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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

'The bigger you are the higher the cost of a plane ticket' AIBU to think that this is ridiculous?

384 replies

Poppet48 · 25/03/2013 08:22

I have just heard the debate of should a plane ticket cost more for obese people.

I think that this is ridiculous, not only is it discriminating it is highly embarrassing to have to get weighed at the airport check in, Where have the human rights gone?

AIBU to feel this way?

I would love to hear what others think of this.

OP posts:
ComposHat · 25/03/2013 19:40

it happened to me on a packed train. in retrospect I should the armrest down as she hoved into view.

InLoveWithDavidTennant · 25/03/2013 19:57

i am technically obese. last time i flew i was 20st 5lbs and i didnt spill out over the side of my seat (i was in the middle). i could sit with ease and do my seatbelt up with no problems. was sat next to dh and he said i was fine. im 2st lighter than i was back then so i expect i would have no problems again... but just by looking at me... you would think i would be an inconvenience, but im not!

i think having seats at the check in or even in travel agents, like they do in theme parks is a good idea. it also seems to be the less embarrassing one too. i wouldnt want to be weighed in front of everyone Angry

also... larger peoples clothes weigh more than smaller peoples clothes as they have more material (obvs!) so the excess baggage thing is a stupid argument.

SirChenjin · 25/03/2013 20:26

If someone is so obese that they take up half of the seat next to them (or more) do you really, honestly think an arm rest will stop the overspill for the entire flight?!!

(It doesn't btw)

AllSWornOut · 25/03/2013 20:38

Someone up thread said to stick to facts. She/he is right. The travelling public is made up of people of all shapes and sizes. Some of the comments in this thread are appalling.

The fact is though that the airline business has notoriously slim margins (excuse the pun) and as the aircraft cabin is one of only two revenue sources (the other being cargo) the airlines are doing anything and everything to maximise that revenue. This helps keep ticket price down.

One way is to increase the number of seats on the aircraft - this is either done through moving the seat rows closer together or putting in more seats per row. Some aircraft are better than others. A380s have seats that are particularly wide for instance.

Plenty of airlines also try to increase revenue by offering additional services such as extra legroom rats seats and for extra width you can usually go up a class to premium economy or business (at least on long haul).

But as someone put it on page 1 of this thread:
"Something does need to be done to accommodate heavier people, I agree.. I would've loved to afford to purchase two seats for myself, but I just couldn't have afforded it. " As long as everyone wants to pay the cheapest fare possible then comfort will not increase to the detriment of the number of seats on-board.

BTW there are plenty of people working on how to improve economy seat comfort but no-one has yet worked out how to do it without reducing the number of seats. And from a purely technical standpoint weighing all passengers with their baggage would make sense - but the only time I've been weighed for a flight (single engine seaplane) I found it horribly embarrassing even though I'm not overweight or particularly sensitive about my weight.

CloudsAndTrees · 25/03/2013 20:49

"Something does need to be done to accommodate heavier people, I agree.. I would've loved to afford to purchase two seats for myself, but I just couldn't have afforded it.

If you can't afford it then don't fly. Plenty of people can't afford to fly, it's rarely essential.

pingu2209 · 25/03/2013 21:00

When you go to a theme park with fast rides, there are 'seats' you can sit in at the beginning of the queue so you can see whether you will fit before you queue for over an hour. Also to avoid embarrassment.

I think the airports each airline should have an example seat at the check in desk so that passengers can try the seat before boarding. If they can't fit then they can't fly. Or they have to buy 2 seats if there are any free.

As someone who used to weigh 23 stone I can assure you that you know that you may well not fit. So when you book your flight you know there is a chance you can't fit.

maisiejoe123 · 25/03/2013 21:07

Airlines are not charities or really interested in how people have got so overweight that they cannot reasonably fit in one seat and tbh why would they?

We are demanding cheaper and cheaper pricing yet we want to have it all. I have heard people moaning about Ryan Air and their insistence on charging for luggage. Well, if you dont want to pay that charge - dont take any! Of course you want to take your nice clothes with you going abroad though. Why wouldnt you but you cannot have it all ways.

I have flown Ryan Air a number of times. As Michael Ryan says when people complain about not being able to sit next to their partner or that they are charged extra for luggage - what do you expect for £10!!

MummytoKatie · 25/03/2013 21:09

I really think that there should be "extra wide" seats as well as extra legroom seats that you can purchase for a premium. It wouldn't just be larger people who would want them - I know a lot of blokes who like extra space for the "family jewels". And, having flown last month with dd (age 2) in the middle and the arm rests up it was rather nice to have extra width even though we didn't need it.

Also, by Pythagoras (just to add to the intellectual level of the thread), an extra wide seat would also have extra leg room.

Once these were implemented and known about airlines could start being stricter about "overspill" problems.

Really quite pleased with the "extra width premium seats" idea.....

maisiejoe123 · 25/03/2013 21:17

Problem is that I dont think many will want to pay the extra.....

ILikeBirds · 25/03/2013 21:19

Crushed flier wins obesity payout

MummytoKatie · 25/03/2013 21:25

Do you reckon? My parents love the exta legroom seats and always book them. They are tall but not enormously so. (6 foot and a long legged 5 foot 10.)

pedrohedges · 25/03/2013 21:40

Bloody hell ilikebirds. That poor woman!

HorryIsUpduffed · 25/03/2013 21:53

DH is tall and broad (not fat though) and works in the airline industry so flies a lot.

He now doesn't fly below Premium Economy (except on single-class routes, in which case he needs an aisle seat generally or to be sitting next to a shortarse like me, or one of the DCs.

