Well, We All Knew It Was Coming.....

More About Fat People On Planes

And the day has finally arrived. United Airlines will have some new policies in place for overweight people on their planes.  While these are some complicated issues, the answer is very simple.  If you can't fit into one seat on the airplane, then maybe you should buy two seats. Problem being "who is fat or overweight".

And bring in the lawyers, unleash their wonderful knowledge.

So it seems to me that if they can have those little "sizers" for your carry on, maybe there should be some kind of human "cattle guard" type of device, just like a metal detector kind of system. Oh Lord, there's another hour of waiting in line to get on a flight....

Well, again we knew this was coming....most volume 'airmile' flyers have been discussing this for years, here 'granny fatty' that hasn't been on a flight in years, didn't remember the seats being so "small". And what about the flights that are being packed to the gills by the airlines for economic reasons.

And it looks from the info below from the Chicago Tribune that alot more is at stake for the airlines and for travelers...

My sister and brother-in-law just had a long flight a few weeks back, she told me the passenger next to her was seriously overweight and overly aggressive about the situation. Nearly breaking the seat and her "blubber" hanging over the armrest made for a miserable flight for ALL!. Sure the blimpies are embarrassed about their weight, all of a sudden it's everyone elses fault that's involved.

And then they say..."Well you should go ahead and fly first class". Not much of answer. Sure the seats are wider, with the partition in the middle, it clearly will put too much weight on the front end of the plane. So it is necessary for the airlines to spread the excessive hundreds of pounds throughout the plane.

And then was this woman on the news who says they will sue the airlines for discrimination. We all have to laugh out loud...LOL!! Now to let you know, I'm abit overweight, my doctor shocked me last year when he informed me that I am now OBSESE!... I'm just short for my weight mass. But I'm clearly aware of "tight" situations wherever I am.

It was like the fat people blaming McDonalds for their inability to push themselves away from the dinner table. Then let's blame all of the fast food companys who know and now can let us know nutritional and caloric information in every bite. So, is it our fault that fat people are fat? Or is it the skinny minnies that need to shut up and take the squeeze when they travel? I think we are at the beginning of a bulging debate.


Obese fliers: United Airlines now may bump obese fliers from sold-out flights
Passengers could also pay for an upgrade to business or first class, or pay for an adjacent seat

By Julie Johnsson
Tribune reporter

April 16, 2009

With space in its aircraft cabins tight and passengers complaining about extra-large seatmates, United Airlines says it now will bump severely overweight passengers from sold-out flights.

Passengers who are too large to fit comfortably in a single coach seat will be required to buy two tickets on the next flight or upgrade to business class, where seats are larger, if United's flight attendants can't find two open seats for them.

Chicago-based United decided to adopt the tougher policy after receiving more than 700 complaints last year from passengers "who did not have a comfortable flight because the person next to them infringed on their seat," United spokeswoman Robin Urbanski said Wednesday.

At 6-foot-2 and 350 pounds, former Chicago resident Dan DeBartolo knows he will face the added charges if he winds up on a full United flight. "I can honestly say that I understand the rule and why it is necessary," said DeBartolo, who moved to Juneau, Alaska, in 2008. "From the standpoint of a fat flier, I am just as uncomfortable as the poor person who has to sit next to me in coach."

United and other U.S. carriers are struggling with two conflicting trends: Aircraft cabins have never been more cramped as cash-strapped airlines try to squeeze the most revenue out of their planes, yet Americans have never been fatter.

The ranks of obese Americans have risen steadily in recent decades, now encompassing more than one-third of adults, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. At the same time, airlines have crammed more seats onto airplanes, reduced the space between seats and increasingly have sold-out flights.

"It wouldn't even be an issue if aircraft weren't as full as they are," aviation consultant Robert Mann said.

To cope, U.S. airlines have crafted rules for dealing with obese passengers that are either followed informally or buried in a legal document called the "contract of carriage," which establishes services and charges for flights.

United drafted its new rules, which took effect Wednesday, because of the complaints and "to provide clarity for its customers and employees," Urbanski said.

United previously had no set policy for dealing with obese passengers, and all of its major competitors did.

Delta Air Lines, the world's largest carrier, said it tries to place overweight passengers next to empty seats. If the plane is full "we can offer the passenger the option of purchasing an additional seat on the next flight at the lowest fare class available," Delta spokeswoman Susan Elliott said.

American Airlines doesn't "charge for an extra seat unless there are simply no other options," spokeswoman Mary Frances Fagan said.

Southwest Airlines requires any passenger who can't comfortably lower their armrests to purchase tickets for two adjacent seats. Southwest will refund the cost of the second seat if a flight isn't sold out.

Although the policy has been on Southwest's books for a quarter-century, the low-cost carrier faced widespread backlash when it reminded consumers of its standards for larger passengers in 2002 as it switched from plastic boarding cards to electronic tickets.

Southwest still receives plenty of mail on the issue, spokeswoman Brandy King said. But the upset customers are more likely to be passengers who feel they didn't have enough room on a flight.

But as airlines adopt or toughen policies for obese passengers, some question how they can enforce such measures fairly, or without creating disastrous customer relations.

"How do you eyeball someone and decide they're not going to fit?" said Mann, who is president of R.W. Mann & Co.

"From a knees-to-seat-back perspective, I don't fit. I'm 6-foot-4. It's reached the point where it's essentially impossible to sit in coach and have the person in front of you recline," he said.

Then there's the very human cost to the overweight people who are forced by carriers to switch to another flight and to purchase a second seat to ensure their place on it.

Oak Forest resident Lynn Celmer, a formerly obese frequent flier, said people without weight issues can't comprehend the humiliation of having to ask for a seat-belt extension or having neighboring passengers ask to be seated elsewhere.

"I can't even tell you how embarrassing it is," said Celmer, who had gastric-bypass surgery several months ago. "I almost felt like crying."

United's flight attendants, who will have the delicate task of enforcing the new policy, will try to find two adjacent seats for overweight passengers. "If the flight is full—and that's not often the case these days—you'll be bumped from the flight," Urbanski said.

If this occurs, passengers will be forced to either find a flight with open seating or buy two seats or an upgrade to a class of service with wide seats in order to secure a spot on a fuller flight.

United said it will waive fees it would normally charge for changing travel plans.

If seating is not available and a passenger decides not to travel, the ticket will be refunded without any penalty, even if it is a non-refundable ticket.

The new policy for United affects tickets purchased on or after March 4 for travel on or after Wednesday.

DeBartolo welcomes any measure by carriers that will ease the stress he feels as a jumbo flier. He furiously researches seat maps of the aircraft he will be flying to locate seats with more room. If he can't upgrade to first or business class, DeBartolo selects window seats, where he can "spill over" into the gap between his seat and the plane's wall.

"If United can find a way to discreetly allow larger passengers to have or buy two seats, then it will make life easier for all parties involved," he said.

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