United eject button

Yesterday I flew from San Francisco to New York. It was punishing. it wasn’t so much the duration of the flight as it was being crammed into a plane like a sardine next to some people who did not hesitate to make the most of the seat room available to them… and then some.

I should be used to flying being uncomfortable, but I’m not. No matter how I try to cram myself into a standard or economy seat it just… isn’t comfortable. Today felt particularly painful, likely due to the duration of the flight.

As I squirmed around on the plan I started thinking, what if there was an option to eject the person next to you mid-flight if the situation is desperate?

Unless the person has a parachute, you’d functionally be paying to kill someone, so I don’t see how this gets built. To make things more interesting, you’d want to add an ability for the person being ejected to counter bid, making people think twice before hitting the button.

This is more the ravings of a desperate and exhausted traveler than it is a good idea, but still, I know some people would pay for it.

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