# Why is Row 6 on Aer Lingus always unavailable?



## TreeTiger (13 Oct 2009)

I'm planning a couple of flights with Aer Lingus and have been looking to see how heavily they are booked, and I noticed row 6 seats always show as unavailable/already booked.  So I looked up a few other flights around Europe and it's always exactly the same, row 6 is greyed out.
Is there any particular reason for this?


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## mathepac (13 Oct 2009)

What air-craft type? Working from a very fallible memory this may equate to the seats at first set of over-wing exits on certain aircraft and may be reserved for taller or less able bodied people or people with infants-in-arms as the seats are easier to get into and out of


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## frash (13 Oct 2009)

http://www.seatguru.com/airlines/Aer_Lingus/Aer_Lingus_Airbus_A330-200.php


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## z104 (13 Oct 2009)

You need to be able bodied and able to open the emergency exit Door. I think this is only available at the check in but could be wrong.


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## TreeTiger (13 Oct 2009)

mathepac said:


> What air-craft type?


A320 & A321 so far as I can see.



Niallers said:


> You need to be able bodied and able to open the emergency exit Door. I think this is only available at the check in but could be wrong.


Exit seats are at rows 12/13 on the A320 according to Aer Lingus' own seatmaps, and at rows 9/10 and row 24 on the A321, so well away from row 6.  These exit seats can be reserved when booking, for an extra €25 per passenger per flight, but it is made clear that the passenger must be able bodied.


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## annet (13 Oct 2009)

Never have any probs when booking in and selecting a seat in row six - my problem is that I can never seem to get a seat nearer the front door so I dont have to wait for people to shift from their seats and then we wont get to the time it takes some people to engage their brain and take their hand luggage from the overhead bins!


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## so-crates (14 Oct 2009)

If you wish to book seats in advance with Aer Lingus - as opposed to selecting when checking in - you pay a premium for rows 1-6 and the emergency exit rows further down (row numbers differ depending on whether you are on an A320 with a single set of doors in the middle or an A321 with two sets of doors front and back of the wing). These seats are always unavailable for selection at online check-in as they are still for sale as a pre-book. If you want to sit in them, and don't want to pay the premium generally the most likely way to get them is to turn up at the airport good and early, check in at a desk and request that they seat you at the front. Usually these seats are available except out of Heathrow as it gets quite a bit of through traffic from code shares.

Personally I prefer not to sit right at the front as the hand luggage space frequently has cabin crew luggage in it.


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## ilovepink (14 Oct 2009)

i work here and row 6 is not an exit and also not kept for ABP's, able bodied passengers.. the keep aside rows 1-6 because there is a charge for those. thats the only reason, if u show up early at check-in and there still free, feel free to ask for them no problem. hope this clears it up. alot of passengers seem to want to sit up front if there under pressure to get out ie, business meetings. especiallt this is the case on LHR flights as u arrive onto a jet way and the back door is not epen.. everyody disembarks from the front only.


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## mathepac (14 Oct 2009)

ilovepink said:


> i work here ...


Does Brendan know?


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## jhegarty (14 Oct 2009)

I checked a few random flights, and the op is correct. Row 6 blocked out on all of them.


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## TreeTiger (14 Oct 2009)

jhegarty said:


> I checked a few random flights, and the op is correct. Row 6 blocked out on all of them.


Thank you!  I was beginning to think I was going mad   As it happens I've booked row 7 on my flights at a cost of €5 each, but I could have booked exit rows (€25 per person per flight) or rows 1 - 5 for a tenner.  But I could not have booked row 6 on any flight for any money.


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## undo (14 Oct 2009)

I recently flew Aer Lingus to Germany and back. Both ways, there was a disabled passenger in a wheelchair. That passenger and the two people traveling with her got row 6. So my guess is, they are keeping this row reserved for special needs passengers. It is close to the front, making it easy to get in/out with a wheelchair but also far enough back that no "able-bodied" requirement applies.


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## jhegarty (14 Oct 2009)

undo said:


> I recently flew Aer Lingus to Germany and back. Both ways, there was a disabled passenger in a wheelchair. That passenger and the two people traveling with her got row 6. So my guess is, they are keeping this row reserved for special needs passengers. It is close to the front, making it easy to get in/out with a wheelchair but also far enough back that no "able-bodied" requirement applies.



Makes sense.


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## bamboozle (15 Oct 2009)

recently flew to portugal, on both legs i checked in on line and changed our seats to as close to front as possible.  both times we got row six, however the aer lingus planes to faro are the longer ones with 35/36 rows


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## undo (15 Oct 2009)

This would make sense. At the time check-in opens, they know whether any special needs passengers have booked or not. If not, row six is free for anyone to take.


