Is it unjust to require morbidly obese people to buy two seats on a plane?

This question, as worded, is deceptively simple, the obvious answer would be that if someone is using two seats, they should purchase all the space used.

But we know that it is not nearly that simple, not even as a thought exercise. Obesity is still looked on as a result of laziness, or stupid decisions or self indulgence, but the cause is usually not so one-dimensional, the reasons, both psychological and physiological are many and varied.

It is rare enough that the airline loses enough revenue by letting an obese passenger have the extra seat to even register on the meter. I have experienced more discomfort being seated next to a large, not obese, man, who decides that “flirting” with and intimidating a small, female seatmate than sitting by an obese woman and being a bit squished.

Obviously, it would be incumbent on the larger person to inform the carrier of their size, but I think charging them extra is just bad optics for the airline, and the positive publicity of compassion and generosity would be priceless.

Morbidly obese means the can’t fit into a regular seat and need the second seat, say about 18 inch wide seat and morbidly obese at 20 or more inches . . . will not fit, also the they will need a seat belt extension.

That said some airlines do not charge for the second seat. . .

I’ve often felt that airlines should have several wider bench type seats, the way doctors’ offices do, to accommodate larger people. The larger passengers might willingly pay more to be more comfortable in a larger seat, the way people with long legs may pay more for a seat with more legroom.

Could it be that the airline seats are just way too fucking small and too close together? No, it just can’t be that.

Well they are NOW @Blackwater_Park. They weren’t always.
The seats didn’t change. The average person has.

@Dutchess its a fact that airline seats have become narrower and closer together in recent decades.

I stand corrected @jca2.

Great question. I was recently on a flight and the person next to me was in this category. They encroached on my space and could not put the armrest down between us.
This was a me issue more than an issue for them. They didn’t seem to care that i was pinned to the right edge of my seat. I felt like, “hey I paid for a seat and am not getting a full one. Seating is crammed enough as it is.
When the cabin door closed, I quietly asked the attendant if there were any open seats on the plane and if I could move after takeoff.

Similar situation to stadium seats. We had 16 inches. Most people overflowed by at least a bit.

A friend tells a story about going to a stadium to watch a game, and she had a guy on each side of her, and each guy was “manspreading” with their legs open wide, so each guy’s leg was in my friend’s space. She said “wait a minute, you’re in my space and you’re in my space. You guys need to close your legs.” hahaha

It’s amazing that people will go out of their way to excuse the behavior of large corporations. Airlines have always offered a one-size-fits-all size seat for humans, who come in all shapes and sizes. And while humans have been increasing in size, airlines have been reducing the seating size consistently.

This whole “issue” is a way to blame fellow humans and paint corporations as victim. Instead of demanding that airlines offer reasonable seating for humans, people have a tendency to reflexively blame people for their size.

The more airline passengers are squashed into increasingly-smaller spaces to increase airline profit, the more people will turn on people larger than them as though they are getting away with something. A lifetime of corporate propaganda makes this possible, and makes “educated” people engage in fat-shaming in service to corporate profits. They will express this opinion in public and without embarrassment. It’s pretty pathetic, actually.

In history little people wanted half price for public transportation. I don’t remember how it turned out.

For me I am 6’5”, 288 lbs, and I have trouble fitting in taxis, greyhound, and most likely flights. If I at least fit , It takes me extended time to put on my seatbelt, as it locks frequently when I try to put it on.

I recommend being able to have a big and tall seats available. I don’t mind paying extra. What angers me is promising me accommodations and not delivering.

In university and in hospitals I am usually not accommodated, even if I ask and complain. I need an extra long bed, and a left handed desk in class.

Im sorry. I’m triggered by the topic. I just needed to vent.

I’m torn. Obviously airlines are after profit from the two-seat issue. But on the other hand obese people want to be comfortable like anyone else, and it certainky should infringe on the space others have purchased.

If airlines hadnt trended to smaller seating as the population got larger (height and weight) then it would be an easy answer.

I’d like to know what criteria they are using. According to my BMI, I am morbidly obese. While I would surely feel more comfortable with more room, I am able to be okay enough in a regular seat.

@anniereborn It is a known fact that the BMI chart is not a good measure for health. In fact it is unhealthy to attempt to try to simply attain it.
The formula for BMI was created in the mid-19th century and became popular in the 1970s. It continues to be a common measurement tool in health care today. However, it’s become controversial over the years because many critics find it inaccurate, exclusionary and outdated.
Just say no to BMI

@canidmajor Unwelcome flirting on an airplane is bad form. THOSE people should be forced to buy an extra seat so no one has to sit next to them.

Airlines don’t charge for the extra space wheelchairs take up. Not even for people who are wheelchair-bound because of their own choices, such as going rock climbing, exposing themselves to dangerous substances, or riding a motorcycle. For some reason, morbidly obese people are treated with much less compassion.

Life is so much harder when you can’t fit in. Wherever you go, finding a bathroom is a struggle, steps are a problem, people treat you with disdain. I had an uncle who couldn’t climb ten steps before needing to sit down. He was excluded all the time, even from important life events such as weddings and funerals. He was unable to leave his house in the end, even though he was full of energy and wanted to be active. Life is hard enough when you’re too wide. Why should we allow a random billionaire to squeeze the last bit of money out of airlines, all at the cost of fellow human beings who are just trying to survive despite their health problems?

