Should overweight fliers be charged more money?

I was reading an article recently about a long haul airline (An Australian one?)that was considering new seating that would convert into a bed..the only thing was,the "double" used 3 seats of a row,so that a couple would probably have to pay a discounted rate for the extra seat..I could see something like that happening to someone too big for a conventional seat..

I think that people come in different sizes. Some are fat and others are thin. It is not nice to be called an overweight person I imagine. It is a sensitive issue because fat people will be offended by someone calling them fat. It don't think that weighing passengers would be awfully nice for them. I remember the struggle of having luggage less than 15kg. Maybe there should be rows of wide seats like one and a half person wide. Sometimes planes have empty seats in which case if a passenger is very fat it wouldn't matter. I know that economy class has narrow seats with very little leg room. Airlines are getting more and more unreasonable and so are the airport security teams. I even heard about one airline going to charge for passenger to use the on-board rest room.

Yes, there are two different considerations; weight and size. Each ticket purchased should carry a total weight allowance of both person and baggage. Secondly anyone who cannot fit within on seat without intruding into the space of another passenger should have to buy a second seat. all the best urban

Interesting question! When I traveled for the first time aboard an airplane, even the most obese person would fit in the seat. Then the spaces began to shrink (not the prices though). I am not an obese person and I´m tall but not a giant and have lots of problems at planes. The seats are small, the leg space is for a small kid. When food is served, we all put our elbows in the poor neighbor passenger´s mouth. That is, if we decide to eat a food that has become worse every day that passes. Food is served quickly (it´s lucky because noone can go to the toilet while they are serving the food). But the passengers should not be so happy if they have finished eating and want to go wash their teeth: then comes the duty free service aboard. You can buy there all sorts of items a lot more expensive that on land while you cross your legs (already crossed for lack of space) so you won´t pee on the seat. After all this ( I have traveled at least once a year for many decades)do you think airlines should ask the passengers to diet before buying the ticket? By the way, they could make themselves richer by sending airplane food to the prospective passengers for a reasonable price. The passengers would lose weight, they would earn more. Everyone gains. Take care. I´m sorry for this answer.but I got carried away.

I've never been stuck next to someone who didn't fit into their seat (and I've been flying quite a lot), according to some travel magazine I just saw it is not a big problem in Europe. YET. But it'll probably be so in a not too distant future. I'm not sure about how much would be fair to charge, but for the sake of both safety and comfort I think that you should have to order two seats if you can't fit into one. I have a friend who's working as a stewardess, they fly a bit here and there, and on one trip they had a passenger that was so big he filled the corridor when he sat at the aisle seat. They had to move people around to be able to walk up and down the aisle, and it's not only a question of comfort for both the person to big for one seat and the other passengers, but also a question about security. The aisle obviously has to be free, and you have to be sure that everyone can get out of their seats in case of an emergency. Not sure whether I think paying for combined weight of passenger and luggage is a very good idea though. Firstly, you'd need to weigh people, that takes time and can be traumatizing and not very funny. And it's not only weight that decides wheter you need one or two seats. Maybe they could have a row or two for special cases? As you'd need a bit more space in all directions to be sure to get very overweight passengers out of the seats. Of course, then you'd have the problem whether there should be a row for very tall people. Hmm, I think I'm happy I don't work with this problem .... :-)

I think they should be charged more money. First of all, if they can't fit in one seat, what are they going to do? Are they going to stand the whole flight (assuming the flight is full)? Because that is not safe. It's also not fair for the person sitting next to them because they paid the same price and they can't enjoy their flight as much as they would if a thin person was sitting next to them. Secondly, the amount of fuel that an airplane spends is based on weight the plane has to carry and if they weigh luggage, they should probably weigh obese people too. The idea that obese people would get a refund after the flight if the plane was not full is good too.

A co-worker of my husband is a fairly large man. He does not fit into one airline seat and when they have traveled together my husband is very crowded because this man takes up some of his seat also. It may be mean to charge extra for someone who takes up 2 seats, but it's even meaner when someone who's paid for a full seat only gets half of one.

greatsasuke, Of late, I feel that there has been a lot happening concerning this issue about obese air travelers having the need to buy another seat when they travel. And what started out as a safety concern for them has now become a legal discrimination matter. Frankly, I feel that there is really a need for them to realize that they need to be concern about the safety aspect, health and civil consideration for other travelers on the flight. No offense taken for obese members and readers here, but you should really see some of them trying to seat themselves in a regular size economy seat in the cabin. Now as we all know that it is mandatory to belt up during take offs and landings. However, it is also generally recommended to stay belt up throughout the flight in anticipation of unforeseen situations like an air turbulence and emergencies. I just do not need to paint the potential dangers here when such an individual cannot be rightly seated and belt up. I cannot imagine the consequences when such overweight individuals are flung around during unforeseen emergency situations, which is comparable to a loaded carry-on baggage landing on your head from the overhead compartment. Then, there is the health aspect where I am sure everyone is concern about in today's economy class travels. Even a regular average size passenger could be inflicted with the recent known Economy class syndrome a.k.a. Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) which have been proven fatal with a number of them actually dying from it during their flights. One of the causes are being uncomfortable seated in these fitted limited size seats. Considering that this could actually happen to a regular size passenger then, how much more for these family size individuals on the flight. Lastly, there is the issue of being considerate and again no offense taken. But, traveling with an oversize individual who crams over into your space can be quite an ordeal. Being crammed in a limited sized seat is already quite a feat and just when you are settled and thought that everything is going to be just fine, then comes someone who just have to occupy half your space. Now, I know where you are coming from for the airlines to be fitted with bigger or rather wider seats but I can assure you some of these overweight individuals cannot even sit into the latest A380 fitted economy class size seats. So, what are you going to do about it, coming from the airline's perspective and also as a passenger seated next to them? So in these aspects, I am opinion that the airlines just have the all the rights to have another fare structure for these individuals who really needs the second seat for that extra space. I just do not see any discrimination here from the airlines and necessary for them (airlines) to seek court orders to implement this to second seat purchase to become mandatory when it is actually for the better good of everyone. I feel that the traveler should know that though it is not an offense to be obese but it would really be appreciated if they can be discreetly considerate when they travel i.e. buying the second seat when they travel. Besides, even if they might not be paying extra for the airline seats but think what will their medical health costs be when their medical conditions beckon. IMO, making it mandatory for them to buy the second seat, may be better for them at the end of the day, where it might just help them recognize their unhealthy state and motivate them to do something about their weight. Have a nice day.