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Girth Surcharge: Should Overweight People Pay More to Fly?
While boarding a Southwest flight on Sunday, I found myself in the back of the airplane looking at the two remaining seats--both of which were middle seats. One, however, was next to a particularly overweight woman whose girth spilled over into the free seat. Can you guess which seat I ended up choosing? That's a no-brainer.
Fellow passengers who infringe on another person's sitting area tend to be particularly despised. And yet, there is only one American carrier who has done anything about it; Southwest.
A fascinating article in Sunday's New York Times tackles the issue of overweight passengers taking up too much space on planes. Southwest, Charles Passy writes, solves the problem by simply forcing obese passengers to buy a second seat onto which their fat may spill.
And what constitutes obese? A person who cannot lower the armrest while sitting down.
Naturally, the airline was sued for discrimination. Southwest, however, surprisingly won. Perhaps this was due to another lawsuit in which a passenger on Delta successfully sued the airline after sitting next to a 450 pound man who encroached well into the plaintiff's seat. The plaintiff sued under the pretext that he had paid for a full seat and did not receive one.
So, what to do? From a purely selfish standpoint, I agree with Southwest; an overweight person should purchase a second seat so as not to squish their fellow passengers. On the other hand, I understand the discrimination at play here.
I suppose things could be worse for the grossly obese: they could be charged for their weight. On most airlines they pay the same cost as I do, but are allowed to board with a few hundred pounds of excess baggage. And yet, if my personal luggage weighs more than 50 pounds, I have to pay $50 in excess fees. Does this mean that I'm subsidizing someone else's chocolate milk shake that went straight to their hips?
Filed under: Airlines
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 2)
rrun Oct 16th 2006 6:15PM
No offense but the majority of people out there do deal with their weight; it is a constant choice, do I eat the cheeseburger, fries, and shake or do I choose the less tasty salad with low-cal dressing and protein bars for dessert.
Corrine Oct 16th 2006 6:49PM
AMEN... Tiffany.. (#16)... xo
Melody Smith Oct 16th 2006 7:33PM
So I should suffer indirectly because you can't admit you are fat? No way! I do NOT want fewer seats and higher rates - I can barely afford them now. All because no one wants to say the emperor is fat?
FAT FAT FAT. If you are too fat to fit in the seat, please create a FATLOB AIRLINES. Don't squish me.
Having been stuck between two Bavarians with many a beer under their lederhosen on Lufthansa, I do NOT want a politically correct solution. This is a matter of COST and courtesy. If I had a dog with me in a carrier too big for underneath, I pay the extra fare.
Sandra Oct 16th 2006 7:58PM
Let's face it. The overweight are the only group left who can be insulted to their faces in public and those who do the insulting never feel the least bit guilty. And come on, most of you have talked about big women. What about the big guys? They travel as much or more than big woman and generally have all their luggage with them.
And, while being cooped up on a packed flight can make everyone cranky, a little kindness all around can make most situations better. Crying baby? Have you ever offered to hold the child? Sometimes, a baby will relax when a calm person holds them and the parent needs the little break. And, if the volunteer happens to have a nice soft chest to rest on --the kind the big girls have -- sometimes those kids go right to sleep. Give those women some slack.
Greg Oct 16th 2006 8:02PM
And while you are at it please make sure I am not inconvienenced by handicapped people in wheelchairs or obnoxious kids or screaming babies or sick people or people who smell wierd or people who dress funny or old people who move too slow when they get on or off the plane! And tall people! They should have to pay for two seats, the one they are in and the one in front of them. If I sit in front of a tall person I cannot put my chair back!
Danyel Oct 17th 2006 10:18AM
I think it is definately right to charge an obese person for an extra seat if they need it. You get charged for everything else so why would big people get out of it? I think that if I have to sit next to an obese person and they are in their seat and half of mine they can pay for my seat as well! I don't get any discount for being small.
jmunni Oct 17th 2006 1:02PM
I thought that the majority of people in the US are overweight or obese anyway. Large people are in the majority; if anything, airlines should be catering to larger people, since they're buying more tickets.
I've suffered on one flight, smooshed against a window, seated against a very large man. And by large I mean a hugely muscular, bodybuilder type. Large size doesn't just mean fat!
Linda Oct 18th 2006 3:02PM
Southwest isn't the only airline. I used to work for America West and they also charged for passengers who spilled into adjoining seats -- only on fuller flight however. (Don't know if that still true after the recent merger). It was about passenger comfort and fairness, not about additional revenue for the airline. I had one lady who flew us every week. She was so large that she required both seat belt extentions (the demo pieces used by flight attendants) to buckle her seat belt. It was uncomfortable to inform her of the rules, but she was very understanding and paid for 2 seats on full flights. She was happy not to have to be squeezed in a full row and the passenger in the 3rd seat was happy not to be encroached upon. Fair is fair. The price of a seat is the price of a seat. If you take up 2, you should expect to pay accordingly.
