Doesn’t work perfectly by any means (there are fat people who exercise and are “responsible” about their health as well as disabled people who got there by being “irresponsible”, for example), but by and large the rule of thumb makes sense to our society as a whole.

Doesn’t work perfectly by any means (there are fat people who exercise and are “responsible” about their health as well as disabled people who got there by being “irresponsible”, for example), but by and large the rule of thumb makes sense to our society as a whole.

It’s also a little bit rude to lump someone over weight in the same category as physical disabilities as physical disabilities are rarely self inflicted. And as far as it affecting their profit margins remember it is your decision to fly, not a constitutional right, so what they want to charge for their seats is really irrelevant.

It’s also a little bit rude to lump someone over weight in the same category as physical disabilities as physical disabilities are rarely self inflicted. And as far as it affecting their profit margins remember it is your decision to fly, not a constitutional right, so what they want to charge for their seats is really irrelevant.

Now having flown Southwest nearly exclusively for years I can say that only about 20% or so of the flights have been completely full, although more of them have been lately. So you could pull it off if you absolutely had to.

Now having flown Southwest nearly exclusively for years I can say that only about 20% or so of the flights have been completely full, although more of them have been lately. So you could pull it off if you absolutely had to.

Thank you for writing a great article.

Just an FYI, Southwest is not the only airline that has this policy. It can happen to anyone of size at any time when flying.

Thank you for writing a great article.

Just an FYI, Southwest is not the only airline that has this policy. It can happen to anyone of size at any time when flying.

Is it ethical? Is it even necessary? Is Southwest’s profit margin so narrow that they have to humiliate and embarrass someone who may not fit in the child-sized seats most of these flights are outfitted with? At 6’5″ and just over three hundred pounds, I’m a big guy. I probably couldn’t fit in one seat, but I also probably couldn’t really fit in one row. Should I have to buy two rows of seats?

I don’t see how this is a necessity, considering it’s a relatively recent development and plenty of other airlines do without this arbitrary and offensive restriction. It is just another route to increase revenue for the company. It’s no great surprise that corner cutting (remember inflight meals?) has escalated to customer gouging.

Even considering the various points that have been raised about customer comfort, etc., it is contingent upon the airlines to ensure the safety and comfort of all of their passengers, regardless of age, weight, size, or the color of their skin.

If the flight was 100% full, with no extra room in first class, no aisle seats available they could shift a larger passenger to, etc., then perhaps Southwest could have done what they do when overbooking other flights—offered a later flight at a discount or an upgrade to first class, etc.

After all, while they may view it as selling seats, what they’re really doing is serving customers, no matter their age, stature, size, or any other special need they may have. Imagine if they tried to charge handicapped passengers more for “handling.”

To be treated like cargo or cattle is not only dehumanizing, it is unacceptable. I will no longer consider using Southwest for travel until and unless they reverse this ridiculous and unfair policy and make formal apologies (and compensation) to those whom they have offended and hurt by singling out for being “too fat to fly.”

Is it ethical? Is it even necessary? Is Southwest’s profit margin so narrow that they have to humiliate and embarrass someone who may not fit in the child-sized seats most of these flights are outfitted with? At 6’5″ and just over three hundred pounds, I’m a big guy. I probably couldn’t fit in one seat, but I also probably couldn’t really fit in one row. Should I have to buy two rows of seats?

I don’t see how this is a necessity, considering it’s a relatively recent development and plenty of other airlines do without this arbitrary and offensive restriction. It is just another route to increase revenue for the company. It’s no great surprise that corner cutting (remember inflight meals?) has escalated to customer gouging.

Even considering the various points that have been raised about customer comfort, etc., it is contingent upon the airlines to ensure the safety and comfort of all of their passengers, regardless of age, weight, size, or the color of their skin.

If the flight was 100% full, with no extra room in first class, no aisle seats available they could shift a larger passenger to, etc., then perhaps Southwest could have done what they do when overbooking other flights—offered a later flight at a discount or an upgrade to first class, etc.

After all, while they may view it as selling seats, what they’re really doing is serving customers, no matter their age, stature, size, or any other special need they may have. Imagine if they tried to charge handicapped passengers more for “handling.”

