Originally Posted by
BRUpax
Alsacienne, I think that Sobelena's point was in answer to the post by scr1:
No, I don't think that a 12 year old is a good idea next to an emergency exit, however, I honestly don't think that parents deliberately book a child as an adult. The point is that from the age of 12 they are charged adult fares!
Several years ago now we were flying back from Dalaman on an airline that has since been banned from the EU and we were asked to move from the exit row and swap with the passengers in the row behind. That started a little discussion as I had the window seat by the exit and knew what to do, then my (at the time) 10 year old son and then my Wife on one side. On the other side was (only two seats from memory) my 16 year old son who was about 6ft tall and a regular rugby playing 2nd row player along with a guy that needed a stick to get along the cabin, was about 80 years old) and sat at the exit. Now in the even of an emergency, my money would have been on my son getting that exit open and out the exit before the 80 year old worked out what was happening. Instead the lovely crew insisted that myself and my two sons switched with a group of ever so slightly intoxicated ladies in the row behind. Great!!!! This was made even worse by the fact that even with my short legs, I could not actually get my knees in behind the seat in front due to the VERY short pitch between the seats.
Needless to say, it wasn't a great loss to European aviation when they were banned from EU airspace.