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## z101 (15 Oct 2009)

I was told on a plane once that when a plane is not quiet full, row six is left empty as it is the best distribution of weight for fuel effeciency.


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## undo (15 Oct 2009)

I checked in for an Aer lingus flight earlier today - I am sitting in 6F .


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## macnas (15 Oct 2009)

Is your name  john o'donoghue?


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## undo (15 Oct 2009)

Nope. If there is a John O'Donoghue sitting in 6F, I hope it's on another flight. Otherwise, we will have to fight it out .


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## zippidydo (16 Oct 2009)

Just checked in online and got row 6, flight to Rome. cost nothing. Aer Lingus.


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## ilovepink (16 Oct 2009)

zippidydo u must have paid 3 euros each way per person. its not free to reserve seats


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## undo (17 Oct 2009)

He said "just checked in online and got row 6" - when you check in, you get a seat for free. And while most people miss it, you can actually choose the seat freely at that point, also for free.


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## annet (17 Oct 2009)

undo said:


> He said "just checked in online and got row 6" - when you check in, you get a seat for free. And while most people miss it, you can actually choose the seat freely at that point, also for free.


 
All the time I manage to get row six online when I check in online for LHR and return without any difficulty.... on return I then go to check-in and get row six shifted to nearer the door - so I can make a quick exit.  Use to purchase seat in advance until I copped on!


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## SlugBreath (14 Feb 2010)

I have booked flights with Aer Lingus but I have not chosen any seats. Can I log on to the website now and choose my seats and pay the fee or do I have to wait until just before my flight to do this? I am not travelling until April.


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## undo (15 Feb 2010)

You can log in anytime and select seats at a fee. But why? Just wait until you checking in online and choose your seat for free. Sure, a few seats will have been taken by those who paid for them. But if you check in early, there will still be heaps of seats to choose from - at no charge.


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## SlugBreath (15 Feb 2010)

undo said:


> You can log in anytime and select seats at a fee. But why? Just wait until you checking in online and choose your seat for free. Sure, a few seats will have been taken by those who paid for them. But if you check in early, there will still be heaps of seats to choose from - at no charge.


 
Thanks Undo, I might just do that.  Do you know how soon before my flight I can start choosing?  Also can I print off my boarding cards and choose my seats for the return part of my journey at the same time that I print off my outward journey boarding cards?

I have mainly travelled with Ryanair over the past few years and I have become used to their way of doing things. Almost institutionalised I suppose.


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## EvilDoctorK (15 Feb 2010)

SlugBreath said:


> Thanks Undo, I might just do that.  Do you know how soon before my flight I can start choosing?  Also can I print off my boarding cards and choose my seats for the return part of my journey at the same time that I print off my outward journey boarding cards?
> 
> I have mainly travelled with Ryanair over the past few years and I have become used to their way of doing things. Almost institutionalised I suppose.



Aer Lingus Online Checkin opens 30hrs before the flight departs -  You can't checkin for your return flight at the same time (unless you're only on a day trip)   - but no big deal... unlike Ryanair Aer Lingus don't charge you extra if you've not checked in on line etc.


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## SlugBreath (15 Feb 2010)

EvilDoctorK said:


> Aer Lingus Online Checkin opens 30hrs before the flight departs - You can't checkin for your return flight at the same time (unless you're only on a day trip) - but no big deal... unlike Ryanair Aer Lingus don't charge you extra if you've not checked in on line etc.


 Thanks for the info. So for the return flight I have to queue at the airport check in desk for Aer Lingus?  Or find an internet cafe or similar to check in online?
Do other airports have the airport check in machines for Aer Lingus or is it only Dublin?


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## EvilDoctorK (15 Feb 2010)

Yes some other airports do have the Aer Lingus "Fast Pass" machines ...  but certainly not all  - Heathrow and Gatwick certainly do ... Munich doesn't .. I can't recall much otherwise.

If they don't have those machines then yes you have to queue up and/or do it online at an internet cafe etc.


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## pugwall (15 Feb 2010)

I had a row 6 seat this morning on the early Dub - LHR flight. I checked in yesterday afternoon online and selected row 6 as it was close to the exit. I wan't charged anything extra for this. 
Although, I was the last to board and there was no room for my carry on case anywhere near my selected seat so I moved to row 12/13 which was an exit seat with plenty of legroom  The air hostess said I could sit there so I did. There were 3 exit seats free - perhaps because they charge extra for these???


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## pugwall (26 Feb 2010)

For my last 4 flights to/from LHR, I selected 6B or 6E, the middle seats on row 6 - and the only seats available on the first 6 rows. 
However, when I checked in online yesterday morning for my flight this afternoon from LHR, I was automatically allocated an aisle seat on row 6 
I prefer to sit as close as possible to the front of the plane so as to exit quicker on arrival.


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