How to get the best airline seat

Susan Daimler, SeatGuru’s (www.seatguru.com) vice president for marketing, gives high marks to JetBlue (www.jetblue.com), whose Airbus 320 fleet offers 36-inch pitch in the first 11 rows (first come, first served) and 34 in the rest.

Some of her tips for avoiding indignities such as the middle seat:

Pay a little more for a lot more comfort. She cites, for example, Northwest Airlines’ Coach Choice (www.nwa.com), introduced last year. Passengers can confirm exit, aisle and window seats 24 hours before departure for $15 per seat. For a fee, United’s (www.ual.com) economy passengers can upgrade to Economy Plus seats, which have 34- to 36-inch pitch, depending on the aircraft.

Reconfirm a week ahead. “Airlines may change the plane and you get moved,” says Daimler. “Now Row 12 is no longer an exit row. It’s the non-reclining row in front of an exit row.”

Make a last-minute try at the gate for a better seat. It’s usually frequent fliers who get upgraded, says Daimler, and “the seat they’re leaving behind is often a better seat than you had.”