Unspoken middle seat rule not many travellers agree with
Ending up in the middle seat on a plane if you are travelling by yourself is never a desired position to be in.
But it happens to plenty of travellers, and some believe there are unspoken rules that apply to help make being stuck in the middle seat more bearable.
One of those has to do with who gets the armrests, so we asked readers what they thought in a recent Nine survey.
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Who gets the armrests while travelling? Getty Images/iStockphoto
Rather surprisingly, the majority (64 per cent) of respondents didn't think the middle person was owed anything.
It was clear, however, that nearly everyone agreed it is a contentious issue.
"I find lots of armrest hoggers when I travel," one person wrote in response.
"Many a time I've been seated in the middle seat and not been allowed use of the left or right arm rests. The people either side of me, whether they be male or female, greedily 'hogged' both for themselves," another agreed.
Some however were firmly in the 'yes' camp, believing the "middle seat deserves some compensation".
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What do you think? Nine
Others believed the armrests should be shared.
"I think it is polite to share so if you take your arm off then the other person can use the rest," was one response.
Another person chimed in: "Both can be used by the passenger in the middle, but it does not necessarily mean at the same time."
Now that might be all well and good, but there were plenty of travellers who simply didn't think it was possible for the person in the middle seat to end up with any armrests.
"I am always in the middle seat and am lucky if I get to use one armrest!!" one person lamented.
Another simply wrote "good luck", with a third putting it plainly: "I hate the middle seat."
And yet, there were some who might be happy to share if the situation called for it.
"If the person in the middle seat is elderly it may be okay to let them use both armrests," one wrote.
"I would say it depends who is sitting next to you, maybe [an elderly] passenger or someone with an infant on their lap, then care should be considered."
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