Reason Why Passenger in 'Very Safe' Seat Asks to Be Moved Shocks Internet

Exit row seats on a plane are often the most coveted due to the extra leg room. But one woman in an exit row on a recent flight has left others baffled after asking to be moved to another seat.

According to another passenger on the plane, the woman allegedly felt she wasn't "strong enough" for exit row seating and asked to be moved, saying she "doesn't want survivor's guilt."

Lara M., a passenger seated just a few rows behind the woman, told Newsweek that the incident took place on an October 27 Southwest Airlines flight from San Francisco International Airport to Hollywood Burbank Airport.

Exit row seats don't just come with extra space—they also come with some safety responsibilities that passengers must be able to carry out in an emergency.

According to M., after being informed by a flight attendant about the duties of sitting in an exit, the woman said she wasn't sure "she was strong enough" to open the exit door. She later asked where the safest seat on the plane was.

M., who declined to reveal her last name, is a 27-year-old machine learning engineer based in San Francisco. She shared a video about the incident from aboard the plane via her TikTok account @lalaralin. The clip has had 4.9 million views since it was first posted.

According to the video, the woman was told that the row she was in was "very safe" and later asked to be moved "because she doesn't want survivor's guilt."

In a reply to a comment from another TikToker asking if the woman was okay, the poster said "she seemed fine!"

The Responsibilities of Exit Row Seating

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration says that airlines communicate information about exit seating to passengers in various forms, starting from the point of ticket purchase and continuing through the boarding process "to ensure that passengers understand the restrictions and responsibilities associated with exit seating."

The responsibilities of exit row seating are also outlined at the carriers' websites, such as on the Southwest Airline website.

The FAA notes: "Prior to obtaining verification of the passengers' capability and willingness to perform emergency safety functions, flight attendants perform a verbal assessment of their suitability based on a casual conversation with the passengers in the exit seats."

The flight attendant will also do a visual assessment, noting any flyers who may have difficulty moving down the aisle to their seats or putting carry-on bags in the overhead bin, as such passengers "could have a difficult time assessing conditions outside the exit, opening or securing an exit, locating and operating an inflation slide lanyard, or performing other duties described on the safety information card," the federal aviation body explains.

The flight attendant briefs exit seat passengers on the "requirements, criteria and functions" associated with exit seating and "requests that the passengers ask to be reseated if they cannot perform exit row safety functions or do not wish to do so," the FAA says.

'Most Shocking Thing I've Heard on an Airplane'

A message overlaid on the viral clip shared by M. says: "I'm on a flight and the woman in front of me asked the flight attendant what the safest place to sit on a plane is and the flight attendant said 'well, the row you're in is very safe.' Then the woman asked if she could move because she doesn't want survivor's guilt."

M. told Newsweek: "I think it may have been her first time flying. She sat in the exit row and at first, she didn't really know what that was."

According to the poster, the flight attendant explained the duties that come with sitting in an exit row to the woman and that she would have to open the exit door.

M. noted that the woman "said something about not knowing if she was strong enough to be able to open it, but the flight attendant assured her that she was.

"Then she asked about the safest seat on the plane part...I was just baffled by it...," the poster said.

Several TikTok users were shocked by the woman's reaction in the latest viral clip.

User @harps..luv000 said "I'M SORRY WHAT" and the original poster replied "Most shocking thing I've heard on an airplane."

User hanna said: "That's not the reaction I expected."

User Angelina wrote: "that wasn't the outcome I expected it would be but it's a reasonable one."

Others could relate the woman, while some said her reaction would make them nervous.

Auntie Kris wrote: "That's something I would say."

User @bbnurse95 said: "honestly she's me I'm also terrified of flying and convinced we're all gonna die every time."

Mad As679 noted: "I would be terrified because why she asking like something bad is going to happen."

TexasNatNat said: "I'd be so nervous. What does she know that I don't?"

Nicole Lynn agreed, saying "That would unnerve me so much..."

Newsweek has contacted Southwest Airlines for comment via email.

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