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Realistically, there are two problems here: one, airline seats ARE just too small and too close together for the average size American, and this isn't just a comfort issue, it's also a potential health and safety issue. Two, some people are so large (whether due to fat or just due to build) that they wouldn't fit in one seat even if the seats were reasonably sized. IMO airlines need to address both issues because people of all sizes and shapes do need to fly. Seating needs to go back AT LEAST to earlier sizing, if not something even roomier, and the FAA needs to enforce regulations about the impact of seating arrangements on how fast an aircraft can be evacuated in a real-world scenario. There also needs to be an easy option for oversize people to book a second seat and be guaranteed they will be provided the use of both seats by not, for example, reassigning the second due to overbooking, or separating the seats with an aisle or an unmovable armrest.
There is a reason why air travel is a miserable experience: lack of competition.
Am not talking about the lack of airlines. There are sufficient quantities of them or maybe even too much. No, am talking about the lack of MODES of air transport.
Currently, the design involves pushing a central body forward then use various appendages to exploit aerodynamic effects to gain airborne. The result is the air transport mode that we see today: a long tube with wings.
It is not that there are no alternatives but alternatives do not equal to competition. I am an alternative to Usain Bolt but his competition? Not even halfway. The helo lacks range. The dirigible lacks speed. So what we are left with is that long tube with wings, and every airline uses the same mode. Forget about teleportation a la Star Trek.
Now, let us look at the car.
Unlike the airplane where the airlines flies, YOU drive the car, and there are more drivers than pilots. Because it is easier to learn how to drive a car or a boat than to pilot an airplane, auto makers have no choice but to cater to drivers. We have cars that are two-seats and more. We have cars that have different levels of features to accommodate different budgets.
Modern life needs air travel. In the end, the airlines have no good cause to make passenger comfort second or even third priority.
Airline travels who don't fit into a normal airline seat are required to pay for two seats. Is this actually discriminatory?
Is this an airline problem, or an obesity problem.
In April, plus-size travel influencer Jae’lynn Chaney launched a petition urging the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to mandate all airlines for a comprehensive customer-of-size policy that “prioritizes the comfort and well-being of all passengers.”
That's the problem, nobody should be "influenced" by this nonsense. Even with seats getting smaller that should be an incentive to not become a landwhale.
How about a guy who is 6'5", 280 pounds, completely fit and athletic. Are you as quick to disdain his situation?
Uh- that's not a valid comparison.
I agree with the others who are saying someone who's too fat to sit in one seat should be required to purchase a second seat.
If a person is that large, they are going to be disabled by their weight. That big guy might be a tight fit in a single seat, but he could get up and out of it in a flash if he needed to.
If a fat person becomes wedged into their seat and can't get out on their own, that could be dangerous in a flight emergency.
If the fat person can't get up into the aisle to evacuate the aircraft at the same speed as the other travelers, that's also a danger to them all. If that person goes down in the aisle and can't get back up, that's even more dangerous to everyone.
Imagine a 350 lb. lady whose 5"1" going down in the middle of the center aisle of a burning passenger plane.
She can't get up, but she's blocking the only escape left to the rest of the passengers.
Are they going to trample her to get past her? Or will they get hung up in the aisle, not knowing what to do next? Anyone trying to help that lady get back on her feet will also be blocking the aisle.
...and the fire don't give a tinker's damn about anyone.
I don't have any animosity toward that lady at all. In my mind, she must really need to be on that airplane, as it's the most tortuous way to travel for her I can think of, but it's also the fastest.
The aircraft industry had no need to design the airplane for so many grossly fat passengers 30-40 years ago. Americans weren't that fat back then.
And there aren't enough morbidly obese passengers to justify special airplanes built just for them yet.
So for one fat person, the safety of many passengers is compromised?
That is a necessity, but one that should never be. The airlines can put those passengers into the best seats that are the safest for them. Their personnel can inform the other passengers what they can do to aid that person in an emergency.
Both can be done respectfully, simply acknowledging the person is too fat to fit.
That's not body-shaming. It's only unusual flight safety precautions to me.
As we all are growing fatter, this could become an ordinary part of air transportation.
It IS that simple. I used to be fat. I lost weight. I never gained it back. Many people never gain weight to begin with.
