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In a situation like this, the airline can't win. I think they made the best of it - 14 yr old teenager probably had to be prioritized, she is a minor after all and maybe had arrangements at the destination which she herself would not be able to reschedule.
Also, the woman forced off was on standby, and when you're standby, you're really (willingly) at the mercy of whatever situation may happen. It sucks, yes, but I don't know how they could have better solved this.
Maybe the solution is to have body checks at checkin time to see if a person will fit in one seat. It would be like that little box to test if your caryon will fit in tthe overhead bin or not. We'd have the saem thing for people. It would be better than letting the fat person board and only then learning they needed a second seat.
Wouldn't it usually be cheaper and more comfortable for the fat person to upgrade to business clas where the seats are bigger than to buy two cattle-class seats?
SWA probably gave into the obese teen because of the huge flak they received when they booted fatty director Kevin Smith (of Clerks fame) this Feb, and he instantly tweeted his rants to the entire world. In his case it was a full flight and no extra stand-by seats were available so he had to take the next flight with an empty seat. I think SWA's official policy is to charge for the double seat, but given all the negative attention I'm not sure if they've enforced it since the Feb incident.
Do realize when the Kevin Smith story surfaced, 75%+ of the people responding were PRO-SWA. It was hardly negative publicity.
Forget the body check. Just have signs, stating the dimensions of the seats and it is your responsibility to ensure you comfortably (can buckle up and put arm rest down) fit into them, or risk being deplaned. Nothing like embarrassment to drive the point across! When you check in online, they can have one of the check boxes like they do for checked luggage, where they state the dimensions and ask you if you can fit.
I've seen on that reality show about SW Airlines where they had to tell overweight people they need two seats, and it sure gets ugly in a hurry. They can get militant in a hurry, making a big scene about discrimination etc. almost as bad as drag queen accidentally hearing you making a comment.
I had no idea they had a reality show! How is that discrimination? You cannot fit into a seat, thus forcing you to spill over into the one next to you. Since no one else can sit there, you have to pay for the space you take up. I don't see the discrimination in that! Why should the airline lose money? What if there were 30 obese people on the plane, taking up 60 seats but only paying for 30? How is that fair?
Wow, customers suck! Some of these people are so out of line! I understand the frustration that can come with flying but taking your frustration out on the gate agent will get you nowhere. It's not their fault the fights are overbooked, they are just the messenger. And with cruises, aren't you advised to get to your destination a day or two in advance, in case these types of circumstances arise? Paying thousands for a cruise, and booking a flight that is *supposed* to leave only hours before cruise departure doesn't sound smart to me! I'm sure each one of us has had a few flight delays in our time!
It is safer and easier for the airline for an adult to leave the plane than a minor child....regardless of the circumstances. There is lots of paperwork if the child was unaccompanied and if with someone else the child needed to stay on the same flight with them. Lots of people get bumped from flights for a variety of reasons. Under the circumstances, they should have (and probably did) put the adult passenger on the next available flight with a free upgrade.
Personally, I would give up my seat for a child any time for any reason.....or would we only do this for a thin child?
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