In August 2025, two nearly identical lawsuits were filed: one against United (in San Francisco federal court) and one against Delta Air Lines (in Brooklyn federal court). They claim that each airline sold more than one million “window seats” on aircraft such as the Boeing 737, Boeing 757, and Airbus A321, many of which are next to blank fuselage walls rather than windows.
Passengers say they paid seat-selection fees (commonly $30 to $100+) expecting a view, sunlight, or the comfort of a genuine window seat — and say they would not have booked or paid extra had they known the seat lacked a window.
As reported by Reuters, United’s filing argues that it never promised a view when it used the label “window” for a seat. According to the airline, “window” refers only to the seat’s location next to the aircraft wall, not a guarantee of an exterior view.
And newer planes all have windows where the tint is controlled by the crew (so as to minimize conflict between passengers) which… I still like to look out while stretching my legs near the bathroom but pretty sure staring out a ridiculously tinted window at some clouds isn’t what people think of when they hear “window seat”.
Like… I kinda agree that “window seat” doesn’t actually mean you have a window these days. I would argue that they should be renamed but “wall seat” is going to just make people realize why aisle seats are the best choice… and I like my aisle seat so piss off.
I rode a 787 intercontinentally for the first time earlier this year and was very disappointed by the forced tint. I was really excited to see, I believe, the arctic ice cap. Nothing. Like, I get it’s a long flight and apparently most people just take drugs and sleep, but damn. I would have shielded it with my jacket anyway.
But even still, know how I deal with wanting to nod off when a 4am flight hits day break? A $6 sleep mask. I’m not affected by windows, reading lamps, the crew flicking the lights for fun, that one person typing in Word at full brightness on a red eye flight, or people using flashlights to search their bag.
That’s fine. I’ll take wall seat, as long as I’m not paying extra for a window that doesn’t exist. As a big and tall guy, wall seat means the drink cart doesn’t hit my shoulder because of how narrow the seats are. It means I don’t have to struggle out of my seat every time someone in the row needs to use the bathroom