If you don't comfortably fit into a standard Economy seat, buy a bigger seat or a second seat. It's that simple. I don't care if you're a blubbery whale or an NFL player. I don't want your overflow body mass in my space.
I've lost weight, too. And I gained it back. If you didn't, good for you. And I mean that. But there's a reason that insurance companies ask "Have you recently lost a lot of weight?" It's because they know that MOST people gain back at least half of it. Even those who have bariatric surgery gain back a lot of it.
Look, I agree. I'm not suggesting that you should have to have me hanging over your seat. I get that. I really really do. Maybe if airline seats were a few inches wider, it would help.
I agree. I'm not arguing that it is. But I am saying that it's easy to throw stones if you don't have the issue.
No one was throwing any stones until the obese group starting throwing their stones, whining that the airlines should extend them special benefits. Let's be honest, when they ask airlines to provide larger seats or second seats at little or no cost, they are asking the other passengers to pay for it since ultimately airline money comes from passengers.
It's easy to criticize the person, but seriously. Unless you've honestly struggled with your weight, it's hard to understand. I've been fat my whole life. I've lost weight, and gained it back. It's easy to say that it's MY fault and I should lose weight. But it's not that simple.
It is easy to say because it's true. The actual work of being healthier though, as you correctly say, is hard. Body recomposition is no small feat, and takes months, often years of dedicated hard work with both diet and exercise to pull off. 100%, no doubt, Hard AF. Yep, you betcha.
But...it is 100% your choice and 100% within your control. If you claim a medical condition, which many do to avoid the harsh reality of the recomp grind, then there is an entire wing of the medical profession dedicated to helping you deal with whatever that condition is in order to get you back to The Grind.
This is not a criticism. It's a reality. If you are over 35% BF, you are potentially shortening your life span by DECADES. 25-35% and it is years, maybe decades. That's simple statistical fact. But even the huge strongmen and body builders come right out and say they KNOW their body mass cannot be sustained or they are totally shortening their lifespan. They know it full well. Impressive feats of strength we can marvel at, but a wildly unhealthy lifestyle to get there...and they all admit it.
I am still about 8-10% BF away from being truly fit/athletic. Last year at this time, I was 18-20% away from it. Eating my diet and following my exercise routine at my age...SUCKS! But, it has removed ~10% BF (using various measuring devices that are NOT the BMI chart) from the profile, I have more strength/endurance, less pain, less physical maladies and I sleep way better. And every day of the grind is a pain in the arse. No freaking doubt. But my body, my health & fitness, and my longevity, are in fact MY fault, my responsibility.
She explicitly says "free". I wonder if she thinks she is entitled to a second or third steak for free at a restaurant in order to have the "same experience" and satisfy her hunger, like one steak does for a smaller person?
Right?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Frostnip
She personally might, but that's not what the petition was asking for - it was just asking for a fair, thoughtful, consistent policy.
Since your read the article, I'm sure you also saw that she approved of the Southwest Airlines policy of allowing a customer who needs more space to purchase two seats, then get reimbursed for the second if the flight was not full.
Realistically, there are two problems here: one, airline seats ARE just too small and too close together for the average size American, and this isn't just a comfort issue, it's also a potential health and safety issue. Two, some people are so large (whether due to fat or just due to build) that they wouldn't fit in one seat even if the seats were reasonably sized. IMO airlines need to address both issues because people of all sizes and shapes do need to fly. Seating needs to go back AT LEAST to earlier sizing, if not something even roomier, and the FAA needs to enforce regulations about the impact of seating arrangements on how fast an aircraft can be evacuated in a real-world scenario. There also needs to be an easy option for oversize people to book a second seat and be guaranteed they will be provided the use of both seats by not, for example, reassigning the second due to overbooking, or separating the seats with an aisle or an unmovable armrest.
I agree with everything you said here. Seats are shrinking while Americans get ever larger.
I've lost weight, too. And I gained it back. If you didn't, good for you. And I mean that. But there's a reason that insurance companies ask "Have you recently lost a lot of weight?" It's because they know that MOST people gain back at least half of it. Even those who have bariatric surgery gain back a lot of it.
Look, I agree. I'm not suggesting that you should have to have me hanging over your seat. I get that. I really really do. Maybe if airline seats were a few inches wider, it would help.
Airlines do sell such a product. It's called Business Class, also sometimes referred to as First Class, or on international flights, Premium Economy.
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