Posted on 02/08/2006 10:35:05 AM PST by jsk10
An African-American woman claims Southwest Airlines unfairly subjected her to its policy requiring large passengers to buy two seats because of her race, her lawyer said at the start of her federal trial against the airline.
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
IIRC, the policy is only to charge people too fat to fit into one seat; I think the standard is you have to be able to put both armrests down and fit between them. They also either don't make you buy a second ticket or refund one if you did buy it unless the flight leaves totally full.
It sounds as though the gate agents weren't up on how the policy was supposed to be applied; I can't imagine that if they "miss" someone and don't charge them a second ticket, the policy would be to pull the person off the flight and make them do it at the time, especially if the flight wasn't full. The race issue is nonsense, and this is the kind of thing that a normal person would write a letter about and maybe get a free round-trip ticket from, but thanks to all these lawyers... :-p
A couple of years ago I took a flight that had the narrowest plane seats I had ever seen. I was sandwiched between two large (but not fat) men, and throughout the flight the arm rests hurt my hips. Because the men were seated first , they got the only shoulder room, and I had to spend the flight with my arms across my chest to keep my shoulders hunched forward.
I have a small bottom and narrow hips compared to other women. I have found that mens jeans fit me better than womans. I shouldn't have had such discomfort. The airline in that case (United) squeezed way too many seats onto that plane. They should have had one fewer seats in each row, and used normal sized seats. It was Airline greed, and not my size that was the problem.
What the hell is a "preboard"? Boarding the plane is boarding the plane.
Southwest lets passengers who need extra time (elderly, handicapped, people with small children, etc.) board before the herds; ergo, preboarding. Pretty much any airline will let you do the same thing, but it's an extra-big deal with Southwest because they won't assign seats so once at the airport it's a free-for-all.
And while we are on the topic, what about baggage weight limits? Why should my 100# wife have to pay an excess baggage charge for more than 70# of checked baggage (varies with the airline), while lthe 300# bubble butt with 50# of checked baggage (combined weight over twice the weight of wife+baggage) doesn't have to pay a surcharge?
Weight is weight, and it takes just as much jet fuel to fly 100# of checked baggage as it takes to fly 100# of human fat. Shouldn't excess baggage charges be based upon the combined weight of the passenger plus baggage?
Nothing I hate worse then some lard butt setting next to you and they try to raise the armrest so their blubber can cross over into your seat.
That's still boarding. Preboarding is what you do before you board, in my case having a Bloody Mary.
Again, if the policy is not applied consistently, especially in this woman's personal experience (for example, she's ok on the flight out but has to pay extra on the flight back), I think she can still complain.
I don't think SW gets its case dismissed at summary judgment. If I'm the judge, I give her lawyers a chance to show that the policy is inconsistently enforced.
Just my 2 cents.
I had that problem even when I was standard-sized. I used to make Xena's Guy raise our common armrest so I could take up a little of his space, on grounds that I didn't want any of a stranger touching me.
So, white overweight woman has to purchase two tickets; no problem. Black overweight woman has to purchase two seats;
racist policy. Ah yes, racism is alive in America in
2006!!!
This is really a funny story. If she wins, well, I hate to think!
I have sat next to big people on planes before. Yes, it's uncomfortable, but I blame the airlines. They keep squeezing more and more people into fewer and fewer seats. All the tall men are squashed like tomatoes. I'd rather pay a little more for a flight and allow each passenger a bit more room.
I'll never forget the time I got on a plane and started to sit down in the only seat I saw, which was next to this really large woman.
As I started to wedge myself in she cried "oh-no, that's MY seat too, I paid for both!" Well God Bless her, I searched the plane and found one other seat open--next to two of the most beautiful women I have EVER seen anywhere. Wonderful flight that day...sigh.
Because of her race...to the fridge!!!
Seems like I always have to sit next to people like this, involuntarily sharing half my seat.
Actually, seat pitch and width are both substantially larger than they were 20 years ago in coach. But Americans are much, much, larger. And with low fares, more of the poor, who are the most obese (hey, if you're a welfare leech, everything is free and there's nothing to do but sit around stuffing yourself) are flying.
d.o.l.
Criminal Number 18F
Where did you get that information? It sure doesn't match up to my experience or the experience of anyone else I've ever talked to. I sure don't remember those big guys having to fold up like telescopes, and I sure don't remember someone's head in my lap if they reclined their seat.
Median seat pitch used to be about 30 inches and now it's about 32, but it varies from airline to airline. For instance, Jet Blue runs from 32 to 34 inches, American 33 to 35. The standard interiors on regional jets have a 31 inch pitch. The interiors on larger airliners are customized for each airline.
People tend to fly on the cheapest airlines they can find these days, which don't always have smaller seat pitches, but do usually have fewer empty seats, increasing your odds of being sandwiched between two belugas.
Twenty years ago, median seat pitch was about 29 inches in economy. It can't go less than about 28 (there are regulation). Current seats are about two inches wider than seats in the early eighties. (The median is about 17.5. Southwest is 17 inches even. In the 1960s it was 15 inches). It's not enough for the raised-on-McDonalds crowd.
You could argue that Southwest's policy, based as it is on the armrest, might favour fat men (whose bulk is at or above the waist, mostly) over fat women (whose bulk is in the hips and thighs). However I do not think "spandex queens" have yet been identified as a federally protected minority group. Both sexes are equally unpleasant seatmates.
My historical information on seats comes from long association with the industry. A good source of current information on airline seats is here:
http://www.seatguru.com/
d.o.l.
Criminal Number 18F
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