Airplane passengers fear “rear” seats
By Ko Dong-hwan
Many airplane passengers are found to fear rear seats.
After Asiana airplane Boeing 777’s crash at the San Francisco International Airport on July 7, it was confirmed that the number of passengers who insist on buying tickets for front seats are on the rise.
Travel agencies nowadays receive calls from an average of two to three customers a day who request front seats.
The new fad put staffs at the agencies in a difficult position because they need to explain to them that those who purchased airline tickets through travel agencies cannot take front seats.
The agencies purchase from airliners only “G-class” tickets, designated for group discounts, for different seat blocks. The seats reserved by the tickets are mostly located behind row 37, so customers with the G-class tickets are not offered front seats as they wish.
A travel agency staff said, “Many people aren’t aware of our system that customers who purchase group discount tickets through travel agencies aren’t allotted with front seats,”emphasizing that travelers with group discount tickets have no choice but to take rear seats.
Airlines also said that while young folks usually use the Internet to book tickets with their preferable seating options, older customers, not so comfy with the Internet, tend to call them and request front seats.
An airliner associate, however, said that although such fuss over front seats is hard to dismiss, it is just a temporary concern that will only last for a short period of time.