Do passengers on airlines have to purchase an additional ticket because of obesity?

Answer 1

Airline obesity policies differ in degree and detail, but decree essentially that if you don't fit in a seat with an extension seatbelt and the armrest down, you will be charged for two seats or removed from the plane (and possibly booked on a later flight with enough extra room). Some airlines will offer a discount on the second seat or refund the cost if the plane isn't full, but in many cases obese passengers simply have to pay twice the price as other fliers. The details of what constitute "fit in a seat" differ from airline to airline, for example:

• American Airlines defines someone as not fitting if their body "extends more than 1 inch beyond the outermost edge of the armrest."
• Spirit requires that any passenger who "encroaches on an adjacent seat area and/or is unable to sit in a single seat with the armrests lowered" purchase an additional seat or a "Big Front Seat." If there are no available additional seats on the plane, the passenger will be rebooked on the next flight or get a refund on his or her reservation.
• On United Airlines if you can't buckle your seatbelt (with an extension if necessary) and fit into a seat with the armrests down - and without encroaching "significantly" on the adjacent space - you must purchase an additional seat or pay for an upgrade to a roomier seat.
• On Air Canada "For travel within Canada, customers who require extra seating because they are disabled by obesity or because they must accommodate another disability may request the service free of charge" on most aircraft. (A physician's approval is required.) For flights to destinations outside of Canada, you might have to purchase an additional seat.
• Samoa Air made headlines in 2013 with its policy of weighing passengers and their luggage to determine the fare. Note that Samoans as an ethnic group tend to be of a hefty build - not just fat, but wide frames as well. Samoa has a population of about 65,000 people and there are about 30 Samoans playing in the NFL. Just think of what it would mean if single town of 65,000 in the mainland of the USA placed 30 players in the NFL - they'd have scientists checking the water for super-mutant chemicals. Now imagine the size of an NFL lineman being common for an ethnic group and you can see how pragmatic this would be for their airline.