A flight passenger is taking a unique stance on seat squatters by encouraging others to test their luck in hopes of avoiding travelers who rob seats.
In the "r/unitedairlines" forum on Reddit, one user posted a screenshot of a barely-booked flight.
"The seat squatters can't ruin your flight if you do it to yourself," the post was captioned.
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The accompanying photo shows the user selecting a middle seat, hinting that a flyer may be less likely to encounter a seat squatter if they secure a less desirable seat on a plane.
"If seat map shows the row is empty, I'll book the window and to prevent a seat squatter, sit in the middle while everybody else boards," one person commented.
"Booking the windows seat and [a]isle seat, and leaving the middle seat free. Idea is that nobody will pick the middle seat when checking in," another user wrote.
"LOL I was once on a flight where my husband was on the window and I got the aisle and the guy offered to switch with one of us. I was like "nah, I'll see him when I land," another person said.
One Reddit user defined a seat squatter as "someone who sits in your seat and tries to send you to their, pretty much always, worse seat. They don't ask. They just take."
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"I play the window/aisle game when I travel with my wife. No one ever says no to a window/aisle from middle. However, we don't care," another person commented.
Gary Leff, a Texas-based travel industry expert and author of the blog "View From the Wing," told Fox News Digital that most of the time, seat squatting is accidental.
"When it's intentional seat squatting…that's only ever to get a more desirable seat. I don't think I've seen anyone choose to try to take someone else's middle seat," Leff said.
"It's certainly true that picking an undesirable seat will make it less likely you'll deal with seat squatters, you will then wind up in... an undesirable seat," he added.
Leff said that since it is unlikely to encounter an airplane squatter, selecting an undesirable seat may not be worth the trade-off.
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The Reddit user's flight appeared to not be entirely booked, and there may have been a possibility for him or her to switch to an open seat on either side.
"So you are a seat squatter then," one user wrote.
"If you are lucky with the flight not being fully booked you will have a higher chance of a free chair between the two of you," said another.
"My wife and I do the same," another person added.
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Leff said that airlines have changed policies regarding switching seats when flights are not fully booked.
"You used to be able to take any open seat in your cabin once the doors closed. You might move closer to the front, grab an aisle seat or head for an empty row in the back so you could stretch out," he said.
Leff said he still recommends seeking assistance from flight crew if you encounter a seat squatter.
"You're generally entitled to the assigned seat on your boarding pass."
