Beware of the “windowless” window seats on airplanes: Here’s why they exist – and how to avoid them!

When is a window seat on an airplane not a window seat? If it’s one of those dreaded windowless seats.

Yes, believe it or not, not every window seat on an airplane has an actual window, as Twitter users recently complained.

Traveler Kalie Marsch posted a photo of her Frameless window Chairman read: “I made a terrible, terrible, terrible mistake.”

And other Twitter users were quick to express their condolences.

Susan Conroy McLeod wrote: “The worst. I’m an obsessive window sitter and this would give me a mild panic attack.”

And Tim. Captain Yank&Bank said, “The least they could do is take a picture of a window there!”

Travel website The Points Guy UK also spotted the windowless window seat and sent MailOnline Travel a photo of team member Ben Smithson in one (who was mysteriously delighted with his bed).

Why do airplanes have windowless window seats?

Nicky Kelvin, head of The Points Guy UK, said: “This is often due to the manufacturer using this space to pass certain avionics (aviation) or essential components such as air conditioning ducts.

On www.seatguru.com, seats that harm the traveler in any way are marked in red

Hover your mouse over a seat marked in red on Seat Guru and a pop-up message will explain why there is a warning on it

“Emergency exit seats often do not have a window view because the design dictates the placement of the window on the exit door, often resulting in an obstructed view.”

So is there a guaranteed method to avoid this?

It is best to use www.seatguru.com. On this page, travelers enter their airline and flight number to get a seat map for the plane they will be flying on.

Seats that are in any way detrimental to the traveler are marked in red. Hover your cursor over the seat and a pop-up message will indicate why the seat has a warning, including whether or not it has a window.