Well, Patrick, I actually have given up an exit row seat to a very tall guy. I'm an average-height woman, but have short legs, so the extra space in the exit row is of less value to me. It's not that I'm a particularly nice person (there's a few people who will attest to that), but it just seems silly to waste the space on me. Plus, there's some selfishness there: the middle seat is invariably filled in an exit row. I stand a better chance of an empty middle seat in a non-exit row.

I was on a flight where a couple in their 70's (well, I didn't ask their ages, but they looked that old) were the window (She)-aisle (He) for the emergency exit row. THAT scared me. I doubt they could open the door. On the other side was a Marine and two others. I was in the row behind the Marine and guess which door I would have gone for in an emergency. Semper Fi.

I didn't say anything to the FA but I was wondering if I should have.

I just took a flight where I was allowed to choose the exit row (aisle at that) online. I am NOT an elite member--just an occasional flyer.

I don't know the exact science of this, but I'd add my observations:

A Continental Gold Elite member cannot get most bulkhead seats in advance. At least on most planes. I checked some flights months in the future, so I know there can't be people booked already, and those bulkhead seats, including those in the "Elite" section of economy, are blocked out. [Don't have Plat status, so can't make any observations about that.]

However, this also depends on the plane. On some planes, like bulkhead row 31 on the the new 767-400, only the three seats in the middle (D, E, F) are blocked. A,B and K,L are available for booking, though seatguru.com recommends against any of the seats on row 31 anyways.

And I think there may be even some distinction between bulkhead seats and exit rows. Those are often two different things most narrow-bodied planes, and are blocked for different reasons, though both can have extra legroom. Bulkhead seats are often reserved for people travelling with babies, but exit rows on the narrowbodies are not.

So, there are many factors here:
- Airline
- Aircraft configuration
- Bulkhead or exitrow
- FF level
- Online or agent (and which agent)
- Whether you're travelling with babies, or just have long legs

... plus all the other things that I don't know about.

With new seating configurations on most planes, bulkhead isn't that much better than regular coach. The advantage is being up front and getting off the plane early.

My husband and I are tall (he's well over 6' and I'm just a tad under) and we usually get emergency row seating. We are pseudo frequent flyers and used to be plat SkyMiles on USAir.

I've actually seen FAs remove elderly from the exit row and most certainly remove children.

First come first served is fair.