mvoight

skylady

Yes, I have had to ask pax to return to their seats when attempting to sit in the pilots' rest seats.

ecaarch

There already ARE bigger seats. They are located at the front of the plane. That's not making any sort of judgement about a POS or any other passenger. The reality is that what airlines are selling is real estate - you want (or need) more, you pay more.

bkafrick

ACAA - but I think you know what he's talking about.

GotCalcio4

What about this thread is shameful? Quite the contrary. There are times that (although not always the case) a POS is the one that is expecting (or even feels entitled) to be treated differently than other passengers by expecting something more than what they paid for. Each passenger buys a ticket for ONE seat. Any passenger that cannot fit into the ONE seat that they pay for should need to pay for the additional space that they require. The same goes for passengers that are very tall (my ex for example, being 6'4, always paid for MCE seats because he knew he would need that space). If anyone has watched the TLC show "My Big Fat Fabulous Life," you'll see that when she travels, Whitney always purchases two seats, knowing that her body will not fit into a 17.2" width seat. If it were me, and I knew that I couldn't fit into the space allocated to me in any situation, I would find a way to make the situation work for me in advance, versus showing up and intruding on other people's rights, space, etc.

There are definitely sensitive, respectful, reasonable, and ethical ways to solve this issue going forward.

carsonheim

A while back i was traveling LAS - IAH and there was a POS -- probably 400 lbs, I'm not exaggerating -- who was seated in the aisle and was quite literally in HALF the seat next to him. And the gal in the middle seat was pushed half into the window seat. Not sure what ever happened to the window seat pax, as I couldn't see clearly from where I was seated.

When walking down the aisle past the POS, everybody had to turn sideways because his upper body was maybe 12" into the aisle. I felt really sad for the gal next to him. She had a very miserable look on her face when I walked past.

It's one thing to be a bit plump and have none of your seat to share with others. It's another thing entirely to take up another person's seat.

Note: This is not a fat-shaming comment, rather a discussion that if you truly TRULY require 30+ inches of seat width, you need to make accommodations to ensure you have your needs met without seriously encroaching on another pax's space.

artemis

If you're not flying on a regional jet. There have been a few times when I have booked a First Class ticket with AA only to find myself on a regional jet that had no actual First Class section; AA had merely designated the first row as "first class" on that flight and didn't actually provide a wider seat (which was of course what I had booked First Class to obtain!).

The problem isn't as easily solved as many of the "just buy two seats or a first class ticket" crowd seem to think it is. Only Southwest actually makes it easy to actually book two seats.

GotCalcio4

I probably wasn't as clear as I could have been. My point was that the responsibility for the solution rests both with the customer AND with the company. The customer needs to be willing to address their needs upfront and in advance, while AA needs to have the processes and policies in place to make it possible for passengers to do so.

jordyn

Why do you believe that's not what happened?

Grog

If others' opinions on the broad subject (as I see it: Australian man "crushed" in economy seat 14 hours, lawsuit filed, implications for others down the road?) aren't welcome, I'd simply call for a thread lock and see how that goes rather than judge others for potentially judging others.

josmul123

Wrong.

I have no problem with the subject matter of the thread or the discussion of what happened/should have happened (Calling for a thread lock and "seeing what happens" would be the wrong approach), but the implication of treating people like carry-on luggage and requiring them to "comfortably fit within the sizer" or "excuse me, sir, can you go behind the fat curtain for a second?" struck me as asinine, offensive, and dehumanizing. While singling out and parading people of size in front of a crowd of people waiting to board an airplane because of their size might sound acceptable to people who do dehumanize large people, I wouldn't fly on an airline that implemented this practice.

AA should enforce their existing policy regarding people of size properly. If this indeed happened the way the man described, it's a customer service failure on AA's part. They have a policy which would have allowed them to handle this tactfully, and they dropped the ball.

AArlington

I am a big guy but the arm rest can go all the way down and I have not needed a seat belt extension (yet.... time to hit the gym).

But I am big in the shoulders too.

And the seats are awfully small.

I feel for all involved.

deskover54

I would support making everyone sit in the sizer, not just those borderline. Would that solve your concern?

Why can an airline charge bags by size and weight but not people? If you take up more space, you add to cost. If you take up more weight, you add to fuel.

rjw242

What an incredibly profound idea that's never once been proposed in the history of the internet.

skylady

There is a policy in place, yet few pax read or follow it.