A passenger flying Helsinki to Copenhagen on Monday clearly didn’t fit into the seat. From the photo it appears to me to be a Norwegian Boeing 737. The passenger sharing it offers that they felt sorry for the large gentleman who didn’t fit at the aisle “and the guy next to him in the middle seat.”
He appears to blame the airline rather than the passenger. I don’t, except in so far as they don’t require the larger passenger to buy an extra seat.
Fifteen years ago a passenger went viral when a flight attendant took a photo of him spilling over into the aisle. That photo was also taken from behind. He had the same colored shirt.. and the same hair. I think it might even be the same person?
The passenger in the middle seat bought a specific amount of space on their flight. They did not receive the space that they purchased.
Airlines commonly require passengers to purchase enough space for their travel. For instance, here’s the American Airlines policy though this frequently goes unenforced.
If a customer needs extra space outside a single seat to travel safely, another seat is required. We encourage customers to address all seating needs when booking.
- When you call to book, Reservations will make sure you get 2 adjacent seats at the same rate.
- If you didn’t book an extra seat in advance, ask an airport agent to find out if 2 adjacent seats are available.
- You may be offered a seat in a higher class of service that may provide more space; in this case, you’ll be responsible for the fare difference.
- If accommodations can’t be made on your original flight, you can buy seats on a different flight at the same price as your original seats.
I need to be consistent. I don’t believe that other passengers should bear the burden when someone brings on a support animal. The person bringing the animal should have to buy enough space on board to accommodate it.
Similarly, a person should have to buy enough space to fit in their seat, or require the airline to provide it (I do not endorse this), but certainly their size shouldn’t mean taking space that has been purchased by someone else.
Last year, a plus-sized influencer started a viral petition demanding free extra seats from airlines when passengers don’t fit into a standard seat.
Here “Big Curvy Olivia” points to a different issue entirely: she says it is discrimination that aircraft aisles are so narrow, and posts video of herself struggling to get through a United Airlines Polaris business class cabin.
Lol and the First Class cabin has much more space than economy pic.twitter.com/YCAh501hF3
— Ben Kew 🏌️♂️ (@ben_kew) May 18, 2023
The problem is that any solution would either mean (1) less space in the seat for everyone else (including for the person being accommodated!) or (2) fewer seats on board to make room for the larger aisles, which in turn would mean higher fares – so it’s passengers across the board who would still pay. There would be fewer flights, too, since not all routes and frequencies would support those higher fares.
I’m with you, Gary. Come on, he obviously knew this was going to be a problem and still bought a single seat. The plus-sized passenger is at fault. I have a plus-sized relative who chooses not to fly because he is in the same boat. He drives long distances as a result — and doesn’t blame anyone else for it.
It was indeed a Norwegian flight. I’ve flown a bunch of Norwegian flights between the Nordic capitals and other places within the Nordics and I’ve never seen such a huge guy on their flights. This is usually more typically the kind of sight I would find on North American airlines or airlines with lots of connecting traffic to and from the US/Canada.
The airline seats nowadays in economy class are awfully narrow. Even 3 ordinary low BMI guys in Europe and North America are likely to have their shoulders or arms squeezed in nowadays due to how ridiculously packed the seats are on these planes nowadays.
Screw body shaming nonsense, park fatty where he’s paying for two seats. End of story
@GUWonder – while seat pitch has been reduced almost all these planes have had 3 seats on each side from the date they were put in service (and previous versions of the same category of plane). If anything width may have shrunk a fraction of an inch. BTW I am a 6 ft 220 lb guy that has no problem fitting in any coach seat (even a middle one). In decent shape and seat belt has plenty of room left so to say seats don’t work for average sized people in a just wrong
Don’t blame “narrower seats” for the issue. It is the obesity issue. Buy a larger first class seat, 2 coach seats or don’t fly. I would be ringing the call button and I’m sure it made the “plus sized” (why can’t we say fat anymore) passenger feel bad but I don’t care
It looks to me that there are some empty seats. Maybe the flight attendants could move the middle passenger if that passenger wishes to move. Just a thought. Looking at the fuselage widths of a B707 and a B737, there isn’t a lot of difference in width. Airbus single aisle A320 family airplanes are just a bit wider. I thought coach seats were getting narrower, but they really aren’t on these airplanes unless the aisles are getting wider or if the seating is 2 and 3 that changed to 3 and 3.
