United tells people they're too fat to fly

EStreetJoe · Apr 16, 2009

Hopefully this isn't a d_b as a search came up empty. If you ever needed a reason to go on a diet, this might be it.

http://www.wgntv.com/landing/?United-Airlines-bumping-bigger-passenger=1&blockID=267721&feedID=209

United Airlines bumping bigger passengers?

Staff Report

April 16, 2009

United Airlines may bump severely overweight passengers from sold-out flights.

Passengers who are too large to fit comfortably in a coach seat will be required to buy a second ticket or upgrade to business class, where seats are larger, if United's flight attendants can't find two open seats for them.

The Chicago-based carrier said it decided to adopt the tougher policy after receiving more than 700 complaints last year from passengers "who did not have a comfortable flight because the person next to them infringed on their seat," spokeswoman Robin Urbanski said.

Most airlines in the U.S. spell out similar rules in a legal document called the "contract of carriage" that establishes services and charges for flights, airline analysts said.

Southwest Airlines requires passengers who can't comfortably lower their armrests to purchase tickets for two adjacent seats. Southwest will refund the cost of the second seat if a flight isn't sold-out.

Although the policy has been on Southwest's books for a quarter-century, the low-cost carrier faced widespread backlash when it reminded consumers of its standards for larger passengers in 2002, as Southwest switched from plastic boarding cards to electronic tickets.

Passenger issues of weight and proximity have become more sensitive in recent years as flights have become fuller. But as airlines adopt or toughen policies for obese passengers, some question how they can enforce such measures fairly.

"How do you eyeball someone and decide they're not going to fit?" said aviation consultant Robert Mann, president of R.W. Mann & Co. "From a knees-to-seatback perspective, I don't fit. I'm 6 feet 4 inches.

"We'll first try to re-accomodate you on another seat on the flight," Urbanski said. "If the flight is full, and that's not often the case these days, you'll be bumped from the flight."

If this occurs, passengers will be forced to either find a flight with open seating or be required to buy two seats or an upgrade to a class of service with wide seats.

If seating is not available and a passenger decides not to travel, the ticket will be refunded without any penalty, even if it is a non-refundable ticket.
Click to expand...

Elliotte Friedman · Apr 16, 2009

I know I'm going to get killed for this...but, as a frequent flyer, I understand why this is being done.

There is nothing worse than having someone next to you occupying half your seat.

Diabeetus · Apr 16, 2009

This wouldn't be an issue if they switched to bleacher benches.

Evil ... Thy name is Orville Redenbacher!! · Apr 16, 2009

Elliotte Friedman said:

I know I'm going to get killed for this...but, as a frequent flyer, I understand why this is being done.

There is nothing worse than having someone next to you occupying half your seat.
Click to expand...

You don't have to be a frequent flyer to understand the logic here.
Sit next to a fat person on a cramped-ass plane one time. Just one time.

novelist_wannabe · Apr 16, 2009

They've been talking about this on HLN all day, and most people seem to understand. The "ooh, that's discrimination" crowd has been fairly silent.

Personally, I see nothing wrong with it. If it costs more to provide a service for someone because of their weight, then they should have to pay more for it.

JakeandElwood · Apr 16, 2009

I don't really see anything wrong with this. If you take up more than your allotted space you pay for more.

Trouser_Buddah · Apr 16, 2009

I had to fly from Alaska to Minneapolis with a 450-pound guy to my right with me in the window seat. A terrible experience, and one that leads me to say that I understand this policy.

Yes, it's hard to tell someone they're too obese, but when they begin to compromise the experience for others, it becomes a logistics issue, in my book.

Armchair_QB · Apr 16, 2009

It's not so much a weight issue as it is a girth issue.

GB-Hack · Apr 16, 2009

What if they're constantly getting up and down, and obscuring your view of the in-flight movie?

forever_town · Apr 16, 2009

Elliotte Friedman said:

I know I'm going to get killed for this...but, as a frequent flyer, I understand why this is being done.
Click to expand...

As someone who was obese until a few months ago, this smacks of discrimination.

Trouser_Buddah · Apr 16, 2009

So you feel it is fair to the person next to you on a flight if you take up half their seat and make the flying experience miserable for them?

I don't see this as discrimination since there is an actual logistical reason behind the policy.

Pancamo · Apr 16, 2009

forever_town said:

Elliotte Friedman said:

I know I'm going to get killed for this...but, as a frequent flyer, I understand why this is being done.
Click to expand...

As someone who was obese until a few months ago, this smacks of discrimination.
Click to expand...

How? I pay for a full seat and get squeezed because the guy next to me can't stay in between the arm rests?

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United tells people they're too fat to fly

EStreetJoe Well-Known Member

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Evil ... Thy name is Orville Redenbacher!! Well-Known Member

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United tells people they're too fat to fly

EStreetJoe Well-Known Member

Elliotte Friedman Moderator Staff Member

Diabeetus Active Member

Evil ... Thy name is Orville Redenbacher!! Well-Known Member

novelist_wannabe Well-Known Member

JakeandElwood Well-Known Member

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