Question:
Does it seem fair that a major line charges more for MO flyers?

I saw a new report lat night about a major airline charging more $$ for flyer over a certian weight (although the report did not say what the cut off weight was) I believe it was south american airlines. Am I the only one who is outraged! I going to write a nastey letter, and encourage others to do so. Also the reporter said this Plicy has been in effect since 1980's but is just now being enforced.    — Marlene N. (posted on June 20, 2002)

June 20, 2002
It is fair ONLY if they are willing to only charge children and thin people that take up only 1/2 their seat 1/2 price! I wasnt aware U paid for a seat by the INCH! I have more to say but would be bleeped out due to the vulgarity of it. I hope this new policy doesnt fly!
   — Sassy M.

June 20, 2002
I've known about this extra charge for "M.O." flyers for about 7 years. Only found out about it because I was going to fly home to see family and the airline asked how much I weighed and I asked them "WHY? Do you have a restriction on how many over weight ppl you fly on each plane?" Of course I was told "No, by no means, we just need to know what the weight of cargo and passengers in the off chance the weight is too much we can fly some of the cargo seperately." LOL...I wanted to jump through the phone and ask the lady who she was trying to fool! But you're right to be angry! Why should we be treated any differently than stick ppl?
   — Vicki L.

June 20, 2002
I guess I am the odd one here because I can fully understand why an airline would do this. Approx. 10 years ago my family and I flew overseas. I was not big enough then to need an extender but I definitely made the seven hour trip uncomfortable for my husband and daughter. Why should a complete stranger have to suffer that way? Since then, I had become much bigger and would not put myself or anyone else through that. Since surgery, airplanes, stadium seats, auditorium seats etc. are no problem. Those of you who are so upset over this, need to remember to show as much empathy to others who, in the future, may intrude on your space and make you uncomfortable.
   — grammie5

June 20, 2002
Well I can understand both sides to this issue. However I would recommend flying on Delta instead of SW because they are much more MO friendly, especially in my state of Michigan. Last summer (before I had WLS) I weighed around 430 and was flying out west. When we went to check in at the Delta counter, they offered to bump us to a different flight and give us vouchers for a free future flight for our inconvenience. I later found out that the reason they asked us to bump to a different flight is because the flight was full and they normally will make room for a MO person by making sure that the seat beside them is empty. They couldn't do that on the full flight so they politely, without even telling us why, moved me and my wife to a flight where they could give us an extra empty seat and offered us a voucher for a free flight for our inconvenience. I don't know if this is their nationwide policy or just in Michigan (since Michigan has some of the best anti-morbid obesity discrimination laws in the US). But I will always recommend Delta. We are using our free vouchers in July, but I will be 3 1/2 months post op and hopefully down another 20 lbs to a totol of 100 by then.
   — Dell H.

June 20, 2002
Good old Rosa Parks. The bus companies said she was infringing on white peoples rights by forcing them to sit next to her. Now the airlines are telling the MO that we are forcing the "normal" people to be imposed upon by our size, not by the airlines not providing suitable seating.
   — faybay

June 20, 2002
I was outraged as well. SouthWest doesnt even offer first class as an option (larger seats). I also am planning on writing a few letters. I always fly US Airways. They have the most room for me.
   — emilyfink

June 21, 2002
I read that article too. It is Southwest Airlines. I will never use that airline again even though I am now small enough to fit. I travel constantly with my job about 100,000 airline miles per year. There are 6 million people in the US classified as Morbidly Obese and they just lost everyone as a customer, not the best marketing plan.
   — Linda A.

June 21, 2002
Ok, I know I'm going to get blasted here, but here goes anyway... No, the airlines shouldn't charge children and extremely thin people less. That is not a logical argument. We all pay X amount of $ for the same amount of room. A child and/or thin person may not use up all of the room they paid for, but they still paid for it and are entitled to have it as their own for the duration of the flight. Anyone who pays for the same amount of room but takes up more than they paid for is infringing on the purchase of space by the people next to them. Think of the seats like Big Macs - if you eat 1 and 1/2 Big Mac's and the next person to order only gets what's left of your 2nd Big Mac even though they paid the same price, is that fair? Not at all, that's why it doesn't work that way. Just because someone doesn't eat it all doesn't mean they get charged less, but if you need to eat more than one to meet your needs then you're going to have to pay for it... of course. Ok, that wasn't a perfect analogy, but it was close. Am I thrilled about this airline thing? Of course not, I already can't afford to fly. But I still see the point.
   — K. Joyce Smith