Obese Air Passenger in Economy Seat Has Picture Taken

so many rude people. what if its a funeral or family reunion he is going to. he has no choice and he knows he will be ridiculed by rude people.
and he is obviously chatting with the guy next to him, their heads are turned in each others direction like they are chatting, maybe even flying together.

nobody is perfect and we all have our vices, most of us can hide them and not be ridiculed out in public, but we should have compassion for the ones who cant.

I am a flight attendant and here's the issue in a nutshell. First of all, we all know that fuel prices have been through the roof for some time now, and airplanes take on the amount of fuel need for the distance they will travel and the weight they will carry. They are in the business of transporting people and luggage by the pound. Each seat has an average weight assigned to it, that weight being 180 lbs (on my airline). This amount also includes that 80 lbs steamer trunk you just stuffed in the overhead bin. If weight is grossly underestimated there can be all kinds of reprocussions including having to divert to take on more fuel or in a rare situation problems with airworthiness.
Basically what it means is that in the long run everyone ends up paying for HIS extra weight in their ticket price, their time, and their safety. Believe it or not, most airline actually do research on the average size of a passenger to come up with the size (width) of the seat.
Moving on to safety. What's shown in the picture is not acceptable per faa regulations. He has to be able to put the aisle armrest down for takeoff and landing for obvious reasons. He also cannot be sitting on or otherwise hindering any portion of the seatbelt of his seatmate. End of story.
My father was a large man, 6'5" & 260lbs, so I understand the delicacy of the situation, but the nuts and bolts of this argument is safety, 'plane' and simple. He needed to purchase a 2nd seat if the flt was full, and the agent @ the gate should have taken car of the issue before he boarded to avoid embarrassment. But that man also had to know he wasn't going to fit and may have been intentionally playing the odds that no one wanted to confront him so he didn't have to pay for another seat. Which reminds me: if you are a passenger of size and you run into this problem on a full flight thinking 'I'm in my seat no one can do anything about it now' you are wrong. You will be the person removed. So buy the extra seat (chich is usually only $50 anyway) as your insurance policy.

Agreed. People in our society have become such self-absorbed jerks. The way they treat each other is sad.

You should have to pay for 2 seats if you are that fat.

guys really ????? that is a bad photo shop . i fly all the time and im 5ft 9 and my head is about ear level with the back of the seat when sitting down . the top of the seat is in his lower back area when sitting so hes 1 about 7ft 10 or 2 its a photo shop ....I go for 2

I feel sorry for him. He must have felt very uncomfortable and humiliated.

I am a normal sized person and it would be unfair to have to sit next to this guy because it would make you very uncomfortable. But on the other hand, he is a human being that deserves dignity.

Agreed. People in our society have become such self-absorbed jerks. The way they treat each other is sad.

When YOUR vice imposes on me I have every right to get upset. Fat asses should be required to buy two seats and if they are so rude and low class that they don't we have every right to ridicule them.

Obese Air Passenger in Economy Seat Has Picture Taken
Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Telegraph UK: An image of an obese passenger squeezed into an economy airline seat has reopened a debate about how airlines deal with growing numbers of oversized passengers.

The picture, posted on an aviation blog, was reportedly taken by a flight attendant to illustrate to airline managers the difficulty of dealing with passengers who cannot fit into seats.

It is unclear if the man was aware his picture was being taken or whether the flight, on US carrier American Airlines, took off with the passenger spilling out of his seat.

Airlines already offer extended seatbelts to larger passengers to comply with safety rules but a number of carriers now insist obese customers buy an extra seat.

Read more
[link to www.momlogic.com]

Obese Air Passenger in Economy Seat Has Picture Taken
Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Telegraph UK: An image of an obese passenger squeezed into an economy airline seat has reopened a debate about how airlines deal with growing numbers of oversized passengers.

No, you don't.

Yes I do. Because the "self-absorbed jerk" is the one spilling his fat into MY seat.

Head slammed? Sounds like you're one of those rude self-centered fat asses.

No, I'm not. But I have little patience for worthless little creeps such as you.

No, I'm not. But I have little patience for worthless little creeps such as you.

How many twinkies have you had today? ........... Be honest.

I feel sorry for him. He must have felt very uncomfortable and humiliated.

I am a normal sized person and it would be unfair to have to sit next to this guy because it would make you very uncomfortable. But on the other hand, he is a human being that deserves dignity.

I am a flight attendant and here's the issue in a nutshell. First of all, we all know that fuel prices have been through the roof for some time now, and airplanes take on the amount of fuel need for the distance they will travel and the weight they will carry. They are in the business of transporting people and luggage by the pound. Each seat has an average weight assigned to it, that weight being 180 lbs (on my airline). This amount also includes that 80 lbs steamer trunk you just stuffed in the overhead bin. If weight is grossly underestimated there can be all kinds of reprocussions including having to divert to take on more fuel or in a rare situation problems with airworthiness.
Basically what it means is that in the long run everyone ends up paying for HIS extra weight in their ticket price, their time, and their safety. Believe it or not, most airline actually do research on the average size of a passenger to come up with the size (width) of the seat.
Moving on to safety. What's shown in the picture is not acceptable per faa regulations. He has to be able to put the aisle armrest down for takeoff and landing for obvious reasons. He also cannot be sitting on or otherwise hindering any portion of the seatbelt of his seatmate. End of story.
My father was a large man, 6'5" & 260lbs, so I understand the delicacy of the situation, but the nuts and bolts of this argument is safety, 'plane' and simple. He needed to purchase a 2nd seat if the flt was full, and the agent @ the gate should have taken car of the issue before he boarded to avoid embarrassment. But that man also had to know he wasn't going to fit and may have been intentionally playing the odds that no one wanted to confront him so he didn't have to pay for another seat. Which reminds me: if you are a passenger of size and you run into this problem on a full flight thinking 'I'm in my seat no one can do anything about it now' you are wrong. You will be the person removed. So buy the extra seat (chich is usually only $50 anyway) as your insurance policy.

and obese

I agree!

5* comment..... when will mankind STOP being so cruel??

Try love and compassion.....

No one here knows if that man has a medical condition or not.

Instead of selling "seats", they should sell "spaces".

The word "seat" implies a place for one person to sit, big or small. A "space" would be x inches of width.

This would protect them from lawsuits and discrimination claims.