An American Airlines mystery confuses many passengers. Although this unusual happening was already experienced by other American travelers, the issue became viral after Ben Schlappig—a popular airline blogger—shared his first-hand experience.
An American Airlines plane prepares to land at the Miami International Airport on May 02, 2023, in Miami, Florida. American Airlines pilots voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike if the union’s negotiations with American Airlines’ management.
What Schlappig experienced was having an empty first-class seat next to his own. This is a mysterious incident since AA and other airlines tend to ensure that all first-class seats are occupied.
Some people, especially newbie travelers, might think that they can easily occupy empty seats on flights with few passengers. However, this isn't really the case since passengers who want to occupy empty seats need to ask flight attendants first.
Unlike lower-tier seats, first-class seats are usually occupied because of unlimited complimentary upgrades, which are offered to elite members.
This is why the empty first-class seat that Schlappig encounters baffles other American Airlines passengers.
American Airlines' Empty 1st-Class Seat Confuses Passengers
Ben Schlappig said that he encountered the unusual happening while flying via American Airlines first class from New York to Miami.
"I had the unthinkable luxury (well, at least on US airlines) of an empty seat next to me, though it came at the expense of someone else's upgrade," said Ben via his official blog post.
"This is the first time that I've personally witnessed something like this on American, so it's certainly an isolated incident," he added.
The airline blogger said that he couldn't recall if he already experienced seeing an empty first class on a mainline domestic AA airplane.
He clarified that he had already seen an empty first-class seat on a regional jet during an off-peak period. However, it is very rare to see one on a mainline domestic flight.
To answer other passengers' questions, Schlappig provided his theories regarding the empty first-class seat of American Airlines, as reported by TheStreet:
- The passenger simply just didn't show up.
- The first-class seat was left empty because of airline agents' laziness.
But, Ben said that the most possible explanation for the empty AA first-class seat could be the arrival time. He said that the flight was showing an on-time departure, but the arrival time was 18 minutes behind the original schedule.
He explained that AA must have been unable to wait for the passenger because there was pressure to get the flight out as soon as possible since there was an anticipated delay.
Other AA Passengers Share Speculations
American Airlines longest-serving flight attendant, Bette Nash, 81 years old, checks the passengers' seats for forgotten items before disembarking from her daily return flight to Boston at Ronald Reagan Washington Airport in Arlington, Virginia on December 19, 2017.
After learning about the mysterious experience of Ben Schlappig, other American Airlines passengers also shared their theories as to why the first-class seat was empty:
- The passenger offered the first-class seat upgrade needed two seats.
- The lucky traveler chosen for the first-class seat upgrade preferred staying beside their companions.
- Just like one of Ben's theories, other passengers think the first-class traveler just didn't show up.
These are just some of the speculations shared by AA passengers regarding the peculiar empty first-class seats. You can click here to see more.
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