Indigo says no to premium seats for fliers with kids

MUMBAI: Indigo Airlines, which caters to 4 out of 10 domestic passengers in India, has put a blanket ban on allotment of premium seats with large legroom to domestic

MUMBAI: Indigo Airlines, which caters to 4 out of 10 domestic passengers in India, has put a blanket ban on allotment of premium seats with large legroom to domestic fliers travelling with children. The airline said fliers with children (under 12 years) are banned from premium seats (rows 1-4 and 11-14), termed ‘quiet zones’. MUMBAI: Indigo Airlines has put a blanket ban on alloting large-leg-rooms premium seats to domestic fliers travelling with children.

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The airline, which caters to almost 4 out of 10 domestic passengers, said fliers with kids below 12 are banned in premium seats i.e rows 1-4 and 11-14 also described as ‘Quiet Zones’.

“The policy is discriminatory. It means that you cannot ask for more leg space while travelling with your children,” said Pune resident Anshuman Sinha.

“It’s clear that they do not want children to disturb fliers paying extra for these seats. But then why permit children in the nearby rows either?” he asked.

Sunetrika Mookherjee said on her Twitter feed that the airline had denied her seats on row 1 and 2 citing the same policy.

An Indigo spokesperson refused to comment, but the airline’s Twitter replies to passengers who were denied seats were clear. “In order to provide a hassle-free flying experience, rows 1-4 and 11-14 will serve as “Quiet Zones”. These seats will not be assigned to passengers below 12 years of age,” was the airline’s standard reply to fliers alleging discrimination.

“One can understand that the emergency exit row seats are denied to fliers with kids as a safety measure but this is tweaking the policy purely with the business interest of appeasing premium customers,” one industry expert told HT, requesting anonymity.