Flyers out of joint over Knee Defender

Flight crowding may be an issue for the frequent business flyer but the Knee Defender is not the solution to the problem, according to a new poll.

The Knee Defender’s inventor is upbeat despite poll results. AP Photo

As airlines pack more people on to planes, travellers are saying no to fellow passengers using gadgets such as the Knee Defender to keep others from reclining their seats.

That is the opinion of 56 per cent of respondents to the quarterly Bloomberg Global Poll of investors, which asked whether flyers should be able to protect their space by deploying a device that infringes on another’s comfort.

Developed by a Washington-based entrepreneur, the Knee Defender made headlines in August when a United Airlines passenger discovered the man behind her had secretly installed it to keep her seat from leaning back into him.

In the melee that followed, the woman dumped water on the gadget user and the pilot made an unscheduled landing.

Knee Defender sales surged.

“That seat is yours for the flight,” says poll respondent Gene Palma, 65, a municipal-bond salesman for First Southwest in Dallas who flies at least once a month. “One of the things that goes with the seat is that little button and the ability to put your seat back.”

The Knee Defender got a similarly frosty reception by many others who responded to the poll, which was conducted this month by Selzer of Des Moines. Of 510 poll respondents, only 27 per cent said passengers should be allowed to use such devices, while 17 per cent were not sure.

The results did not faze the Knee Defender’s inventor, Ira Goldman.

“The fact that 27 per cent say it should be allowed and 17 per cent are not sure, to me is pretty good,” Mr Goldman says.

Air travellers across North America are more likely to feel hemmed in these days, as airlines work to maintain pricing power by cutting the number of available seats, meaning more full flights. The industry filled an average of 80.1 per cent of available seats in the third quarter, up from 66.3 per cent in the same period in 2005.

“It’s kind of a slippery slope, right?” says Itay Vinik, 29, a portfolio manager at United Global Advisors in Beverly Hills. “Everyone’s going to get it and then no one will be able to enjoy their flight.”

Follow The National's Business section on Twitter