United to charge double for heavy people - Page 3

I was thinking about this also. My 80 year old grandmother gets a wheelchair and escort for free provided by the airlines every time she travels, she isn't disabled to the point where she absolutely cannot walk she just requests it and they provide it to her without asking for proof of disability or anything. So they can spend money to hire extra workers to provide this service to people who are having difficulty walking but they are making bigger people pay for an extra, seat. People seem to forget that obesity, no matter what caused it is in itself a medical condition.

Before we get too far off the beaten path, let's consider an extreme extrapolation of the situation described.

Let's assume that, against all odds, a group of 800 pound people are boarding an airplane. Let's assume they actually take up 3 seats each.

Amazingly, to everyone's surprise, every passenger ends up weighing 800 pounds, and taking up 3 seats each.

Astoundingly, this happens gazillions of times, over a series of months. To every aircraft from a single airline.

The airline in question does NOT charge extra for needing to accomodate extra space.

Guess what airline would soon be out of business?

Though the above example is absurd, the question of accountability is very much legitimate. No one is trying to disparage overweight people in situations like this, it's a matter of economics. Air travel is a luxury, and I think this is key; if we're talking about an "Excess Tax" placed on overweight people because of oxygen consumption above and beyond the norm, things would get pretty hairy, and rightfully so. But we're not talking about an inherent "right" that's being stripped or made more difficult to obtain. It's an airline ticket. And air travel, like any service, his its own inherent running and maintenance costs. It's just business.

That's not to say that businesses aren't exploitive; they are. But I don't see that happening in this case, where two of a unit product is required, then twice the cost is required to obtain the product.

I see your point. I do see the problem. But I don't think their approach to solving the problem is correct. Bigger people don't need only horizontal space, they need more space in front of them too not just around them, three seats isn't going to make them comfortable anyway so they wouldn't be getting what they pay for. Anyway, if they do this right and make bigger seats available then i am sure that a bigger seat is in no way going to cost twice the amount of a regular seat. It may be 1/3 more or so but it's never going to be double because rarely do bigger people actually need twice the space, they usually just need a small amount extra. So it will be a much better solution IMO. And they will not even need to confront anyone, when buying a ticket it can just ask for people to state their weight and then give them the correct assignment and price.

A friend of mine could not buy the same model car I have because he was too tall for it. He had to pay more for a larger model. If an obese person cannot fit into one seat without disturbing another person, they should purchase 2 seats or a larger seat. This is not a judgement about their size. Some larger clothes cost more. I've seen signs such as $2.00 extra for plus sizes. Isn't that the same thing?

As far as the airlines adding larger seats to accomodate plus size passengers, aren't the business class seats already larger? In today's economy, I think it might be difficult for airlines to make these renovations.

Don't get me wrong. I do sympathize with people who are severely overweight. I have a hard time with my 15 extra pounds. I just think we whould pay for the size we need, whether it's a shirt, a car, or a seat.

I agree with you

I don't think it is fair to me to pay more, just because someone else can not fit in their seat

That is true

I wouldn't want to pay more


Me too

I have flown before with two heavy people beside me, one of them could barely fit, and the other one kept her leg up against mine the whole flight. They also used the arm rests, I sat in the middle seat with my arms folded against my chest the whole time. And one of them just kept looking at me the whole flight that it was my fault that I was so uncomfortable. So it was not very fun for me either.

Right, then smaller people could pay less cause we were not using our whole seat

I pesonally don't think that it matters if you are heavy because you like to eat or if you have a medical conditon, if you need two seats then you should have to buy two seats.

I think so too

Me and my daughter are flying to Texas later this summer, we will be taking the grandbaby with us, and he will have to seat on our laps. However if we go next year, we will have to purchase a full price ticket for him because he will be two. So that is what we will do. We can't just say that we don't want to buy a full price ticket just because he is little.

I just don't think it is fair to others to have to pay more money just because someone who is heavy might get their feelings hurt.

The airlines would soon go out of business and nobody would be flying or could afford to fly.

And those with special needs can obtain these products for a greater price.

