach on my space with their bag or behind while I’m within an aisle seat. It’d be great if everyone covered their mouths and noses if they coughed or sneezed. Also, if you’re a stranger and so are sitting next if you ask me on a flight, let’s not talk to the other person until we only have about 20 minutes left in the journey.

SP: See, we all have our travelling peeves and it looks as if your list is much longer than mine. I’m happy for a chat with another passenger, or even to hop up and down to let people out for the toilet or to stretch their legs, as long as I have space for mine when I’m seated.

KG: So that it all just boils right down to the actual fact that you’re too polite and I’m too grumpy, then, ha! Or, airlines should just give us more space in the first place and we wouldn’t have this air of tension every time we board a flight.

SP: Wouldn’t that be great? Perhaps they should segregate the cabins into reclining and non-reclining sides, then we'd all know where we stand (or sit).