Too fat to fly

[loobielousplaits]

Is anyone/has anyone watched this?

It's a documentary about massively obese people being interviewed about being taken off flights/too fat to flight.

While I absolutely agree it's a 'fat shaming' programme - I can't agree with some of the comments from the interviewees that have complained they had to leave the plane due to an armrest not being able to go down - a woman wasn't able to visit the toilet, another who couldn't understand why someone would be offended that half their seat was taken up by overspill - a 32 st man was offended that he was asked to leave the aircraft because he couldn't safely fit in the seat and should have paid for two - pilot decided he wasn't safe to fly.

I'm torn - I absolutely understand weight is a huge issue (I was anorexic in my teens) and it is not easy to control your weight but come on - seriously? You cannot expect to be OK to fly if your weight affects health and safety and you can't fit safely in a seat

I don't want all the seats to be bigger so I would have to pay more. There are already bigger seats on the plane that people could book. I already would have to pay two adult fares for a 9st adult and 6st teen (fuel is a major cost too, and more weight needs more fuel) and we have plenty of space in the current seats.

I also have 32” legs but am a size 6-8. I fly on budget airlines several times a year and I’ve always got plenty of leg room on a flight

I'm six four, heavy build, not fat. I can't even sit sown in a standard budget airline seat. Even economy seats long haul are extremely uncomfortable. For years I have being paying more for seats with extra legroom.

Unfortunately, there's not a lot I can do about my size.

One major problem is that airline seats are actually shrinking while people get larger.

www.marketwatch.com/story/faa-declines-to-put-a-stop-to-the-incredible-shrinking-airline-seat-2018-07-09

So, in that light the 'fat shaming' of passangers becomes particularly pernicious.

Decor on some Air NZ flights to Samoa they don't sell the middle seats.
Also the small planes used by Samoa Air between Samoa and American Samoa have a pay by weight fare.
Maybe there aren't enough larger people on the flights from US to implement it on those ones I'd assume.
I agree it's a problem, but most airlines really dont help the issue!

I think the airlines need to make the seats bigger anyway and give more legroom to people as well. The risk of DVT is heightened when peoples legs are really cramped as well.
They wont though because they are greedy, I think if you are really large then you need to book an aisle seat then at least you have the aisle to spill out into.

The correct thing for them to do would be to issue standard and plus size seats and if someone is big they have to have the plus size seat full stop and pay extra.

I don’t blame you Sarah and it was wrong to make you feel bad about it. While I have some sympathy with anyone who faces practical/physical difficulties with flying, I’ve paid a lot of money for the seat I chose and if I’m on a flight for in excess of three or four hours I want the right to have what I booked and paid for and had confirmed on my ticket.

Unless they are offering me an upgrade I’m not moving. People who know flying is going to be a challenge for them due to their size should flag it with the airline in advance so seating plans can be juggled accordingly. Or he should have paid for two seats or extra legroom and booked an aisle seat with his daughter in the middle. It’s outrageous to make it someone else’s problem.

I wouldn’t give up my space for a fat person. I’d insist on the arm rest being down to protect my space too, not my problem if they’re uncomfortable with that.

Too much pandering to fat people, especially when 9/10 it’s a choice issue. People who are obese through medical reasons should have their two seats subsidised through disability

Perhaps some planes should be adapted so that in economy there is always one row that takes the space/width of two normal rows, and the seats are fewer but twice the size

But this isn't necessary the person can book two seats, put the arm rest down, and just get an extender, and many airlines don't charge for the second seat, just the taxes, to encourage people who need it to book like this. There is no need for bigger seats, the functionality to have one exists.

I'm a former fat person. I was 120kg at my biggest and am now hovering around 75/80kg. I'm still technically overweight at size 14 to 16 and I find that I fit in airplane seats fine but they're never comfortable in economy no matter how small you are.

Even though I've flown at 120kg I still don't believe that increasing the size of the seats is the answer. Tackling the tsunami of obesity is what we need to do. We've all been told to eat less and move more ... Clearly that's working just fine I lost all that weight by simply making dietary changes. I did not exercise at all.

