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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Is it unreasonable for airlines not to provide wider seats for obese passengers?

531 replies

Kag13 · 04/05/2026 21:05

I have today spent a four and a half hour Jet2 flight seated next to a young man who was at least 20 stone, probably larger. I could not use the left hand armrest as his body (fat) buldged over it and into my personal space (which on a budget airline is not that large) and his leg was resting over part of my seat.
Luckily I am only 5’2” and not that big but what would happen if someone of the same size was seated next to him?
it made for a very uncomfortable flight for me. Am I being unreasonable to think this is not right?

OP posts:
Livelovelaughfuckoff · 04/05/2026 21:47

notimagain · 04/05/2026 21:37

....Be interesting to see how that might go legally.

Can you magine the crap that would hit the fan (and the court case that would follow) first time that happened.

Show quote history

Who knows. Technically it's not a protected characteristic but if it is linked to a disability or found to be considered a disability in itself then I suppose their is a case to be had. I still don't think you should have to pay full price for a flight and have to suck up losing half your seat to someone else.

Millymollymandy4 · 04/05/2026 21:48

ObliviousCoalmine · 04/05/2026 21:11

You’re being unreasonable in your tone and wording, for a start.

Airlines have made seats smaller and smaller to get more people in, people are getting bigger, for a multitude of reasons (very few people are bigger because they chose that option).

You’re not going to get airlines making seats bigger, and you’re not going to get people booking two seats while money is tricker, so it’s a stalemate.

We all have to weigh up different social scenarios and whether we partake in them based on our various tolerance levels for things, if this is something that you can’t tolerate, then you can make that choice; just as others choose not to travel on the tube/go to big concerts etc based on how other humans occupy those spaces.

If you just came for a “fat people are gross” whinge, then crack on, but at least be upfront about it.

Omg

why is the onus on op and not the ma who should have booked the seats

likelysuspect · 04/05/2026 21:48

its not weight that is the issue for what people are describing here, its girth

Of course weight is important in terms of the plane, but in order for people to be seated comfortablly nexrt to each other its the girth that counts

A small woman of 13 stone could have girth that spills over but a man of 15 stone might not do depending on height, so I think a literal 'seat check' is better than a weight check

But like others say, can you imagine the uproar.

Strawberryteabag · 04/05/2026 21:48

wendywoopywoo222 · 04/05/2026 21:13

It’s not down to the airline. People should take personal responsibility. at over 20 stone I booked two seats. Much more comfortable for me as well as who I am sat with.

The problem with that is if you booked Ryanair your 2 seats would be at opposite ends of the plane 🤣

Gwenna · 04/05/2026 21:49

I think some stark realities come into play here:

  1. We are all different shapes and sizes. It’s not always as simple as “lose weight”.
  2. Not every fat person who needs (or dare I say wishes…) to fly can afford two seats. Should they remain at home forever until they can “lose weight” (See 1 above)
  3. Is it really so unreasonable to ask airlines to consider making standard seats slightly wider by even a couple of inches. After all, they are businesses offering their wares to modern society, and in modern society (not 50 years ago) we are all in reality different shapes and sizes (See 1 and 2).

Just my thoughts.

LiarAtAWitchTrial · 04/05/2026 21:50

They're making the seats narrower so they can fit more in.

Dh flew to America recently and said he was so uncomfortable because his shoulders were too broad to fit in the seat. He's not overweight. He's always struggled with leg room but he says it's getting worse.

A guy in work was telling me he no longer flies because he doesn't fit anymore. He's a power lifter so has very broad shoulders. He drives all the way to Poland instead.

Feis123 · 04/05/2026 21:51

PolkaDotPorridge · 04/05/2026 21:07

That sounds very uncomfortable for you, if they’re that big then they should be charged for two seats!

They will be delighted to pay for two seats! As Joan Rivers said, they will get 2 meals!

Gwenna · 04/05/2026 21:52

Strawberryteabag · 04/05/2026 21:48

The problem with that is if you booked Ryanair your 2 seats would be at opposite ends of the plane 🤣

Show quote history

😂💀

Thingcanonlygetbetter · 04/05/2026 21:53

That is awful op. I had a flight recently that a man was so large that his stomach was touching the seat in front and he couldn’t close his legs. He took up
a seat and half. The middle seat was free, I was at the window. I did think what would have happened if someone was in the middle seat. Where would they have fitted. I also felt trapped in the window seat. What if there was an emergency. I think if you that overweight it should be compulsory to book two seats. You can’t take space someone else paid for

likelysuspect · 04/05/2026 21:53

I dont think they're making seats narrower, its just that people are bigger.

lavieenrosetintedglasses · 04/05/2026 21:54

People need to buy seating to suit their needs.
I am not overweight but have pretty bad anxiety around flying and cope much better with a bit of space.

When flying with budget airlines I book a comfort seat so I don't have anyone sitting right beside me. I've done it several times with both easyJet and Ryanair in the last year. The added bonus is I get an additional underseat bag so don't need to pay to bring hand luggage on board as that is enough luggage. If travelling with DH I sometimes don't book a comfort seat as I'm happy enough beside him but often I do anyway as he's very tall so it helps to have leg room. If travelling with DC we often booked a comfort seat when they were under 2 but maybe 18 months upwards so they didn't have to be on my lap the whole time.

