airline denies plans for obesity surcharge

[Dan J 277]

If you are suggesting charging 1.5 times as much and allowing anyone to buy those seats, I can support that from a standpoint of economics. And if you want to prohibit the sale of normal seats to people that exceed a certain size restriction, I can support that, too.

However, I don't think giving certain people bigger seats for the same money is going to fly. Everybody wants more room. Have you found anybody who is actually satisfied with the size of an airplane seat? My wife, who is small enough to buy clothing in the children's section, still wants more room on the airplane.

If they implement this plan, they will have to start patting people down to make sure they aren't padding themselves so they can sit in the fat section.

Yes, i do mean to charge 1.5 times the cost of a normal fare. Which is probably easier to take than having to pay for 2 seats.

[TheCockyLockies 2]

[SMR 368]

I took a flight for a two day business trip when my daughter was only 9 weeks old. I certainly had not lost all my 'baby weight' plus I had a C-section so my body was, at best, 'puffy. I wasn't feeling good about it but in light of having a new baby and returning to work it was at the lower end of the priority list for the time being. As I walked down the aisle of the plane looking for my seat I made eye contact with the man I would be sitting next to and when he realized I would be next to him he literally rolled his eyes and made a sound of disgust while gathering his things together and trying to recoil into his seat. He made a point to observe closely the buckling of my seat belt - did he think it wasnt going to fit? I didnt 'spill over' into his seat in any way and in fact I made sure to not touch him at all.

It was a horrible experience. Clearly he was a person who mde the 'fat and lazy' categorization which evidently I fell into.

The man who sat next to you was rude. That doesn't mean that airlines shouldn't have rules for over-sized passengers.

[LiLMermaid 2]

Honestly I think the airlines should have bigger seats for ALL passengers. I am not an extremely large person and I'm only 5'3 and I find myself ridiculously uncomfortable in those seats. My fiance is over 6 feet tall and he can barely move his legs in those seats. Even my 11 year old son who's almost as tall as I am barely has any room. Its ridiculous how they try to jam everyone in like sardines.

[Donna A 4]

i think there should be a fee for smokers who reak of smoke too. its just as uncomfortable sitting next to a fat person as to someone who stinks.

[naiku 0]

Yes, i do mean to charge 1.5 times the cost of a normal fare. Which is probably easier to take than having to pay for 2 seats.

Problem with that is that the airlines will simply say they already have that option, its called Business Class, and if thats not big enough for you then they have a larger seat up in First Class! Not to mention retro-fitting existing aircraft with "fat seats" is going to cost the airlines money, and who will pay for those retro fits I wonder

[Dan J 277]

Problem with that is that the airlines will simply say they already have that option, its called Business Class, and if thats not big enough for you then they have a larger seat up in First Class! Not to mention retro-fitting existing aircraft with "fat seats" is going to cost the airlines money, and who will pay for those retro fits I wonder

Business class comes with extra perks, and much more comfy seats instead of just larger ones. What I am saying is keep everything the same as coach, but just provide a few wider seats.

[naiku 0]

Business class comes with extra perks, and much more comfy seats instead of just larger ones. What I am saying is keep everything the same as coach, but just provide a few wider seats.

Are you saying fat people don't deserve those perks? ..... Sorry, just looking at this from an airline perspective, what you are saying is an option, I just don't see it happening.

[SMR 368]

Honestly I think the airlines should have bigger seats for ALL passengers. I am not an extremely large person and I'm only 5'3 and I find myself ridiculously uncomfortable in those seats. My fiance is over 6 feet tall and he can barely move his legs in those seats. Even my 11 year old son who's almost as tall as I am barely has any room. Its ridiculous how they try to jam everyone in like sardines.

This whole thing is a simple matter of physics meets economics. It costs a lot of money to get something heavier than air to stay up in the air. The bigger and heavier it is, the more money it costs. If you want the size of airplane seats to be 1.5 to 2 times bigger, they are going to cost at least 1.5 to 2 times more.

It really comes down to the fact that although everyone wants a bigger seat, most people would rather not part with the extra cash. Even on a short flight, we're talking about a few hundred dollars at least. Most people would say it's not worth it on a short flight. On a long flight, you might be talking about thousands extra. When for most people that is several months discretionary income, it just isn't competitive.

If there was a business model that would make money selling bigger, more expensive seats, you would see an airline doing it. But all you see are budget airlines with increasingly smaller seats, less food and amenities, and less service in general. When people talk with their mouths, they want bigger seats and better service. But when they talk with their wallets, they want cheap tickets. And that is all the airlines really hear.

[SMR 368]

Business class comes with extra perks, and much more comfy seats instead of just larger ones. What I am saying is keep everything the same as coach, but just provide a few wider seats.

The airline was only suggesting that the large person be forced to pay for 75% of the extra ticket. While, 1.75 is larger than 1.5, I suspect that airlines would have to charge more than 1.5 times for these seats in order to maintain the bottom line. You have to retrofit the fleet and deal with additional costs of new ticket types, upgrade issues, and possible larger revenue loss due to empty seats.

The simple solution is to make them just buy two seats.

I think there should be a new website that links large people traveling on the same flight. They can work a deal with the airline and just buy three seats between the two of them. Then, they can have their own row and just put all the armrests up.

[Darnell 8,478]

I'm a bigger fella, but not obese by the 'chair standards' -

I jump often, from LAX to CAN - and always take China Southern, with the Premium Economy Class. It's a long flight and I want the extra room.

Thankfully, I still fit into the regular economy section.

FWIW, Premium Economy has hard liquor and regular economy doesn't.

It's not exactly double the price, just about 1.6 times from 'regular economy'.

I dunno, though - if yer 500 pounds and must fly - that's 2 seats in economy, regardless, yes? Crikey !

[Ban Hammer 13,346]

i think there should be a fee for smokers who reak of smoke too. its just as uncomfortable sitting next to a fat person as to someone who stinks.

just don't mention passengers who fart

[SMR 368]

just don't mention passengers who fart

A fee for people that put off bad odors is simply punitive, rather than actually solving the problem. The point is that if you make a large person buy two seats no one will have to sit next to them.

Fining smokers, farters, those that wear too much cologne, or those that didn't take a shower, doesn't really help it smell better.

[natty bumppo 297]

A fee for people that put off bad odors is simply punitive, rather than actually solving the problem. The point is that if you make a large person buy two seats no one will have to sit next to them.

Fining smokers, farters, those that wear too much cologne, or those that didn't take a shower, doesn't really help it smell better.

or apply perfume during the trip ...

[Niels Bohr 72]

This sucks! So, if fatty is behind you, you can't recline your seat.