exit row posted in travel, nov 15, 2007
when i fly for work i like to sit on the exit row next to the window. with the exit row, the window is also a door. which is why it’s called the exit row: the window is also a door.
airliners generally only allow passengers to enter and exit the plane through one door behind the cockpit, but the same exit signs label that door as well as all the other doors. everybody knows that the other doors are only for emergencies, but they certainly don’t know it due to the signs.
there are additional exit signs on the exit row which tell you how to open the exit row doors. it shows 4 steps and lists the weight of the door. maybe it’s just me but when i see that in front of me and next to me, i start thinking “i could do that.” and really i should be able to do that — if i didn’t think i could then i shouldn’t be sitting on the exit row. the problem is that i have an urge to actually prove that i can do it. i’m not sure if i want to prove it to myself or the other people on the plane, but i decided not to tell the guy sitting next to me that i was tempted (this was during takeoff).
i also wondered if since the seat by the window is lower to the ground (presumably this is so it’s less in the way when people are trying to get through the door) that it also has less cushioning than the other seats. on my next flight the window seat was already taken so i had the aisle seat instead, and judging by the decreased soreness of my butt, the exit row window seats do have less padding. i’m also not sure if the exit row window seat cushion actually works as a flotation device, but i couldn’t find a convenient way to test that one out.
another nice thing about the exit row is that not everyone on the plane is allowed to sit there. this often means that while the other rows are full, the exit row might not be. unfortunately, not even this can protect against having a large enough passenger sitting next to me that less than the full width of my seat is actually available to me.