15+ years ago, I flew LGA-PIT on a US Airways 737 in the middle seat between 2 extremely large men. Their fat spilled over into my seat from both sides, entirely covering both armrests! I had no armrests even though I was in the middle seat. Thankfully only a 45 minute flight, but I still remember it all these years later because of how unpleasant that experience was!
Outside of Polynesia, the USA is the fattest country in the world. Kuwait and Mexico are catching up quickly.
We’re the wealthiest yet die about 2.5 years earlier than people in the EU or Canada,
Pathetic
This is the airlines fault for allowing the passenger to board when they clearly do not fit in a single seat. They don’t let you board with an oversized carryon. This is really no different.
Is it time for airline passenger sizing boxes like they have for luggage?
I boarded a United Flight – SFO to Zurich – with a person so large as to make the one in the attached photos seem like a POW after World War II.
OK, maybe not QUITE that side but still . . . I simply had no seat. I picked up my small carry-on, walked back (against the foot traffic trying to get to their seats) and turned around briefly to take a photo, documenting the issue. I told the agent that I had no seat, explaining (diplomatically) that there simply wasn’t room for the upcoming 11 plus hour flight. I showed her the photo.
“So sad, too bad,” was their response. I had no choice. I simply disembarked. I was sitting back in the boarding area when I heard my name called, numerous times, to report to the gate (my baggage had been checked – the airlines are quite concerned about this).
After three calls I wandered up and told them what happened, showing them the photo. I was clearly obvious I had NO seat whatsoever.
United unloaded my luggage and sent me home. Any compensation? Nope, not a dime. Any apology, nope, nothing. I hope the wide person enjoyed their flight using two seats to Zurich. Me? I returned to Mountain View and cancelled as many hotel reservations as I could – the “not taken” trip eventually cost me over seven-thousand dollars.
I should have told my attorney to sue the airlines – but did not.
Gary,
My approach is slightly different. I view some that is too wide to walk down the aisle facing the direction they are going as a safety hazard. During an emergency evacuation they are going to slow things down. I have seen some that would note fit through an over wing exit.
If they have to wedge themselves into the seat, getting out won’t be quick.
Maybe it is time for a Size Wise portal for passengers and crew.
Some business passengers are required by their employer to fly economy or lose their job. Given that the typical airline seat design comfortably holds no more than a 90 lb. grandmother from the Old Country, this problem has no solution.
This guy looks like he needs three seats. ( maybe make a complete bench seat ). And I worry for the rest of the passengers should there be an evacuation. Could a slide accommodate his weight?
I definitely thought this was the same guy before I read down and you said the same thing.
This looks like the same guy.
@AC is 100% right here. Seat width hasn’t materially changed in decades because, at least on narrowbodies like this picture, the planes’ dimensions haven’t changed and they’ve always been 3×3 planes. Complaints of seats getting narrower is frankly just cope.
The solution is obvious. Policies like WN’s of automatic refund for anyone who buys 2 seats on a flight that’s not 100% full will help. Absent that, pax who buy one seat on a full flight and don’t fit between lowered armrests should be denied boarding and accommodated on the next flight with two empty adjacent seats.
Boarding should be simply denied unless 2 seats are booked. Period.
In the old days, there was usually room to move people around. That’s not the case these days. These people need to be told to buy a second seat or they won’t be going. None left? Find another flight.
My husband is 6’3″, has 37″ inseam, and weighs about 200 lbs. He can fit in any coach seat. You have to be ridiculously large to be unable to fit.
40 years ago,when I first started as an agent, we had one seat belt extender on a 737. I know they have at least two now. We had one wide wheelchair and the pushers had to find it and dust it off so they could use it.
We need to quit catering to people’s poor choices. And, yes, there was the rare person with a true metabolic disorder back then. Let me emphasize the RARE. Those folks you could deal with.
Linda, the likelihood of an airline getting sued for discrimination for denying boarding to someone like that is very high. I support the idea of requiring a person who can’t fit into a Y seat to buy an adjoining seat. If it’s not used, the full second fare will be refunded to the original FOP.
i am so over this cr ap. As someone who flies regularly for work (I average 85-90 segments a year) I am fed up with the self-entitled overweight passengers who feels it’s their right to spill into my seat and leave me leaning to one side for a 3 hour flight. Time to install those signs we used to see at the amusement parks that stressed “You must be this tall to ride this roller coaster” and some cartoon character held its hand out for the kids to measure up to. How about the same cartoon character with his hands separated and now stating “You must FIT between these hands to purchase a single seat”??
