<p>I’m curious as to how other people feel about this issue. Part of me sympathizes with the woman and another part of me agrees with the airline, although they should have been more discreet and respectful. </p>
<p>She could have (should have?) purchased a second seat when she booked the flight to accommodate her size and personal comfort. I personally don’t think it’s fair for the passenger sitting next to her to deal with a third of her body spilling over onto him/her. </p>
<p>Is this a clear cut case of discrimination or is it a case of flight safety?</p>
<p>In my experience Southwest employees are the friendliest in the business. But they need to have a set rule on the obese and flying so that it’s not just up to the gate agent’s discretion.</p>
<p>Set the weight limit at 300 lbs. or 350 lbs. If you’re over that you must buy a second seat.</p>
<p>The airlines charge for a given amount of space; if you need more, you should pay for it. I think that upgrading to business class would be a good approach as you might have more space with two seats but those seats really weren’t designed for one, heavier person.</p>
<p>Life stinks when you’re overweight. You get more injuries, use more fuel for transportation, take up more space, and you spend more on food, clothes, trash, medical care, etc. I think that more disincentives to be overweight along with better science to get out of being overweight should be a national policy priority. For the hows and whys, join us at the Diet and Exercise thread.</p>
<p>I agree that if you can’t fit into one seat you should have to pay for another one. I am a priority flyer with Southwest and get to board early, and I am always in fear that a huge person is going to come sit next to me.</p>
<p>Southwest is very up-front about this policy. They even filmed their employees enforcing it and showed it on national TV when they had their reality show.</p>
<p>I agree with this woman that there is a simple solution. I don’t understand why airlines cannot make a few of the three seat across rows into two seats. It’s the rare person who needs two full seats but a seat and a half would be a wonderful option. As she pointed out, some airlines are already offering extra legroom for a fee, why not wider seats?</p>
<p>I’m 5’10" and overweight but I fit into Southwest seats (don’t need a belt extender, arm rests go all the way down, etc.) However, it is beyond uncomfortable. I would happily pay half again but to pay for two seats? That’s just too expensive.</p>
<p>They’d have to change their entire ticket reservation system to do this. Right now, there are no reserved seats on Southwest. And if there were wider seats, wealthier, business fliers might grab them up even at a higher fare.</p>
<p>I don’t fly often- & I haven’t been seated next to anyone who I felt was encroaching into my space, but I have been seated * behind* someone who reclined his seat & I could count every hair remaining on his little balding head. </p>
<p>I think part of the problem is that the seats are so squeezy in the first place, certainly the seats on trains are more comfortable.</p>
<p>I don’t know if using a certain weight as a requirement would solve the issue. I know I have a brother-in-law who is 300 lbs, was a football player, without an ounce of excess fat on him. He is just a big guy, all muscle, and so for him, he does not spill over to the next seat. He is really tall. But, a female, who is 5’1" and 300 lbs would spill over. I am just trying to say that weight should not necessarily be the only criterian.</p>
<p>Do you know how much the airline loses if they leave only a couple seats open? Go look up the figures, it’s a lot! If the woman is taking up more than what she paid for, she should pay for it. SouthWest is an airlines, trying to make money.</p>
<p>See, that’s the thing. If I were overweight and looking for an open seat, an open seat next to MOWC would be perfect in my eyes, because I know she’s got room to spare in her seat. :eek:</p>
<p>Flying is just an ordeal these days. First it’s the nickel and diming on extras, then it’s the long security lines, the pat downs, the ‘show us your liquids’, taking off the shoes routine. On the plane, people don’t want to shut off their cell phones, they fly with screaming babies or bring food on the plane that really smells bad. Or it’s the person who leans his seat back so far that my knees get bruised. Or it’s the people who carry on too much. Or it’s the obese person spilling over the arm rest or into the aisle. </p>
<p>I bring a good book and try to shut out my surroundings until the flying ordeal is over.</p>
<p>For the reasons stated earlier in this thread, using weight as a test would be unreasonable. IMHO, a proper test would be the following: if the belt cannot be buckled with a reasonable extender, then a bigger extender and 2 seats would be reqired.</p>
<p>teri, so true! MOfWC would be a prime target. Ever since losing weight, I cover myself with a shawl as soon as I get in my seat to appear bigger so the seat next to me looks less appealing to larger people.</p>
<p>you guys are not making my upcoming flight to Detroit more appealing.
I am planning on putting a few really engrossing tv shows on my iphone so I can just stick my headphones in and tune out everything else until I get there- hopefully.</p>
<p>I think the key to this story is indeed what an ordeal it is to fly these days. I also had a six hour flight recently where the person in front of me kept his seat reclined the whole time. I was ready to kick it forward.</p>
<p>This woman has lost 120 pounds in the last year. Before the weight loss she didn’t fly unless she had to. Now here she is feeling good about her weight loss, thinking that she could fit into one seat with a seat belt extender and by all accounts the Southwest employee embarrassed her. I think she had just had it and went public.</p>
<p>HaHa- My boss’s theory is that it is really better to board Southwest in the high “B” section if it is a full flight because then YOU pick who you sit next to and still can probably get an aisle or window somewhere in the plane.</p>
I am also very small. Five feet and around 100 lbs. On one flight, I had an aisle seat in a row of four seats. Two VERY large people had the other aisle seat and the one next to it. One of those people decided to move over and sit next to me instead of their large friend. I thought that was so rude. I had to lean over the whole flight across the atlantic. What makes people think they have the right to inconveneince others this way so they are more comfortable? If you take up more than one seat you should have to pay for it and if I could find an airline that enforced this, I would always fly with them.</p>
Ever since losing weight, I cover myself with a shawl as soon as I get in my seat to appear bigger so the seat next to me looks less appealing to larger people.</p>