Comments on: What are we supposed to do with oversized passengers?

By: It’s good to be big on American Airlines — if you’re Giant George

It’s good to be big on American Airlines — if you’re Giant George — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 12:00:04 +0000

[...] he (or Oprah) purchased more than one seat (even though it is not American’s policy to force oversized passengers to purchase an additional seat). It all started when Giant George was selected by the Guinness [...]

By: Trvl agnt CJB

Trvl agnt CJB — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:43:46 +0000

There’s another twist to this whole “weight” situation. When checking in your luggage, if it is 3 lbs over limit you are charged an extra $50, even though you weigh 120 lbs. So where’s logic or justice?

By: Michelle

Michelle — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:02:08 +0000

Oops, missed the “not”. what if the passenger is NOT “large”, but shoulders exceed….

By: Michelle

Michelle — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:01:12 +0000

So what does everyone say when the person is “large”, but their shoulders exceed the seat? I’m sure there’s complaining about that. Should flying only be for petite people?

By: Retired English Teacher

Retired English Teacher — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 19:40:22 +0000

@Robert Cleve – Robert, be nice. If you don’t like Laurie’s grammar, don’t read her posts. You have the right to not use her services as a travel agent, but it’s really tacky to call her out in public like you did. As a former English teacher, I often cringe at what I see and hear, but I try to be considerate and correct others only in private. But sometimes the situation just begs to be addressed right away. For example, your first sentence is a question. As such, it should end in a question mark, not a period!

By: Robert Cleve

Robert Cleve — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 06:07:53 +0000

Laurie,

If you are indeed a travel agent, where did you learn to properly use grammar and spelling. Go back to school before you write anything.

By: bats

bats — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:48:36 +0000

wow, that guy must be huge. i was briefly 360 pounds (6 feet tall), thankfully less now, and I still fit in a regular seat and could close a regular seatbelt and did not encroach on my neighbor’s space (though my shoulders are pretty broad no matter what my weight, so I do need to be careful).

By: Laurie

Laurie — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:11:37 +0000

As a travel agent, we have often recommended that clients buy two seat. It is ackward to broach the subject, but it sometimes needs to be done, If you know the economy seat is 17.5 inches wide, you can sit on the floor with your right hip against the wall and check where you left hip extends to on the floor. If it’s more than 17.5 inches from the wall, you need two seats. In years past, though, there was a regulation that a person could not buy 3 seats. That sized individual would have to find another way to get where they are going.

I sometimes have passengers who just like the extra room offered by buying two seats. They might be very small,but they like to have elbow room. They buy the second seat under the name of “Extra Seat”, and it belongs to them, regardless of whether the airline wants to use it for an overbooked flight. It;s usually much less expensive than buying business or first class.

By: ajaynejr

ajaynejr — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:16:48 +0000

The airline has the right to reseat passengers starting with the larger person and the person next to him.

The person next to the large person is entitled to a full seat or (following all bump rules) bump compensation. He should bring the problem to the attention of flight staff as soon as possible and have the complaint resolution officer summoned if the problem is not resolved to his satisfaction before departure.

The large person is not entitled to bump compensation if there are not enough seats on the entire plane to give him more seats than he purchased.

While it is okay for a larger person to sit overhanging the aisle assuming that arm rest can be raised, there is the concern that the total weight in that seat row may be excessive.

By: JESS Kalinowsky

JESS Kalinowsky — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:10:35 +0000

Travel agents are nōtōrius about ‘selling DOWN’. I promise you, if you call the top 10 “best travel agents’” in your competition area and simply say “What is the fare from XXX [your home airport] to London, or Paris or Rome or Tokyo, destinations of your choice, I assure you the response will be “The cheapest fare from XXX to YYY is……” IF they even ask the travel dates! I like to say, “Thank you very much, but we were interested in flying First Class”, and hang up the phone. You can call them an hour later and they will do the exact same thing! Because they have been conditioned to offer the caller the cheapest! Same thing goes for Cruises: Hello XYZ Travel, my wife and I are interested in a cruise, what do you have to offer? They will offer you the shortest cheapest cruise possible. Most travel counselors do not have a clue how to ‘qualify’ the client! We have not sold a inside cabin in probably 10-15 years! Sell UP Sell UP Sell UP!
The person that sold the big man a ticket had the perfect opportunity to sell a first class seat, unless of course he was cheap and bought it online, and in that case he deserves to be uncomfortable! Some airlines charge large people for two seats.