Another “scam” being run by the morbidly obese is to fly together, but only purchase the window and the aisle knowing that the poor bast ard smashed between them will ask the flight attendant to be moved and then they can both spill over into the now vacant middle seat. I bust my arse to stay height / weight proportional and exhibit the proper courtesies to my fellow travelers ( Ie, showering / deodorant, not wearing flip flops/ sandals, putting carryon bags under the seat instead of using a bin for a backpack, using headphones, etc), why is so hard for airlines to enforce seating restrictions???
Person who said part of the issue is employers who require employees to buy economy. At least for the US, they need to take that up with their employer as an ADA issue.
On the positive, if this is a a Boeing and the window pops out, the XXXL Pax can seal the hole and save lives.
I’m a big dude at 6’8″ 325 lbs so I just buy First Class. Even then, the legroom is usually not great because the seat itself is too low to the ground. I have to schedule a session with my massage therapist when I return home because sitting below my knees for hours and having armrests that are 4-6″ too low sucks.
When you 150 pounds you pay $100 ( let’s say ) for a weekly grocery shopping . When you are 200 lbs you pay between 175 dollars and $200 . When you are 300 pounds…. ..What do you pay ?
Do I have to ask : do you see analogy ?
When you are 150 pounds , you pay $100 ( let’s say ) for a weekly grocery shopping . When you are 200 lbs you pay between $175 and $200 . When you are 300 pounds….what do you pay ?
Do I have to ask : do you see analogy ?
Perhaps dividers between seats instead of armrests?
I’m a big guy. I know I’m a big guy. Everyone else knows I’m a big guy. It is not a mystery. I always worry about making someone else uncomfortable. It is MY responsibility to make sure I don’t put anyone in an uncomfortable situation. It’s very easy. 2 or 3 times a year my wife and I travel to Florida to visit her family. We use Southwest because it’s an easy 2 hour non-stop flight. My wife is small. We sit next to each other and with the armrest up we do just fine. I would NEVER put a stranger in that situation. When I travel alone, I use American, just because that’s where all my miles are. I buy a first class seat. It’s not that much more expensive and by doing this nobody is put in an uncomfortable situation. (And I get free booze!) A few years ago, I traveled to Japan. I wasn’t going to pay $20,000 for first class, so I bought 2 coach seats. It doubled the price of my airfare, but it was worth every cent, not only for me but for the person that I would have made uncomfortable. I don’t understand anyone who thinks this is the Airline’s problem. To me, it doesn’t matter how long the flight is. I don’t ever want to put anyone in this situation. And by the way, I’ve lost 75 pounds over the past year, and I’m still losing more. And I’m damn proud of that!
That is 100% a safety issue.
We don’t let infants sit in cars without car seats, we don’t let children below a certain height on rollercoasters and we CANNOT let obese passenger’s body’s hangout in and block the aisles- all for safety reasons! Your body takes up two or three seats you pay for them or walk to your destination: don’t endanger other passengers/ crew on board with your obesity.
At that point one needs to speak up and ask for the gate agent. You paid for a seat, not half a seat and the other person paid for a seat not 1.5 seat.
The problem is that the policy does not address what happens to the smaller passenger who is not receiving the product he purchased. This should be explicitly address but of course airlines are loathe to make promises they don’t want to keep.
Instead the passenger is faced with these choices: (1) Be squeezed (2) Call FA and demand that one of them be reseated (3) Risk losing his ticket by deplaning if #2 is refused (4) after-the-fact IDB (unlikely as airline will not want to pay comp).
In any case the burden should not fall on the passenger – it should fall on the airline for not providing the product that was purchased. And if anyone is inconvenienced it should be the COS who knows that he needs more space. Not the smaller passenger who had no idea he would be seated next to COS.