My brother who is on oxygen 24/7 is considered handicapped and gets special treatment when boarding. That doesn't affect the person sitting next to him on the flight so has no bearing on seat size. When booking a flight he tells them he has this problem. When obese people book a flight they need to be honest and do the same. I'm not talking overweight, I'm talking obese. I don't care if it is a medical condition or not, if they want to bring their doctor's certificate for the airlines, fine, but they still need 2 seats for the safety and comfort of themselves and the other passengers, period.

Yea, I don't think it's wrong for the airline to ask how much passengers weigh, as long as they do it to everyone. Many things require for people to put down their weight, getting a driver's license, going skiing, just all kinds of places. But, it's a question asked to everyone not just specific people so that makes it okay because it's equal. I think it's definitely possible to determine whether someone can fit in the seat based on weight...
But my question is, all those people who say they don't want to pay for larger people's larger seats- are you all aware that the airlines are spending money on wheelchairs and employees to escort those who need a wheel chair, so in a sense the airlines raise their prices to accomodate for that and you are paying for that as well. People are probably mad about that too...

I highly doubt that putting in a few larger seats would make any airline go out of business, or drive the price up so high that no one could afford to fly. But, since you brought up price....so you think it's fair that someone that has a medical issue has to pay double? Rather than just renovating the cabins to accomodate those people? What if your brother had to pay for an extra seat for his oxygen tank? How do you know he isn't bothering other people? I'm not saying anything against your brother, and I hope he's doing well....but you seem to have no sympathy for other people so I'll be the same way.

So, maybe we should put all the "talkative" people in one section of the plane and all the "leave me alone" people in another section. I find talkative people MUCH more annoying than overweight people! There we go, we got our questionaire..."Name, address, DOB, weight, height, do you like to talk.....".

I am not annoyed by overweight people, I just want to be the only one in the seat that I have paid for. I feel the same way about anywheres I go and have to pay for a seat.

I have been to Nascar races and football games where it is the same thing when they don't have the chair seats. Over weight people are always in my space, and I have a little space. They use their number and part of mine.

But I would for sure be seated in the talkative section, no doubt about it.

Hey if it works why not? While you are at it, could you do something about other people's kids that keep kicking the back of the seat I paid for?

I agree completely. I have no issue with overweight people at all - there are plenty of them in my life. I just think if they are so overweight that they take up their seat plus half another, then they definitely need to pay a premium just as they would have to pay a premium for a larger car, larger clothing, etc. I'm quite sure they would be more comfortable as well in two seats versus one and therefore everyone would be more comfortable.

As for weighing people at the airport, puleeeese, when someone knows they have a weight issue and do not fit into a regular seat, this should be mentioned at the time of reserving a ticket so that can be flagged. When they check in the "flag" will show up and dealt with discreetly.

I completely agree. I am sorry but if i paid for a seat, i am getting that whole seat! Half my family is overweight, and it is because they eat bad food and do no exercise. I can sympathise with people who try and loose weight. But if you take up more than what you paid for then you need to pay for another seat. In an ideal world they would have seats that fit every person perfectly and were comfortable, but we do not live in an ideal world. If they are going to make big seats for bigger people then they should still cost a bit more than a standard seat IMO.

Nor in my case, where I had to stand for the better part of 10 hours. If you've never had to pay $700 for the privilage of standing on a plane that long, being harassed by flight attendants for not sitting in a seat that didn't exist, you'll never fully understand.

I have a friend who is large (yes, heavy, mostly due to a pituitary issue, but also very large-boned), and she knows she can't sit in a coach airplane seat, so she always gets a first-class ticket.

But personally, I wouldn't mind paying a bit extra if the seats were a little wider. I weigh 155 (with ample hips/thighs) and I just fit in some airlines' seats. Other airlines have better seats.

There is a major disconnect here that I'm not getting.

If I'm overweight...OR have a medical issue that requires extra space...or if my personal aura is such that I need an extra seat "just because"...then I pay for the extra seat. Airline travel is not a right. It is a privilege; a privilege that requires one to adhere to a precious few standards, and makes allowances if we sometimes do not. And just because we pay for it doesn't mean that we have to be pandered to.

So, one needs extra room; what does that mean? That either A. they will be forced to impose on the passenger next to them (unfair), or B. The airline will incur a cost to modify the aircraft in some capacity (also unfair, no matter how many people spout, "Ah, who cares, they can afford it").

If airline seats have downsized in some capacity to create this problem, then that is scandalous. However, I've not seen evidence that this is the case.