And he is quite clear that the technology to weigh us already exists in many airports - eg in the funny security tunnels which already have weight sensors in the floor.

As an aside, the luggage thing isn't just about weight. One reason budget airlines keep their costs down is by doing a fast turnaround. If most passengers don't have hold baggage, it takes less time to load the baggage and they can turn the flight around. On the other hand, passengers with large cabin bags (ie those cases that fit precisely within the 50x30x20 or whatever it is) cause delays to boarding and disembarkation.

So budget airlines in the US are now moving towards a model of allowing one reasonably small hold case (20kg say) to reduce delay. I doubt it will be long before European airlines follow suit. Having planes on the tarmac earns them nothing.

maleview70 · 25/03/2013 21:59

Personally I would charge kids more for being a complete pain in the arse on flights, kicking seats, constant fcking wailing. They are far more of an inconvenience than fat people

RainbowsFriend · 25/03/2013 22:40

I can remember flying with Aurigny (Channel Islands) to and from Alderney (via Southampton or Guernsey) and being weighed with your luggage.

Noone minded - the pilots could then do their calculations, and the desk staff would seat you on the plane according to how heavy you looked so it was balanced right.

OK so I'm talking about small prop planes (still scheduled flights though) but they did have to stop doing this - maybe it's time to start it up again?

SoupDreggon · 26/03/2013 07:18

Excellent - we can put people like maleview70 in the seats where they'll have someone else sitting on top of them. Problem solved!

TumbleWeeds · 26/03/2013 08:12

Actually Sir I have been sitting next to someone who was 'big' and as I am not thin myself, I could certainly 'feel' it (or feel their arms next to mine etc..).
Was it the most pleasant flight? No
Do I still harbour resentment towards that passenger? Nope. What would be the point of that? It's in the past and I tend to leave it there.

The thing 'Premium Economy' is that they don't exist on short haul flight/cheap flight where you have ONE type of seat. So saying that people should pay more wouldn't solve the problem.
As it happens we flight mainly with that sort of airline. DH has to make do even though he is tall (and broad). I have to make do with whoever is sitting next to me.
I am at loss as to how I can complain. Tickets are a third of the price now than they were 15 years ago and that's wo taking into account the inflation. I accept that I have to accept some (little) inconvenience for the privilege of paying very little money for my trip.
This is also the case with long haul flight where tbh, I don't like being seated next to another (thin or big) passenger. But I cope with it.

TumbleWeeds · 26/03/2013 08:14

Soup will you be happy to pay more for your dcs though? After all you also carry car seat, pushchair etc... so you should be paying for those instead of asking all the other passengers to do so for you no?

whois · 26/03/2013 08:39

Seats do already come in narrow, wider and wide. It's called economy, premium economy and business class...

If you are too fucking fat to fit in an economy seat they pony up the cash for two economy seats or one premium economy seat.

I've had a couple of flights next to obese people and its hell. I took to shoving the magazine down the side of my seat, so although I lost any access to the arm rest I didn't have their sweaty arm touching mine and only had to deal with sitting at an angle trying to get away from the massive upper arm.

I think you should get a 'total' weight allowance for you and baggage as well.

diplodocus · 26/03/2013 08:51

I work with an extremely obese woman who has to fly premium economy as she really doesn't fit into the economy seat. She needs to fly a lot for work, but's she's had terrible trouble getting premium economy flights sanctioned because of work's economy only policy (despite the fact they really don't cost much more). There needs to be a greater acceptance of this from companies (and other employees, who moan at the "favouritism").

CandyCrushed · 26/03/2013 09:03

My DH had a male reletive that was very obese. He needed an extension strap when he flew. His wife was very slim and would always sit next to him on the flight as he used her 'space' too. She said it was very uncomfortable to ave to sit next to him as she was having to sit at an odd angle all the time. He couldn't put the tray down and the person in front couldn't fully recline his seat.

It was not a nice experience for anyone involved.Sad

Mondrian · 26/03/2013 09:04

It's funny how no one complains about travelling with sweaty arms on other means of transport such as buses or tubes but take an issue with air travel. I suspect they are still stuck in the 60's & 70's when air travel was reserved for the rich. I pay £2 for a 5 min bus trip and you can fly to NY for around 280 so not much difference in £/min journey - you want to travel in 60's sans sweaty arms then pay the premium and fly first class, that's if you can afford it!

SoupDreggon · 26/03/2013 09:15

Soup will you be happy to pay more for your dcs though? After all you also carry car seat, pushchair etc

Why would I pay more when they occupy less space and have no extra luggage? I don't have a carseat or pushchairs and, when I did, the child had less other luggage.

Children often aren't kicking the back of a seat intentionally, it's just where their feet end and thus touch the seat in front whenever they move. And very few are "constant fcking wailing"

SoupDreggon · 26/03/2013 09:18

It's funny how no one complains about travelling with sweaty arms on other means of transport such as buses or tubes but take an issue with air travel

Well, on a train/bus/tube you've paid a small amount of money for the journey whereas on a plane you've paid a lot for an actual seat. They really aren't comparable.

Plenty of people complain about being wedged tightly onto a tube train with sweaty people though.

Kendodd · 26/03/2013 09:29

Just read your link ilikebirds Shock

I know it was uncomfortable sitting next to a fat person, I suppose thinking about it it makes sense that it would also be dangerous.

"But the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance has taken on airlines over discrimination against overweight people." Is that their comment on this? IMO being so massively fat like that shouldn't be acceptable, you are taking up more that your fair share (in almost all cases) because you eat to much.