To be treated like cargo or cattle is not only dehumanizing, it is unacceptable. I will no longer consider using Southwest for travel until and unless they reverse this ridiculous and unfair policy and make formal apologies (and compensation) to those whom they have offended and hurt by singling out for being “too fat to fly.”

For a more detailed Q&A on the subject, you may also visit http://bit.ly/3J8Gl.

Paula Berg
Southwest Airlines

For a more detailed Q&A on the subject, you may also visit http://bit.ly/3J8Gl.

Paula Berg
Southwest Airlines

So given that seats aren’t getting any bigger, and I’m guessing that your airline choices are sometimes rather sparse, what do you do? How do you deal with it? I don’t find it unreasonable for airlines to set limits on how much personal space they can allocate per ticket, but what do you do and still maintain your job and your ability to travel?

I find the amount of space on planes to be tight to begin with (try flying 10.5 hours to Buenos Aires on a plane configured for domestic service some time… it’s great fun.), and I’d love to see even just a LITTLE bit of extra room on a plane, but there’s an economic trap here. The seats with enough room are priced at a point where, as you pointed out, your clients won’t pay for. When I fly personally, I won’t pay for it either. Yet we still demand the $199 fare from coast to coast.

So given that seats aren’t getting any bigger, and I’m guessing that your airline choices are sometimes rather sparse, what do you do? How do you deal with it? I don’t find it unreasonable for airlines to set limits on how much personal space they can allocate per ticket, but what do you do and still maintain your job and your ability to travel?

I find the amount of space on planes to be tight to begin with (try flying 10.5 hours to Buenos Aires on a plane configured for domestic service some time… it’s great fun.), and I’d love to see even just a LITTLE bit of extra room on a plane, but there’s an economic trap here. The seats with enough room are priced at a point where, as you pointed out, your clients won’t pay for. When I fly personally, I won’t pay for it either. Yet we still demand the $199 fare from coast to coast.

This post wasn’t meant to be an indictment of Southwest at all – they have customers of all shapes and sizes. You can’t please everyone all of the time, right?

This post wasn’t meant to be an indictment of Southwest at all – they have customers of all shapes and sizes. You can’t please everyone all of the time, right?

I was struck by how what you went through, in being singled out for attention by the airline employee, and having to prove you can use the seat provided, is similar to the experience of disabled people. You try not to call attention to yourself, only to be led to a bulkhead seat, forced to use an elevator, rather than the escalator (no joke), or met at your destination by a wheelchair-driving attendant, when you are perfectly capable of walking unassisted.

Great to see someone from Southwest reading this post. I ave had mostly good experiences with them, other than the wheelchair incident, which was just silly.

I was struck by how what you went through, in being singled out for attention by the airline employee, and having to prove you can use the seat provided, is similar to the experience of disabled people. You try not to call attention to yourself, only to be led to a bulkhead seat, forced to use an elevator, rather than the escalator (no joke), or met at your destination by a wheelchair-driving attendant, when you are perfectly capable of walking unassisted.

Great to see someone from Southwest reading this post. I ave had mostly good experiences with them, other than the wheelchair incident, which was just silly.

The problem with this is that while 2 regular priced tickets on Southwest is cheaper than a first class ticket on another airline, my customers don’t pay for first class tickets either.

Q: Why not make your seats wider or add a few wide seats on your aircraft?

A: Our ongoing goal is to operate a low-fare, low cost airline, and the costs of reconfiguring our fleet would be staggering and would ultimately reflect in the form of higher fares for our Customers. Purchasing two seats on Southwest Airlines is significantly less expensive than purchasing one first class seat on another airline.

The problem with this is that while 2 regular priced tickets on Southwest is cheaper than a first class ticket on another airline, my customers don’t pay for first class tickets either.

Q: Why not make your seats wider or add a few wide seats on your aircraft?

A: Our ongoing goal is to operate a low-fare, low cost airline, and the costs of reconfiguring our fleet would be staggering and would ultimately reflect in the form of higher fares for our Customers. Purchasing two seats on Southwest Airlines is significantly less expensive than purchasing one first class seat on another airline.