Being allocated the middle seat on an airplane rarely fills travellers with joy.

It lacks the freedom of the aisle seat and the view and head rest position that comes with the window seat.

There a very few, if any, upsides to the middle seat and brings with it one of the biggest annoyances for travellers according to a recent study: the battle for the arm rest.

Mary, a flight attendant for a major U.S. airline, recently shared her tip for claiming at least your fair share of arm rest time, a battle she has fought many times during work transfers.

Speaking to BBC News, Mary explained how she deals with he issue, one she says often happens when she is given the middle seat, typically in between men.

Her strategy for success? Waiting for the right moment and striking quickly. Mary said: “I wait until they reach for a drink and take the armrest.

“One kept trying to push my arm, and I just had to give him a look: “We’re not doing that today”.

Another air stewardess has given further tips on how to elevate your flying experience.

Speaking on her TikTok account, Cierra Mist gives her 3.3 million followers useful advice, including how to bag a free upgrade.

It shouldn’t need stating but often does. Cierra’s first tip for doing so is simply being nice to the staff you encounter.

Cierra said: “She said: ‘We can work miracles if given some Starbucks or a bag of chocolate when we haven’t even had time to stop for food from working on back-to-back flights.”

The influencer also shares why cabin crew might want or even need to move people from economy.

Cierra said: ‘Another common way we that we move people all the way up to the front of the plane if the flight isn’t full to make sure the aeroplane is balanced.”

This means that those sitting at the back of a plane on a sold-out service might be the ones to be asked to move up front to first class.