As a former CSS I always hoped the OPS Agent was watching carefully when boarding a flight. Many people of this man’s size do whatever they can to avoid detection if they have not purchased an extra seat. One man in particular told the wheelchair attendant to let him out at the Restroom next to his gate and he did not need him from there. When boarding started he made sure he was in a position where the OPS Agent could not see all of him, and yes it can be done. Onboard he took up half of the middle seat and half of the aisle at the rear of the aircraft. I was summand to address the situation because the Flight Attendant was having trouble getting past him. His answer to me was “You can’t make me get off, I am already here.” I called for the Manager to come assist and he told him he weighed 526 pounds. Manager did not back me up when I told him he would have to purchase another seat or deplane and purchase an extra seat on the next flight we could accommodate him on. The Flight Attendant was livid and frankly so was I. So calling for the CSA, CSS or Manager does not always work. Had this not happened at push time, I wondered if calling Airport Security would have helped. I am sure probably not as this was prior to United and David Dao. Our guy outweighed both the Manager and myself by over 200 pounds. The Flight Attendant had every right to be upset.
People who ooze over 2 seats are a safety hazard for all the rest of the airplane. If you had to evacuate the plane quickly they would block 200 people from getting off the plane quickly as they waddle up the aisle trying to get to the exit. They might even get stuck. When you become a major safety hazard to the rest of the passengers maybe you ought to buy a wide higher cost seat or maybe not even not be allowed to fly.;
The captain needs to cancel, postpone the flight until the overweight person leaves and finds another flight with 2 seats for him /her.
SeaPhil has the answer:
” Time to install those signs we used to see at the amusement parks… “You must be this tall to ride this roller coaster” and some cartoon character held its hand out for the kids to measure up to. How about the same cartoon character with his hands separated and now stating “You must FIT between these hands to purchase a single seat”.
Like the height measurement guide, this can be called a ‘safety’ feature and therefore no shaming, no blaming. It’s purely mathematics.
I once had a passenger assigned a seat next to an obese person come forward and very diplomatically say, “Capt, the bottom line is that I paid for a whole seat, not half a seat or 3/4 of a seat, but a whole seat & I don’t think I’m being unreasonable saying that is all I expect.” We agreed with him completely and thankfully had a much better seat to offer him. Aircraft cabins are designed to accommodate 99% of humanity. If your humanity is an outlier it is incumbent upon you to determine what may be required to service your transportation needs. The A320 is approx 7 to 8 inches wider in the cabin than a 737. An extra inch for each pax and an inch in the aisle may not sound like much, but it can make a world of difference. Extra tall people have their own issues and allowances to build in.
Human beings are not meant to be that large. Period. It is not the fault of the airline. Are the seats too small for average people? Yes, But there people are so far beyond average you cannot calculate the difference. I used to be larger (not THAT large). I made a choice and now I am not large. Make a choice. The airlines need to protect the people who do fit and have a standard..
It’s the airlines responsibility. They enforce toddlers having their own seat and ticket, so the same should be enforced for significantly large people who take up more than one seat.
On one of my most recent flights, an enormous (ginormous?) woman with a baby, no less, spilled out of the window seat and onto my legs. My attempt to lower the arm rest was met with any ugly stare, along with the stench of a dirty diaper.
When we accept the middle seat, NONE OF US expect this, and the airline just doesn’t seem to give a S***. Fortunately, it was only a 75 minute flight, but one that I’ll never forget…
I’m fat, and I’m sorry, but I buy two seats just for this reason. I also don’t fly as often because of it.
Reasonable LONG TERM solution (reasonable being the key word).
I am short and thin, and the only time I appreciate being short is when I fly; I’m thin BY CHOICE.
Personally, I’d prefer everyone to keep a paleo physique, exemplified by rock climbers, yet Americans console themselves that carrying excess bodyfat is healthy, in order to indulge in gluttony. In other words, when flying the U.S., 90% of the passengers are overweight.
But, I can’t change that, and I do like to problem solve, so here goes.
We have accepted in our society, even in the U.S., alloting spaces and resources that cater to the extra-needs of physically handicapped persons. Rather than burdening on any one occasion passengers in economy or coach class, all commerical passenger airlines flying into or within the U.S. should be required to have at least one double (or over) sized seat in their coach section. With it being the U.S., it should probably be at least TWO such seats.
Once that is in place, it is then encumbent upon a person of considerable size to specify a request for such a seat, upon making a reservation/purchasing a ticket. Now the pricing and administration of who gets the seat(s) will have to be worked out to prevent abuse. But, at least this way there is a proper physical accommodation available, and this should mitigate most problems associated with this issue. Anyone have influence with the FAA? I’m always ignored.