The issue is mine and I take financial responsibility for it. It is actually not easy to book the extra seat online which might be why some people don't do it. I realise others don't because they don't want to pay extra.

notimagain · 04/05/2026 21:54

PoppinjayPolly · 04/05/2026 21:43

What would the court case be based on?
“im too large for a standard seat so had to pay accordingly to travel”?
can I take the airline to court for expecting me to pay for the 4 seats my family needs?

Show quote history

It's not about the extra charge.

I may have it wrong but it sounds to me that with your suggested scheme if the flight is full if a pax fails the guage check you either have to offload them due to their size or offload somebody else to free up a second seat.

The legal take on that might be interesting.

Twoshoesnewshoes · 04/05/2026 21:55

My DO is 6’4” so we always book extra leg room and have to pay more! It’s just how it is - if you take up more room you pay more fare.

applebee33 · 04/05/2026 21:56

He should have been charged more. Nothing worse than!

Gwenna · 04/05/2026 21:56

GertrudePerkinsPaperyThing · 04/05/2026 21:40

This is so difficult as I really don’t want people to feel shamed and as though they can’t fly but if that happened to me, I just couldn’t sit in that seat. I have a bad back and would be in agony if I couldn’t sit square in the seat.

I don’t know how I’d handle it but I definitely couldn’t sit there.

I think there should be an option to purchase wider seats just as there is to purchase extra leg room. With no judgement but you need to pay a bit extra.

Then the standard seats should have fixed, firm dividers between them as part of the arm rest, so you can’t spill through from one to the other and take another person’s space. Parents of small children can request the FCs to remove them with a key so the kids can lean on their parents to sleep, but otherwise they remain in place.

Yes I think wider seats is a good idea. That would make flying more affordable as well for those who need them..

chatgptmeup · 04/05/2026 21:57

I'm kind of in the mentality of if you need a seatbelt extender you should probably be buying two seats. It's really inconsiderate to the person next to you. The next seat person is paying for their personal space which they then don't get.

Gwenna · 04/05/2026 21:57

likelysuspect · 04/05/2026 21:53

I dont think they're making seats narrower, its just that people are bigger.

This 👏

PoppinjayPolly · 04/05/2026 21:58

Gwenna · 04/05/2026 21:56

Yes I think wider seats is a good idea. That would make flying more affordable as well for those who need them..

Show quote history

Why would it make it more affordable? Airlines would just ramp the prices!

EmeraldShamrock000 · 04/05/2026 21:58

The option should be available to the customer. I’m sure it is a cause of anxiety for the person travelling when they’re overweight.
You can’t really blame the person when they don’t have the choice of a large seat.

Peoplearebloodyidiots · 04/05/2026 21:59

ObliviousCoalmine · 04/05/2026 21:11

You’re being unreasonable in your tone and wording, for a start.

Airlines have made seats smaller and smaller to get more people in, people are getting bigger, for a multitude of reasons (very few people are bigger because they chose that option).

You’re not going to get airlines making seats bigger, and you’re not going to get people booking two seats while money is tricker, so it’s a stalemate.

We all have to weigh up different social scenarios and whether we partake in them based on our various tolerance levels for things, if this is something that you can’t tolerate, then you can make that choice; just as others choose not to travel on the tube/go to big concerts etc based on how other humans occupy those spaces.

If you just came for a “fat people are gross” whinge, then crack on, but at least be upfront about it.

Whatever the reason, it's certainly not fair on the OP.

Alwayswonderedwhy · 04/05/2026 22:04

Yanbu to feel uncomfortable but I'm not sure what the resolution is. I recently had a similar experience on a train & the man made no effort to keep out of my personal space which made for a pretty miserable journey.

Leavesandthings · 04/05/2026 22:04

Well if they allocated specific rows to be wide seats, they could have for example 4 seats in the row instead of 6.

The four wide seats would be priced at 1.5x the cost of the normal seats.

I could imagine many people feeling like that's worth it for their comfort. It's more affordable than buying 2 seats.

GertrudePerkinsPaperyThing · 04/05/2026 22:07

PoppinjayPolly · 04/05/2026 21:58

Why would it make it more affordable? Airlines would just ramp the prices!

Show quote history

Rather than those who don’t fit having to buy two seats, I think it would be.

It wouldn’t be twice as wide, maybe one and a half times?

The more I think about it, the more I think the rigid dividers idea works, so that if you do book a seat that you don’t fit in, you inconvenience only yourself, not another. They should also be removable for those who want to buy two seats for themselves, of course.

notimagain · 04/05/2026 22:08

Leavesandthings · 04/05/2026 22:04

Well if they allocated specific rows to be wide seats, they could have for example 4 seats in the row instead of 6.

The four wide seats would be priced at 1.5x the cost of the normal seats.

I could imagine many people feeling like that's worth it for their comfort. It's more affordable than buying 2 seats.

It's called business class.

Something that the LoCos won't do because they know/suspect people simply won't pay..

BridgetJonesV2 · 04/05/2026 22:09

It should all be dealt with at check in - the staff can see perfectly well who is going to spill over a seat and it shouldn't be left for some poor sod of a passenger to just have to put up with. I'm no stick insect myself but I'd be mortified if someone had to endure my bulk going into their personal space.

My son in law did an internal flight in the US last week and was genuinely shocked at the size of a lot of the passengers, but to be fair he said most of them had booked two seats. Seems to be the done thing there.