Until you can afford first class, tips on surviving coach

Seating Assignments
There are three kinds of seats: good, bad, and downright awful. Seatguru.com has the skinny on them all, so consult before you choose. American has more leg room; Song and JetBlue have satellite TV. Primo seats are released on the day of: Leave early, check in online, or call the airline en route to the airport to snag that exit-row window.

Tools of the Trade
The catch-22 of reclining seats: Love 'em for you; hate 'em for everyone else. Sneaky knee defenders keep the seat in front of you in the upright position. (Who said comfy was kind?)
Load up your iPod at audible.com with a couple of books you've been meaning to, er, read. Time will go faster than a used Concorde. (By the way, noise reducing headphones really do work. Better than draping a blanket over your head.)

Coach? No! BYO Party
It's a mystery why tomato juice is everyone's favorite airborne drink: Sodium is the dumbest thing to consume on a plane. When buying your bottle of water, figure on a half liter per hour of flight time. Best snacks: Emergen-C and carrot cake Cliff Bars. Best souse sans hangover: a thermos of Rioja Reserve or a flask of eighteen-year Macallan.

Sweet Lullaby
Who still gets jet lag? Set your watch to your destination's time zone as soon as you're settled into your seat. (Do not wait until you land.) Then put on the fluffy socks you packed, pop a melatonin, and heed your watch. Flying to Europe overnight? Eat before boarding and avoid the in-flight meal. (Because, silly, who eats at 2:30 a.m.?)

Never go to sleep before takeoff. The engines will wake you up, and you'll spend the next two hours trying to get comfy. If you're flying west and are scheduled to arrive before 5 p.m., nap if you want. If your flight lands after 5, stay awake. When flying east and arriving the same day, stay awake. Red-eye? Sleep tight, hot stuff. Put the tray table down, make a tower of pillows, and lean over. (This won't work for anyone over 5' 5".) If you need a little helper, a pre-boarding glass of wine and two NyQuil could put you to sleep at a Metallica show.

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