"Absurd" — This Budget Airline Will Now Charge MORE for Reclining Seats

There have been quite a few procedural shakeups within the airline industry recently, and another one is on the way.

Travelers on the Canadian airline WestJet will now have to pay if they want the ability to recline certain seats on their newly redesigned aircraft, according to ABC News.

WestJet is one of Canada’s most popular airlines, and it confirmed that it is “reconfiguring all 43 acquired aircraft that are currently all-economy” from now-defunct airlines Swoop, Lynx, and Sunwing.

The redesign was first announced in September and will get rid of the reclining function on standard economy seats, which will now have what the airline is calling a “fixed recline.”

The planes being redesigned are “less than a third” of WestJet’s narrowbody fleet, and include both the Boeing 737-8 MAX and 737-800 aircraft. Folks online don’t seem to be too happy about this news, either, as one social media comment called the change “absurd.”

A representative for WestJet news said, “Through our guest user testing, half indicated they preferred a fixed recline, to avoid feeling impacted by other passengers encroaching upon their space. For guests that [sic] prefer a recline option, please note that seating in the Extended Comfort and Premium cabins of reconfigured aircraft will include this feature.”

They continued that in order to continue to keep costs low, the airline needs to be “willing to try new products and see how they work for Canadians.” WestJet flies to 19 U.S. states, including Hawai’i, Washington D.C., and even Orlando International Airport.

The first airplane with this new design is expected to begin service later in October, with the remaining planes set to be completed sometime in early 2026.

We’ll be on the lookout for additional airline updates you need to know about. In the meantime, make sure you stay tuned to AllEars for the latest travel news and more!