Short Final: Leg Room

Editorial Staff

Monday, August 31, 2020 at 06:18 PM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

During the COVID-19 pandemic, a Spirit Airlines flight (Spirit 936) was flying with only two passengers on board.
An air traffic controller's unusual query about the passenger count led to a joke from the author about Spirit Airlines' famously poor legroom.
The humor in the joke underscored Spirit Airlines' reputation for having "terrible seat pitch," regardless of how empty the plane might be.

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I was flying home during the COVID‑19 pandemic, when the following took place:

Spirit 936: “Atlantic City Approach, Spirit 936, 5000.”

Atlantic City Approach: “Spirit 936, descend and maintain 3000, direct PRSTY. And if you don’t mind me asking, what’s your passenger count today?”

Spirit 936: “We only have 2 passengers on board.”

Me: “Only 2 passengers and they still don’t have enough legroom!”

Unknown: “Ouch. But sometimes the truth hurts.”

Of course, Spirit Airlines is a discount carrier famous for their terrible seat pitch.

Dave Landset

Ocean City, NJ