How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about wider

Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

Anyone recall the law on this passed in Canada about a year ago? I can't recall the details but basically it stated that if a passenger needed two seats because of their size the airline had to provide it for them at the cost of one seat. I hope this won't happen here.

My opinion is that there should be a simple test to decide if you need two seats or not. For instance, if you don't fit in the seat belt, no extensions, you buy two seats. Pretty cut and dry.
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

CaptBill said:
I think the airlines should put one or two rows in coach that are plus sized seats. Offer them during the booking for an additional fee to offset the cost of capacity reduction. Even non plus sized folks would consider them as they offer more room and comfort. The costs would be far less than first class due to no first class service. Anyone not fitting in a regular seat would be required to purchase a plus sized seat for obvious reasons. If you are a plus sized person you typically aren't going to purchase a Mini Cooper or a Corolla are you? I would think you are more likely to pay a little extra for a mid or full size vehicle that offers better comfort and utility. What's the difference? You are just purchasing options that fit your needs.

I am 6'3" and know that in a typical airline seat I am going to be challenged with leg space; therefore, I pay the extra and book an exit row or a bulkhead seat that offers better comfort. It has never occurred to me to expect the airlines to make seats to cater to taller folks as I realize that they are trying to maximize revenue and passengers. Just a fact of life in a very competitive industry.
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You do it, because you are logical and courteous and you care about your comfort.

There are people that would travel for free if all they had to do was sit somebody on their lap.

If the airlines do create bigger coach seats to accommodate bigger coach passengers, where do they draw the line? At what point will they make you buy a business seat? Not to mention the bigger people that NEED the seat (not the logical caring ones like you, the others) will likely not get it, and complain like hell that the airlines are making seats too small and prices are too high
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

In theory the airlines could do it by weight.

Bigget problem would be having to put scales everywhere.

You would just get on the scale WITH all your luggage, a weight and a price would be displayed. Enter your name, swipe your card, get a receipt/ticket and off you go. This way no one would know what you weigh. You could bring as much as you wanted. Then you would seperate it for checked and carry-on items.



Airlines could allow you to reserve a seat on line for a $50 deposit. No refund if you didn't show up and rebook in new flight with in 24 hours of your flight.
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

CaptBill said:
I think the airlines should put one or two rows in coach that are plus sized seats. Offer them during the booking for an additional fee to offset the cost of capacity reduction.
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That is/was called Coach Plus on UNITED...:beer:
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

I like being surrounded by fat passengers. I imagine in a crash that I would be protected by their blubbery external layers, and emerge from their folds after the fire had been put out, not unlike Luke Skywalker springing himself from the belly of a tauntaun.

luke_skywalker_tauntaun_cake.jpg
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

Orange Anchor said:
Do away with the bag templates to see if the bags will fit in the overhead. Instead have a butt template to see if your big ass will fit in the seat. If not, there is a butt fee.. just like the bag fee. :beer:
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Niiiiice!!! I like it!

IMHO:
If you can't fit in 1 seat, buy 2. If you want to base it on weight, as has been suggested by other posters, fine. I don't care how it's calculated. If you are too large for a standard seat it's not the airlines problem.

I'm pretty sure that 50 years ago (before the explosion of: Mcd's, BK, Taco hell, Sonic, jack in the box, wendys, KFC, In-n-out, whataburger, popeyes, white castle, arbys, carls jr, checkers, pizza hut, dominos, rallys , steack-n-shake etc...) we would not be having this discussion even if the seats of back then were the same size as they are now. BTW - from a CDC study: the average weight for men aged 20-74 years rose from 166.3 pounds in 1960 to 191 pounds in 2002.

I agree that the seats are small and uncomfortable and I personally never have enough leg room. I just don't see why the airlines should lose money(larger yet fewer seats per a/c) over an individual that can't fit in the seat (why can't you fit in the seat?).

Ps- yes, I'm suggesting something here. I don't mean to offend, but if I have I apologize in advance.
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

I'm not sure if the seats are really smaller.

Let's look at a 1970s 727 and a factory-fresh 737NG.

And this is NOT scientific, obviously.

Being a child of the 70's, I don't remember late night comedians complaining about seat size, it was usually about microchicken and the poor quality of airline food.

Today, we're talking about being packed in like sardines, narrow seats, and whether certain people should be required to purchase two seats.

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but between a 737NG and a 727, it's the same cross-section. Not saying that the seat pitch hasn't changed, though.
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

Why should I have to pay more for a bigger seat because someone can't fit thier big ass into the standard seat as it exists now? I am of the premis that if your big ass is spiling over into my seat, the airline should accomidate me. I paid the same fair for the same space, so if you can't fit in your space, then simply buy more space.

Why do we keep going round and round about this. It's not a matter if discriminating against oevrweight people. It's a matter of getting what you paid for. If it's not enough, then you have to buy more.

Look at it like this. Joe Schmo buys a Caddilac Escalade and wants to drive to Timbucktoo. He purchases enough gas to get his wife's car, a Geo Metro to his destination. Half way there he runs out of gas. Is he entitled to more gas at the same price because his wifes car could have made it, but his vehicle runs out because it uses more gas? No, you simply have to buy more gas. If you don't fit in the seat, then buy two. Don't inconvenience the rest of us, because you require more space, please.
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

Doug Taylor said:
I'm not sure if the seats are really smaller.

Let's look at a 1970s 727 and a factory-fresh 737NG.

And this is NOT scientific, obviously.

Being a child of the 70's, I don't remember late night comedians complaining about seat size, it was usually about microchicken and the poor quality of airline food.

Today, we're talking about being packed in like sardines, narrow seats, and whether certain people should be required to purchase two seats.