Chris Oct 18th 2006 4:17PM
When are we going to stop adjusting the size of things and start adjusting the size of people?
"Make the airline seats bigger"
"Give me a bigger car"
"Give me more food"
"Give me a motorized cart so I don't have to walk through Wal Mart while I buy more fatty food"
No. Wrong. Stop it. If you are fat enough that you don't fit into a Honda Civic (not saying everyone should drive one, it's just a reasonably sized car), an airline seat, or the average amusement park ride, then maybe you should spend a little less time driving, flying, and riding, and more time in the gym.
I've been overweight... actually, I probably still am by reasonable health standards. I'm a 5'8" tall male and I got up to 240 pounds. I was absolutely disgusted with myself. Did I whine about how I should get special treatment because my obesity made me feel bad? No. I went on a diet and exercised and now I'm down to 200. I'm still a little higher than where I want to be, but the only special treatment I've asked for has been requests that when we go out to lunch, we go somewhere that I can get something healthy to eat.
I am sick and tired of the concept of personal responsibility being foreign in this country. If you're fat, it's YOUR fault. I do NOT believe in any medical condition that can cause someone to weigh 600 pounds. The only condition that causes someone to weigh 600 pounds is OVEREATING AND LACK OF ACTIVITY! If you're fat and you're unhappy about it, DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!
Good Lord people make me angry sometimes...
BG Oct 25th 2006 1:17PM
Quote: 10. Of course obese people should have to purchase an additional ticket. That goes without saying in my opinion and the airlines should enforce it. I know when I fly if I run into that situation, I have voiced my objection and been reassigned to another seat and even bumped to first class. I paid for a seat to so I am entitled to a full seat. I am tired of the word discrimination, there feeings get hurt because of their own lack of will power. The amount of peopl who genuinly have a medical condition causing obesety is so small that is is not applicable to this discusion. But even those who have a medical condition can surely understand that I don't want to share my seat. How is it fair that regardles of what caused their condition I have to sit uncomfortably in my seat?
TO THE PERSON WHO WROTE THIS: LEARN TO SPELL BEFORE YOU GO BRAGGING THAT YOU WERE BUMPED TO FIRST CLASS BECAUSE THE PERSON NEXT TO YOU WAS OVERWEIGHT. SIX MISSPELLINGS AND AT LEAST TWO GRAMMATICAL ERRORS LATER, YOU'VE MADE YOURSELF OUT TO BE A SKINNY MORON WHO CAN'T COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY. WHEN YOU ARE IN THE GROCERY STORE AND A CHILD IS SCREAMING AT THEIR MOTHER, OR THE AISLE IS FULL OF CARTS OR DELIVERY MEN LOADING THE SHELVES, DO YOU COMPLAIN UNTIL YOU GET FREE GROCERIES?
BEING OVERWEIGHT MYSELF, I HAVE FLOWN COACH AND FIRST CLASS. I AM A LARGE WOMAN (SIZE 24/26) BUT THE SEATBELT FITS WITH NO EXTENDER AND I DON'T ALLOW MY FAT TO "ENCROACH" ON SOMEONE ELSE'S SEAT. I AM ALSO VERY TALL (6 FT +) AND FIND THAT THE LEGROOM IS MORE OF AN ISSUE THAN THE SIZE OF MY BUTT.
CAN THE AIRLINES START CHARGING EXTRA FOR EARPLUGS FOR THOSE WHO ARE AWAKE WHILE THE SNORERS SNORE? CAN THEY CHARGE MORE FOR THOSE WHO ARE HYGENICALLY CHALLENGED AND STINK UP THE WHOLE CABIN? THIS ARGUMENT IS INSANE. FOR THE MOST PART, IF IT IS FEASIBLE, LARGER PEOPLE WILL BUY ANOTHER SEAT OR FLY FIRST CLASS FOR THEIR OWN COMFORT. IF NOT... DEAL WITH IT, JUST LIKE YOU DO THE SCREAMING KIDS, THE SMELLY PEOPLE, THE SNORING PEOPLE, AND THE ONES WHO NEVER SHUT UP. FLYING ISN'T FUN. NEVER HAS BEEN, NEVER WILL BE.
BG Oct 25th 2006 1:28PM
Oh, and AMEN to number 26. I have had exercise induced asthma since I was a small child (young AND thin) and I battle with PCOS. It's not all personal choice. I eat healthy every day. Every day. Salad, fruit, lean meat, seafood. I can't tell you the last time I had a milkshake or anything that even resembled one. People are so inconsiderate and uneducated.
And to the jerk who wrote number 29, let me say this: I can't fit comfortably into a Honda Civic. Neither can my husband. Is this because we're too fat? No. It's because we're TALL. We are both over 6 ft and the Civic doesn't offer any leg room or head room. Can one safely operate a car if they have to tilt their head at a 90 degree angle? Or if they can't get their foot from the gas to the break because of the lack of leg room? Of course not.
Congrats on your weight loss. Just remember that losing weight doesn't give you the right to be the Food Nazi and insult others. Period.