There should be larger seats available as there is larger leg space available - it is disproportionate to expect them to pay for 2 seats which includes 2 sets of taxes etc but an additional fee for a comfortable and safe seat would be acceptable

I'm small, size 6 and on a recent flight I was sat next to a very large man. I had very little room due to overspill.
For the majority of this flight, the man ate, large sharing bags of crisps, numerous chocolate bars as well as prepacked sandwiches. This was on a 4 hour flight.
He was completely oblivious to my discomfort while he sat there and stuffed his face with food. He was an inconsiderate man who was fat due to over eating. He definitely should have been made to pay for 2 seats.

Agree that airlines need to specify maximum weight/height restrictions for a standard single seat. They do it for amusement parks! If you can’t fit in a normal seat with the armrests down then you have to book 2.

Agree that airlines need to specify maximum weight/height restrictions for a standard single seat. They do it for amusement parks! If you can’t fit in a normal seat with the armrests down then you have to book 2.

How does two seats help those who fail the height restriction at check in?

@maddening they are available! called premium economy or business class....

they're never comfortable in economy no matter how small you are

I'm 9 stone or thereabouts and they are horrible. I only have short legs and only just have enough room for them.

Airlines could make seats (and space) bigger but then people will complain about higher prices.

People don't think it's unfair for tall people to pay more for the extra legroom seats (and you can do precisely nothing about your height) so I don't think it's unfair to ask obese people to pay for two seats (which in more cases than not, they could do something about).

Too much going on about disability and metal health issues - this will be the minority. Nobody was fat when there was rationing during the war, and I would have thought living through bombing was bad for your mental health. Most people are fat because they eat too much and exercise too little. It's really not that hard to solve for most people. I know that doesn't fit in with the "everyone has a hidden disability" theme on MN but it's true. A few people have problems that need to be dealt with but with most it's simply lifestyle and you can change that.

A group of three very overweight women were sitting in front of me on a flight. As they sat down the whole row rocked and the seats creaked everytime they moved. They spent the flight topping themselves up with food and alcohol. They were fat for a reason, and they weren’t showing any signs of feeling ashamed of it. Meanwhile I spent the flight fearing they were going to end up in my lap.

I’ve also been on a flight where there were too many empty seats on one side of the plane and the pilot wouldn’t take off until the weight was evenly distributed.

It’s not just about comfort on a flight, passengers need to be able to get in and out of the seats and down the aisles in an emergency. Plane seats are plenty big enough for most people. For the few who find they don’t fit, I’m afraid the solution lies with them.

I will concede though that by serving fatty snacks and alcohol throughout the flight the airlines are adding to the problem.

Sounds like an awful programme with unpleasant intentions behind it. However, the problem is real and if I pay for a seat. I expect all of the seat. Airlines need to find their preferred way of discreetly managing the problem so that everyone keeps their dignity - overweight people and those who are not, so the latter don’t have to go through the embarrassment of complaining on the plane.

Ok colehawkins, not height! Think you get the drift though ...

Think most tall people know about booking extra leg room but obese people don’t think about booking extra seat room.

I was squashed into a tiny space for 9 hours because 2 large people travelling together had taken aisle and window, rendering the middle seat almost invisible. I guess they were hoping the middle seat would remain empty. Alas no. Full flight. Me stuck in the middle. Cabin crew sympathised but no other seat available. NEVER again.

They need a discreet seat at the check-in desk like the one that says ‘your hand luggage must be able to fit in this space’, so that people can check before they attempt to board.

Someone I knew had to fly with a man overspilling into her seat for a flight from NY to UK with Norwegian Air - he was so fat that the armrest wouldn't go down.

The cabin crew doing their safety checks - before takeoff and landing - could clearly see it but chose to ignore it. The irony was they were telling other passengers to put their tables up and arm rests down. My friend spent the whole of the flight (middle seat) cramped up and unable to get out (he was on the aisle seat) and when she got off had bad back ache from the awkward position she had been forced to sit in for the whole flight. She was a young girl, around 18 years old and felt she couldn't say anything.

He should definitely have had to pay for 2 seats - by the way, his partner, who was also very overweight was sat on the corresponding aisle seat next to him. So they both clearly chose those seats knowing it would have been impossible for them to have sat next to each other but no doubt felt it wouldn't matter for a total stranger to be inconvenienced by them.

The cabin crew should have intervened - I would say it was a safety issue above anything else.