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but between a 737NG and a 727, it's the same cross-section. Not saying that the seat pitch hasn't changed, though.
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I've been going over this very same thing in my mind all day, and tried to research actual seat width history. The MD-80 series (even the DC-9 series before it) has sat 2 by 3 in coach since it's very beginning. Airlines haven't added to the number of seats in a row, and the aisles haven't gotten any bigger. They've added the number of rows, and decreased the seat pitch, yes, but I don't think the actual airplane seat has gotten narrower.

Our collective asses have just gotten bigger! And it's not just an American problem either, the UK and Australia have the same "weighty" issue as we have here. Processed foods, a massive increase in the amount of sugar consumed, and a decrease in our physical activity have all combined to make us, as a society, bigger in the rump.

As for the question at hand... if you require a "product" (as in, space to put your butt, in this case) then you should PAY for said product. If you need two seats, you buy two seats. Period. I'm sorry if it offends the large individual, but when a person goes to a restaurant and buys a meal, does a person who eats more demand to be given more food for free because, "Well, we should get as much food as we need to fill us up!" Or, you buy a cheeseburger, if you want another cheeseburger, you buy another cheeseburger.

My $.02 worth....
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

A few years ago, a flight crew was getting close to pushback and a coach passenger reports a 'medical condition' that precludes her from sleeping well in a coach seat, but if she could lie more flat, like in a business class seat, it would exacerbate her medical condition.

More or less she was demanding a business class upgrade.

Agent comes down and says that there is still time for her to purchase a business class seat, but the passenger didn't want to pay the extra money and the mysterious medical condition seemed to disappear when the passenger didn't want to pay a few extra thousand dollars and the cabin crew wouldn't upgrade her for free.

At some point, I think we need to have a national dialogue about this type of stuff. If a person can't fit into a coach seat, there are options like "economy plus" or depending on the configuration, other seats which may more comfortably accommodate a larger than average person.

Many airlines have first class which provides more space, so there is an option, albeit at a higher price. But the higher price comes at a higher cost (fewer, wider seats per row) so we have to (a) charge a premium for the product or (b) have the other passengers subsidize the increased cost.

If my 1970's era 727 versus 2000-era 737 argument holds any weight, it seems the only people that got the short end of the stick are tall people.
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

dvtpilot said:
stop giving in to every group of people with a chip on their shoulder.
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x10000000

It seems like nothing can ever get done anymore, because we give in to anyone who pretends to be even remotely offended, even if it helps the vast majority of people.
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

elmetal said:
I always wondered why they don't charge per weight...

People that would burst out saying discrimination, please listen and I'll try to make my point.


We pay x amount per bag up to I think it's 50 lbs in most airlines now. after that you have a fee correct?

You pay one stamp on a letter until 1oz and then more stamps after.

Why not make it so a passenger pays per lb? It would be hard to implement (maybe ask you the weight online and then double check as you're walking in through the gate?)


I know lots of people are gonna attack me because "OMG THEY SHOULDN'T NEED THAT KIND OF INFORMATION INVASION OF PRIVACY OMG OMG OMG!"

Fact of the matter is: We weigh everything that gets flown, even passengers in most GA. In the airlines, they average if I'm not mistaken. Why not charge for the weight we fly? don't like the idea, don't fly. It's a choice, unlike going through absolutely false sense of security TSA lines

....
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180 lbs per person in the summer
190 lbs in the cold season to account for coats.
90lbs for kids I believe.

:I think:
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

From what I've been reading, back in the days of the 707 the economy seats were 19" wide. Today, it would appear that seats are 17-18" wide. At worst, we've lost 2", and at best 1".

http://www.seatguru.com/charts/longhaul_economy.php

This seems to be a pretty good site for today's aircraft. The older ones I got off of Wiki and Boeing.
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

Doug Taylor said:
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but between a 737NG and a 727, it's the same cross-section. Not saying that the seat pitch hasn't changed, though.
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Correct, the original 737 shared the same fuselage cross section (and most other systems) with the 727.

I doubt modern ones have much in common anymore, when the 73 was designed, it was meant for 60 pax on less than 1,000nm hops (i.e., an RJ). They have obviously increased in size over the years - I think the 739ER seats 215 in a one class config now.

There certainly are far more seats packed in these days though - a 739 typically has about twice the seats as a 732 did. It is not twice the size ;)
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

drunkenbeagle said:
There certainly are far more seats packed in these days though - a 739 typically has about twice the seats as a 732 did. It is not twice the size ;)
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Two things. Pitch and fuselage length. The fuselage has not gotten smaller in diameter. We put 164 in the 727-200 with a large first class at PI.

Fact is... the old question of 'does this make my butt look big' is a joke. 'Look' has nothing to do with it.
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

The idea of a row or two of wider seats is interesting, but I foresee to problems: 1) public relations: you're overweight so you have to ride in the back - think Rosa Parks; 2) people of means (as opposed to people of size) would see this as a more comfortable seat, kind of like the way exit row seats are now.
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

Murdoughnut said:
I like being surrounded by fat passengers. I imagine in a crash that I would be protected by their blubbery external layers, and emerge from their folds after the fire had been put out, not unlike Luke Skywalker springing himself from the belly of a tauntaun.

luke_skywalker_tauntaun_cake.jpg
Click to expand...

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::clap::clap::clap:
 
Re: How should airlines handle obese passengers? How about w

Eventually we'll get to the point where normal-sized people will tell the airline that they are a customer-of-size when they book and pay for the seat next to them. Not because they need the space, but to prevent an oversized stranger from sitting there and spilling into their own personal space.

Maybe this is starting to happen already. Is it true that the taxes and fees applied to an airfare are per passenger and not per seat? So if a passenger-of-size pays for the seat next to them, they are paying less than what would be the total cost of one ticket/seat times two?


Mike
 
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