According to the complaints, certain Boeing 737, Boeing 757, and Airbus A321 planes have seats where windows would typically be, but they are missing due to the placement of air conditioning ducts, electrical conduits, or other components. Passengers said Delta and United do not flag these seats during the booking process, unlike rivals such as Alaska Airlines and American Airlines, even when charging tens or occasionally hundreds of dollars for them.
The lawsuits say people buy window seats for several reasons including to address fear of flying or motion sickness, keep a child occupied, get extra light or just watch the world go by.
"Had plaintiffs and the class members known that the seats they were purchasing were windowless, they would not have selected them — much less have paid extra," the United complaint said. The Delta complaint contained similar language.
Ancillary revenue from seat selection, baggage fees, cabin upgrades, airport lounges and other services help carriers generate more cash when they fly while keeping base fares lower. Carter Greenbaum, a lawyer whose firm filed the two lawsuits, said the ability to find information from third party websites doesn't excuse Delta's and United's conduct.
"A company can't misrepresent the nature of the products it sells and then rely on third party reviews to say a customer should have known that it was lying," he said in an email.
I have experienced this issue myself. Qantas Boeing 737's seat 9A and 9F do not have windows and many years ago, sadly, I found out the hard way. I asked if I could change seats, and I was told the plane was completely full. People booking flights can use websites such as SeatGuru to find pluses and minuses of specific seats, including those lacking windows.
I also believe 9A on Virgin Australia Boeing 737-800 aircraft don't have a window.
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