I really feel like major airlines, whose CEOs are making enough money to lead a pretty easy life, can take the hit here. If they don’t like it, maybe they should start hiring flight attendants whose body type is less likely to exacerbate eating disorders. Ironically, frantically trying to stay extremely thin is a great way to gain a lot of weight.

A few years ago, the FAA was looking into whether seats were so close together as to be a risk in the case of emergency evacuation.

https://www.cntraveler.com/story/airline-seat-sizes-safety-risks-op-ed

I do not.

@MrGrimm888 do not what?

Yes, it is unjust.

I don’t think anyone chooses to be morbidly obese. It’s a genetic short straw. And it’s hard. They struggle with it their entire life. You can be kind for a duration of a flight.

I’ve actually chosen a seat next to a morbidly obese person on a flight. (It was a full flight but lots of open seats when I boarded.)

Because I was a very small person who didn’t need that much room. And I really felt for that man trying to make himself as small as possible. No one should have to move through life like that, constantly apologizing for how much space they need.

I was crammed up against one side of the seat. But seeing someone feel so less stressed out was worth it to me.

Though it was only an hour flight. So a lot easier than a longer one.

Sorry CM. I was thinking of the other answers. I don’t have a problem with it. Personally.
I actually wish it was possible I could get 2 seats, in a passenger plane. I guess I haven’t thought about it before.
I’m not “morbidly obese,” but I am much taller and bigger, than most passengers.
Well. I’m actually just tall now, as I have only managed to get my weight back up to 255 lbs. I’m 6’5, with broad shoulders and long arms and legs, and when I was 300 lbs of mostly muscle, I had a LOT of trouble flying. It was likely an unenviable experience for those around me too.
My company, used to pay for my flights, so I always flew cheap, and in some cases in some pretty small planes.

As far as planes go, I see it as a simple matter, in any other shipping than of people.
Companies pay planes, to haul x amount/weight of cargo, y amount of distance, for z.

I know that there are some “feelings” involved, but the person doesn’t HAVE to take it as an affront to them, that they may have to pay more, or be “embarrassed.”
It’s a common sense issue.
More freight, more money to transport/accommodate it.

As a taller person, I’ve had issues with everything from shoes, to what vehicles I can fit in, and it’s not been easy.
It gets old, hitting your head on everything, or breaking furniture.
But. I have been able to endure it, and I have never blamed the world for not fitting me.

I often have to pay more for XXXL+ clothing, and shoes are more rare. I can’t explain how many times, I wished I could just buy a moped. I would love a little Cafe scooter, or economy car. The last time I road my friends 250 cc street bike, I bottomed out the shocks (yes, I adjusted the suspension) coming into a driveway and almost wrecked.

So. I’ve always had to buy a full size vehicle, and that has cost me plenty.

It is, what it is.

I have a online shop, for my shoes, and clothing.

I know a LOT of “fat” people, who are not bothered by their weight. They don’t care about what people think. And THEY know, why they are big people.
(Obviously, it’s different if they have a health problem, that caused it.)

I think obesity, is one of the worst problems in western (certainly American) society.

I had a problem, with alcohol…
It got to the point, it WAS embarrassing. When I was killing myself during Covid, liquor stores never closed.
I can tell you, with great humility, that I would alternate between the two closest liquor stores every other day. I needed at least 1 L of Vodka, everyday. I didn’t want my liquor store guys, to know I bought alcohol daily in such quantity. I was embarrassed. And I didn’t care, about my body. My diagnosis, and reality, was MY wake-up call.

I think, if a person is being told “you’re so much fatter than average people, we’ll have to charge you for two seats,” then THAT is THEIR “wake-up call.”

If I could change the laws of the universe around, I would never care now people looked.
However. A LOT of people, simply alarm me.
I’m scared for them CM…
I’ve been through dying in a hospital, and I wouldn’t recommend it.
When I see some obese people, I think about them having diabetes (likely type 2,) and ALL the other health problems that WILL be the result of their condition.

When I was a LEO, we had a case involving this guy in a hotel. Long story short, he had a wife, that we missed in our investigation. Our case dissolved, because she died. She had been living in this nasty old hotel for years, and her husband was our person of interest. We thought he was running drugs, and his constant leaving and coming back, made him look more suspicious.
He was feeding his wife.
They had to knock down the wall, to remove the woman’s body. I don’t know how much she weighed. The number got bigger, every time I heard about it. But we were watching this guy, for almost a year, and I couldn’t believe that there was a woman there the whole time.
She couldn’t leave, and likely couldn’t walk. I shudder, to consider her myriad of struggles she must have been through. I don’t even know how she used the restroom. Although there were criminal things going on, and that was my focus, I couldn’t stop thinking about what type of life she must have had. She wasn’t a distributor. She was a massive crack addict, and her husband (he really loved her,) kept her high and fed.

There is almost no downside, to losing excess body fat, or taking care of one’s self.

My oldest, best friend, is a big man. He has told me, he has weighed over 450 lbs. He has struggled, for whatever reason (his business,) to lose weight. He’s tried lots of diets, and exercise, but I guess he hasn’t been able to stick to it.
I love him dearly, and I worry about his weight as we both are 44 years old now, and not getting younger…

I am NOT trying to be calloused, or mean.