Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links below. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
JT Genter and his wife Katie are travel writers. They live a nomadic life traveling around the world and have done so for several years. They keep a running log of their flights on X and yesterday reported on an odd situation in Turkish Airlines Business Class. Apparently, self-upgrading on Turkish Airlines can work (at least partially). A pair of travelers took two seats in the forward cabin upon boarding. Cabin crew noticed the discrepancy and initially attempted to remove the pair to get them to their assigned seats. They refused and were allowed to stay up front, but with a catch.
The incident unfolded on flight TK1006 from Skopje International Airport (SKP) to Istanbul Airport (IST). The hop is just 372 miles and Turkish Airlines serves meals on the flight (which is around 90 minutes in length). The offending passengers reportedly did not with the crew’s instructions. Rather than escalating the situation further or creating a scene, the decision was made to let them remain in the Business Class seats for the flight. But, that was all they got.
While legitimate Business Class passengers received Turkish Airlines’ full premium meal service, which looks impressive given the short flight, the self-upgraded passengers were excluded. Cabin crew reportedly refused to serve them food entirely and created a clear line between those who paid for the seats (with cash or miles) and those who did not.
The crew did the right thing in refusing them service. They really should have been taken off of the aircraft in handcuffs, but the episode raises interesting questions about onboard enforcement, crew discretion, and how airlines balance policy with practicality in the moment. Turkish Airlines may not officially endorse self-upgrading, but this case suggests that in certain circumstances, staying seated might be easier than standing firm (even if it means flying Business Class hungry).
Anthony’s Take: I know that I would be annoyed if I had been on this flight. It’s theft. There is no other term to describe what happened. I get that the crew wanted the flight out on time, but they should have been removed.
(Featured Image Credit: JT Genter via X.)
User Generated Content Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat encourages constructive discussions, comments, and questions. Responses are not provided by or commissioned by any bank advertisers. These responses have not been reviewed, approved, or endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the responsibility of the bank advertiser to respond to comments.
Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
1 comment
It’s theft, but they are not stealing from you, so you are not out anything. If TK wants to handle it the way they did, that’s their business.
You may dislike this situation because you paid for your BC seat and the seat jumpers did not and you think that’s not fair. But guess what? Life ain’t fair.