How to avoid sitting in the middle seat on your next flight

TV
screens, installed on board of an Airbus A350 XWB flight-test
aircraft.
Reuters/Fabian
Bimmer

• The middle seat is the worst seat on a plane. It’s
  cramped and inconvenient.
• You can avoid the middle seat by booking your flight
  early or avoiding basic economy tickets.
• You also decrease the likelihood of getting a middle
  seat by carefully selecting the type of aircraft you
  fly.
• The Boeing 737 and the Airbus A320 fly with six-seats per
  row with two middle seats per row. Aircraft like the Airbus
  A220 has only one middle seat per row while the Embraer E190-E2 has no middle
  seats. 

The middle seat — especially in coach — is one of the most dreaded and common
scenarios in flying.

It’s cramped, it’s inconvenient, and it’s often the only seat
available on flights — particularly if you book at the last
minute.

In the past, an easy way to ensure you get an aisle or window
seat is to book your flight early.

However, airlines have figured out that
their customers have an almost universal hatred for the middle
seat.

Not only that, airlines have come to realize that many are
actually willing to pay to avoid
it.

For instance, most Basic Economy tickets allow
passengers to select their seats only after checking in — at
which point the window and aisle seats are likely to already be
gone. (Note: Alaska Airlines does allow
early seat selection for its basic economy fares.)

This means passengers will have to buy more expensive main cabin
tickets in order to select seats at the time of booking.

On the other hand, Southwest — which doesn’t assign seats —
charges passengers as much as $50 for the
privilege of boarding early.

A Southwest Boeing 737.
LM
Otero/AP

Although it is impossible to completely rule out the possibility
of ending up in the middle seat, there are several ways to avoid
it without having to pony up extra dough.

First, in spite of the revenue generating fees airlines have come
up with, booking early is still the best way to ensure you don’t
end up sandwiched in the middle. In addition to an increased
likelihood of getting an aisle or window seats, booking early
will also net you cheaper ticket prices.

According to a 2014 study by Expedia, the
average price of tickets are its lowest 57 days ahead of the
flight. A 2016 study, also conducted by
Expedia, shows that those buying tickets more than three
weeks in advance can expect to see savings of as much as 30%.

In fact, savings from cheaper tickets prices may allow you to
“splurge” on the fees for aisle or window seats.

Inside a Norwegian Air Boeing 737.
Boeing

The right plane makes all the difference

Second, the plane used to operate the flight makes a big
difference as well. These days, the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320
along with their many derivatives dominate the
short-to-medium-range market. Both aircraft are generally
configured with six-abreast seating or six seats per row with two
sections of three seats divided by a single aisle. This results
in two middle seats per row.

However, there are ways to reduce the likelihood of ending up in
the middle seat by taking flights using planes with fewer or no
middle seats on board.

Instead of the 737 and A320, look for flights operated by Airbus
A220 (Bombardier C Series), Sukhoi SuperJet 100, McDonnell
Douglas MD80 series, MD90, and Boeing 717-200 jets. These
aircraft feature five-abreast seating in a 3-2 configuration —
meaning there is only one middle seat per row.

In the US, the McDonnell Douglas aircraft are mostly operated by
Delta, American, and Allegiant. However, all three carriers are
working to quickly replace their MD fleets with new 737 and
A320-family planes. With that said, Delta and Hawaiian’s Boeing
717-200s are expected to remain in service well into the next
decade. 

A
Delta Air Lines MD.

Flickr/Aero
Icarus

The Bombardier C-Series entered service with SWISS in July 2016.
Over the next few years, the Canadian jetliner will become a more
common sight in airports around the world with Delta, JetBlue,
Air Canada, Air Baltic, SWISS, and Korean Air as its most
well-known operators. 

The Sukhoi Superjet is mainly operated by Russsian carriers.
However, Mexico’s Interjet does have around 20 in its fleet.

Another option is to take flights operated for the major airlines
by regional carriers under names such as Delta Connection, United
Express, and American Eagle. These flights are generally operated
using regional jets or turboprop airliners.

Even though regional aircraft are smaller and more cramped, they
are generally set up in a 2-2 configuration which means there are
no middle seats. Here, look for aircraft such as the Bombardier
CRJ, the Q400 turboprop as well as the Embraer ERJ.

A
SWISS Airbus A220-100.
Swiss

The Embraer E170 and E190 series is a good ‘tweener option.
Seating anywhere between 70 to 100 passengers, the E-Jet operates
both as a regional airliner and with mainline carriers such as
American, Air Canada, Polish LOT, and JetBlue. Like the smaller
regional jets, the E-Jet is usually set up in a 2-2 configuration
with no middle seats. Embraer recently launched the second
generation E-Jet called the E2 so expect this to be an option for
many years to come. 

Unfortunately for many flyers around the world, the
narrow-body airliner fleet in Asia and Europe is a virtual
duopoly split between the 737 and the A320-family. As a result,
apart from encountering the odd C-Series, E-Jet or 717,
passengers will have to fly on a regional jet to avoid
six-abreast seating. 

JetBlue
Embraer E-Jet takes off at Logan International Airport in
Boston
AP

Choosing a flight based on the airplane also works on long-haul
international flights. These flights are commonly operated by
wide-body, twin-aisle airliners such as the Boeing 777, 787, and
Airbus A350 as well as the larger Boeing 747 jumbos and the
Airbus A380 superjumbos.

These large jets are generally set up with nine or even
10-abreast seating in a 3-3-3 or 3-4-3 configuration with either
three or four middle seats per row in coach.

For flyers looking to avoid middle seats on long-haul flights,
there are several types of aircraft they should hone in on.

First, Boeing’s venerable twin-engine 767 wide-body is still
around and can commonly be found with a 2-3-2 configuration. That
means there’s only one middle seat per row in coach. It should be
noted, however, that many of the 767s are pushing 20 years of age
and like the MD80/90, airlines such as American, Delta, and
United are in the process of replacing them with newer
models. 

The
cabin of a next generation Airbus A330neo.
Airbus

With the 767 on the way out, look for flights operated by the
twin-engine Airbus A330 and its discontinued four-engined
sibling, the A340. These airliners generally feature
eight-abreast seating in a 2-4-2 configuration. As a result, the
A330/A340 generally fly with only two middle seats per row in
coach.

Fortunately, for flyers, the A330 one of the most popular
wide-body airliners in the world with about 1,500 examples in
operation and is still rolling off Airbus production lines. In
fact, the company is currently selling a next-generation
version called the A330neo.