I was recently at the Air Force museum in Dayton, OH. There were many aircraft that you could walk through. They had a set of bars that you had to be able to walk forward facing, arms by your side through to board the aircraft. Maybe something like that that determines 1 seat or 2. Although I realize an emergency evacuation is extremely unlikely, there should be a consideration for COS blocking the way out. Maybe an average number of COS should be required for the 90 second evac certification required to certify an aircraft. If the airlines can’t figure this out, toss the ball back to the manufacturer.
How about some kind of rigid barrier or metal bars between seats? Could retract when the fasten seat belt signs are off.
Also, a comment about armrests.
If there are three seats side by side, there are two armrests that are between seats. I don’t know how the idea emerged that these “belong” to the middle seat. That is absurd.
Here is the reality. There is an invisible line dividing each of these armrests in two. Each passenger gets their half of each of these shared armrests. That is the only thing that makes sense. If I spend 8 hours with one arm up and one arm down, I’m going to catch scoliosis.
I’m 6 foot 2 and dont mix well with large people next to me as i already feel crammed, so on Southwest I have a strategy of purposely sitting in a window seat next to the first skinny petite person I find rather than choosing a window hoping nobody sits in the middle.
I was in a band, flying from LAX to Sydney,. Australia. We booked far ahead of time, and since im tall, 6’6″ amd 250lbs, I bought an exit row, aisle seat for the 12 hour flight. My row partner appeared, a giant woman, and it was immediately apparent she needed both of the remaining seats, which she got. But, her girth was such that she needed my seat to use the tray, in order to eat the copious amount of food required for survival.
So, i got booted to the only remaining seat: center of the 5-wide center aisle of the 747 (this was in the 1990s).
I spent the next 12 hours standing at the back of the plane, pounding gin and tonics until I had to pass out. Slept for a couple hours… Repeat.
The only upside was getting to hang out with the guys from the band, Men at Work…although Collin, the lead singer, sat alone in 1st class.
I was recently required, not requested, to move from my aisle seat to a middle seat in another row so a very, very, VERY large woman could have my seat and the unoccupied middle seat next to it. I’m not gonna lie, I was not a happy flyer for the next 5 hours. At least they kept offering me free alcohol, in consolation, but I don’t drink. I almost started that day!
Inexcusable. The lard-ass should have been required to purchase two seats as a penalty for packing on the excess weight. We’ve got to stop coddling fat people. Being fat is a CHOICE. There are rare medical conditions where weight cannot be controlled (e.g., Prader-Willi Syndrome) but those are rare. If a fat person has a medical excuse, it can be considered.
Airlines need to ask Height, Weight, Waist, and Chest sizes in centimeters. For those exceeding certain numbers, they should be required to reserve more space, just like a piece of heavy luggage costs more.
Just think: If you had a plane full of these fat-so’s, the plane would have trouble taking off!
Different take – I was on a SW flight with a gentleman the size of that in the pic. He had to turn sideways facing the aisle, wiggle back when somebody passed. The look on the man’s face, knowing everybody was looking at him, disgusted; the look on his was ‘shame.’ I hope I never see another human shoved into a situation like that, enduring that. Which is why I still remember it. Even if the carrier has to find a volunteer (or two) for a later flight, it’s inhumane to have that happen.
Thanks for noting AA’s stand on fat seats.
I dread it, but know the day will come when I refuse to sit with a fatty…I had to do it on a bus some years ago….and it’s just got to be one of those things: I won’t be party to giving fat people my share of my paid for seat….
I only hope they don’t jail me for refusing directions from the flight crew ~!
@AC and @Raylan. I get so tired of the myth of the narrowing of seats. The 707, 727, 737, and 757 all had the same exterior cabin widths. However, the newer the plane, the wider the interior cabin width. The non-structural walls are thinner. Since it has always been 3-3 coach on those planes, how did the seats get more narrow? Plus, the 318/319/320/321 series are wider. And, the DC9/MD80/717 had wider seats in the 2-3 layout, as does the 220. Narrowbody planes have not lost seat width, just pitch. Now, to be fair, the choice to outfit the 787 as 3-3-3 instead of 2-4-2 and the expansion of 777s from 3-3-3 to 3-4-3 did cost us width. But, we all know why they seem to have narrowed. Today’s 30 yo is taller than a 1960 30 yo on average, and thus, is expected to be slightly wider. But, the big explanation: a massive increase in BMIs.