Airlines' 'sneaky' practice investigated after passenger shares outrageous photo

There’s no surer way to start a holiday off on the wrong foot than finding out you and your loved ones have been placed at opposite ends of the plane – but now fed up passengers are taking a stand.

While it has become common practice for airlines to charge extra money to pick out a specific seat, several passengers have shared their frustration online saying they are being deliberately separated from their loved ones.

Passengers using various international airlines also took to Twitter, claiming they were split up even after making bookings off the same credit card.

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in the UK has announced they will now be investigating if airlines are deliberately separating friends and families so they will pay more to sit together.

“Airline seating practices are clearly causing some confusion for consumers. Airlines are within their rights to charge for allocated seats, but if they do so it must be done in a fair, transparent way,” CAA chief executive Andrew Haines said.

“Our research shows that some consumers are paying to sit together when, in fact, they might not need to.”

Josh Mitchell slammed Allegiant Air, accusing them of splitting up a family with two children, aged four months and three years “when 25 per cent of the plane is empty”.

Ian Prukner, who pointed out that he and his wife are both medallion status with Delta Airlines, said he was flabbergasted at the pair being separated despite there being an empty seat right next to him.

For Australian flyers, it can cost them up to $35 per person to pre-book a seat with Qantas and up to $25 per person with Tiger Air.

The CAA states that airlines must attempt to seat children close to their parents and must not be separated by more than one row from accompanying adults.

They said they would not hesitate to take action if their review showed airlines were unfairly separating passengers.