Posted on 11/22/2011 1:40:25 PM PST by Daffynition
At nearly seven hours, US Airways flight 901 is one of the longest domestic nonstop airline flights. And Arthur Berkowitz knows how long it takes to get from Anchorage to Philadelphia down to the minute. That’s because he says he had to stand for most of the flight when he returned to Philly last July.
Why would anyone stand for that long? Because he says a morbidly obese passenger seated next to him was spilling into his personal space, making it impossibly to sit in his assigned seat, and the flight was completely full.
L
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If foreign airlines could operate domestically within the USA, I bet you'd be seeing domestic carriers pleading for new Federal regulation to protect their grimy little routes, sort of how you'd expect to see the US Postal Service flip it's lid if UPS, FedEx, and DHL were allowed to carry first class mail.
Look at what the domestic airlines do to cut costs: unregulated service and maintenance contracts in Latin America, probably using counterfeit Chinese aerospace parts. They cram you in like sardines. All so trailer trash could fly instead of taking the Greyhound bus like they had to back before the early 1980s? Sorry, but I remember what domestic flight was like in the 70s. It was something special. Now look. It's terrible. How can anyone argue?
I have flown on one of those before. I am not afraid to fly, but I will never fly on a small plane like that (or smaller) if I can avoid it.
My husband insisted he'd purchased one whole seat not one-third and needed to be seated in first class when attendant stated "flight full."
She said first class was also full and husband needed to find someone who might exchange their seat for his(middle seat.)
Husband kept insisting something be done and asked for the lead attendant. The woman with whom he was interacting said that she was in charge.
We finally found out that young obese woman had a mom and elder sister in back (both rather slim in comparison. Older sister finally exchanged her seat with mom for the one next to us.
I might mention the race of participants: obese woman, her sister and mom were black as was the rude lead flight attendant who pretended that someone taking another person's seat because they are so obese, shouldn't be a problem for "most people."
We had the distinct feeling that if attendant were the same race as we were (white) she might have been more understanding to us.
Good freaking grief!!! Do you want to pay $1000.00 for a DOMESTIC FLIGHT because that’s what it would be in todays’s dollar!!
Markets provide what people are willing to pay for.
On a flight from Oklahoma City to Chicago, she had to sit next to Dan Rather.
This should not be a problem. They should have seats for the obese. It is up to the airline to accomodate their passengers. They should not be pitting passengers against one another.
And I really don’t like the ridiculing of people’s bodies even though the Wookie has made it popular. Everyone has a heart and it serves no one to make people feel badly. It’s the airlines’ fault. Fat people travel like everyone else and the airlines are too cheap to act responsibily. One size does not fit all in life.
You know, you disappoint me. If you don’t like dressing “unacceptably” on a flight, then don’t. This is America! If you don’t like something, don’t participate, but don’t expect the government to dictate how I will live just because you don’t like it.
“I remember in 1956 we had the local Civil Air Patrol raise funds by giving people a ride on small aircraft for one penny a pound. We need to charge people according to weight. The plane spends more gasoline to get their carcass in the air, they shouldn’t pay the same.”
I was flying a little puddle jumper from Anchorage to a village once. At check-in, the gal asked your weight. Two women checked in after me, one was a hefty gal. She was asked her weight and she whispered 175. The worker told her they need the actual weight so the plane can be balanced and not crash. She blushed and said 245. I guess that airline worker used to guess weights at the carnival, she knew a lie when she heard one.
On the bright side, you were leaving Detroit
Wimp!
During WWII, my father took train from New Haven, CT to San Diego, CA. There were no seats, so he and several other Navy guys traveling with him stood up the whole way.
Well, my father didn’t stand the whole way. When the train got to Chicago, my father asked the porter if he could get a pullman. So he got a rest from Chicago to San Diego. The other guys weren’t so lucky.
Took a lot longer than 7 hours for the train to get from Connecticut to California.
What is this train you speak of?
Someone suggested that alternating kids with fatties on flights would alleviate several problems at once. :)
so 3 yrs could practically fly for free if you go by weight.....
LOL! I never thought of that......
Fortunately, I was in Philly and it was a short flight.
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