uncomfirtable journey

[planejourney]

Interested in people's opinions.
I had a recent journey from hell when an obese/morbidly obese person sat next to me on a flight for 6 hours.
He and his partner both booked aisle seats next to each other and both were morbidly obese. I was in a middle seat and another passenger in the window seat.
He struggled to get into the seat and had to rearrange himself and move bits around in order to get the armrest down. Once in place, the armrest disappeared. He basically overflowed into my seat and had to cross his arms for me to have any room. His right leg was in my space and his left leg was in the aisle. He was unable to get the table down in front of him.
Unfortunately I had to spend the full journey with body contact with this person. This not only invaded my personal space but was also really hot! It was a night flight and the flight was full, so I didn't want to disturb people sleeping by asking if a swap/move was possible. This person proceded to fall asleep and snore very loudly to a point where people were turning around. The trolley or people could not get past his leg in the aisle so he had to keep moving it. To make matters worse, the person in front reclined their seat right back. I felt trapped!
I had a few looks of pity and the staff could clearly see how uncomfortable it was.
AIBU to think he should have bought a second seat? Airlines should make it clear and consider the comfort and safety of all passengers. I paid for a seat and got half a one. Did this person lack consideration for others?

This is it. The 2 people sat on the other side ie with his partner also had the same issue. They swapped seats so the smaller on was in the middle. They were making a fuss and tried to catch my eye but I didn't really want to acknowledge, again, as im not rude... if it happens again, I guess I would have a quiet word with staff when out of the person site and handle it sensitively

@WhiteNoiseBlur

you ex knew he was massively overweight when he booked the flight, he knew what was In store and he knew he’d be making fellow passengers very uncomfortable

so any mortification for asking for a seat belt extender seems somewhat… limp

Sorry? How on earth can you find a similar photo? Are you going to search ‘ fat bastard on a plane?’
Incidentally, I am a fat bastard. Stop.

You should have said something on the flight immediately....nothing to be done now. Sounds horrific...

He needs to get his leg out of your space. If that means he has to rotate and block more of the aisle, so be it. That's for the cabin crew to deal with and their fault for letting him on.

I know we mustn't body shame people but when someone encroaches into another person's personal space then it's gone too far.
I think I'd ask cabin crew for help, but most flights I've been on have been full, so not sure what they could do...?

Op posted said photo

which is why I didn't bother as other passengers were sleeping and I didn't want to cause any embarrassment or fuss. And yes, it was awful him touching me, thankfully no skin to skin contact but it was hot

They were a couple. They should’ve booked 3 seats together and both sat there together - 3 seats is enough for 2 obese people.

Were you flying alone op?

holiday!

Golly gosh... trip from hell. Yanbu. I wiuld have been totally pissed off

You seem extremely considerate. It's a shame the couple described were the opposite. Definitely say something next time!

there are plenty of news articles online with similar experiences and that's where I pulled the photo from. Not shaming anyone.

I would have refused to sit there, would have given me a panic attack with claustrophobia!

Of course I'm sorry he would suffer embarrassment but he'd prefer that to me in panic mode.

Op I find it interesting people are more bothered by you potentially shaming the man rather than what he did to you!

Different airline, about five years ago a large lady couldn’t do the seatbelt up, tucked it under her belly and the attendants didn’t check as they couldn’t see the buckle , just the straps aiming for the right place if that makes sense.

It’s a tough one as I feel sorry for the other passenger too. However, I would have felt uncomfortable in your position with a strange male essentially encroaching on my personal space. It’s not ok to touch someone without their consent. I think the two large passengers should have planned ahead and sat together. They’d have been uncomfortable but it’s different encroaching on your partner’s space (with consent) compared with a stranger

I would have simmered for an hour and then exploded in frustration and panic at the thought spending the night pressed up against this huge snoring behemoth. I would have insisted that his wife take your seat and they could squash each other. Just how fucking rude are you booking a seat knowing you're going to sprawl on a stranger all night. Yuk.

Dunno how you kept yourself sane for the whole night.

I think the lesson learned here is never accept a middle seat unless you know the two people who will be on either side of you. I always go for an aisle seat on planes and public transport as I hate feeling trapped in by strangers. Happy to pay extra for the guarantee of a bit more comfort.

I’m sure he was also very uncomfortable. Ask to move next time. If you can’t complain to the airline afterwards.

I know. The snoring was really horrendous. His partner was awake and didn't nudge him. He just didn't seem to care, but I could be wrong. journey from hell!
Ultimately its the airlines responsibility but thankfully there are some considerate people too who are self aware and book additional seats

Sorry?

so you were flying alone or your weren’t?

Horrendous. I couldn’t have put up with that.

I hope you escalate your complaint, OP. They failed to follow their own policy regarding encroachment, as posted by previous posters.

It was also unsafe. As you mentioned, you and the window seat passenger could not easily exit your seat and certainly not in good time during an emergency. You were also left with the use of only one arm rest so you would have been less able to steady yourself during turbulence or an emergency.

Additionally, the cabin crew and other passengers were hindered by the man spreading out into the aisle.

Sympathetic looks didn't help, they should have addressed the issue, including deplaning the passenger if necessary and finding a more suitable seat for a later flight.

I do have sympathy for the man, however he made a choice that passed inconvenience and discomfort onto other people. That was a choice and one he didn't have to make.