crazydave98
Active Member
- Joined
- Oct 25, 2005
- Posts
- 602
Some of you may have seen this article about an overweight man suing Air France for humiliating him by measuring him in public. Leaving aside the shamefull treatment of the fellow, what caught my eye was "Air France's website urges overweight passengers to reserve a second seat, adding that failure to do so might mean they are refused access to an aircraft if it is fully booked."
Southwest have a policy that requires passengers to buy the number of seats they occupy, but they refund the fare for the second seat if the aircraft departs with less than 100% load factor. I've read that this works quite well in that most larger Americans will buy the second seat for their comfort and the consideration of others, knowing that relatively few flights leave 100% full.
Given our waistlines are expanding faster than America's, the issue of accommodating people who can't fit within a standard seat will become increasingly prevalent here. I'm curious as to what members think about how to handle the issue (other than the obvious such as wider seats, or the impractical such as charging tickets based on weight, and bearing in mind that many routes don't have business class seats available)? What do you think of Southwest's policy? Would Air France's work if they were more discreet and considerate about how they enforce it?
I should make it clear that this is my own personal research - I'm not trying to road test any Virgin Blue plans. If anyone wants to link this topic to other forums feel free, but thought I'd try to keep the discussion in one place.
cheers CrazyDave
Overweight man sues Air France over seat row
December 21, 2006
An overweight passenger has sued Air France after being told he was too fat and had to pay for a second seat to accommodate his bulk.
Jean-Jacques Jauffret, a French scriptwriter, told Reuters on Wednesday he had felt humiliated by Air France staff who had measured his waist in public at New Dehli airport in 2005 and decided he was too big for a single seat.
A lawyer representing Air France told a court on Tuesday the company had a clear policy of asking obese passengers to pay for two seats.
"Let's be objective. This man is fat," lawyer Fernand Gamault told the court in Bobigny, according to Le Parisien newspaper. "He barely fits on the courtroom chair. How could he sit in an airplane?"
Gamault was not available for comment but Jauffret confirmed the lawyer's comments and said he was denounced as "fat" and "enormous" on countless occasions during the hearing.
"I felt shocked and humiliated by what he said," Jauffret added.
Jauffret said he weighed more than 160 kilos (352.7 lb) and said he had flown numerous times, including on other Air France flights, without ever being asked to pay more.
Air France's website urges overweight passengers to reserve a second seat, adding that failure to do so might mean they are refused access to an aircraft if it is fully booked.
Jauffret has asked for 8,000 euros ($10,580) in damages and 500 euros reimbursement for the cost of the additional ticket. A verdict in the case is due on Feb. 20.
Reuters
Southwest have a policy that requires passengers to buy the number of seats they occupy, but they refund the fare for the second seat if the aircraft departs with less than 100% load factor. I've read that this works quite well in that most larger Americans will buy the second seat for their comfort and the consideration of others, knowing that relatively few flights leave 100% full.
Given our waistlines are expanding faster than America's, the issue of accommodating people who can't fit within a standard seat will become increasingly prevalent here. I'm curious as to what members think about how to handle the issue (other than the obvious such as wider seats, or the impractical such as charging tickets based on weight, and bearing in mind that many routes don't have business class seats available)? What do you think of Southwest's policy? Would Air France's work if they were more discreet and considerate about how they enforce it?
I should make it clear that this is my own personal research - I'm not trying to road test any Virgin Blue plans. If anyone wants to link this topic to other forums feel free, but thought I'd try to keep the discussion in one place.
cheers CrazyDave
Overweight man sues Air France over seat row
December 21, 2006
An overweight passenger has sued Air France after being told he was too fat and had to pay for a second seat to accommodate his bulk.
Jean-Jacques Jauffret, a French scriptwriter, told Reuters on Wednesday he had felt humiliated by Air France staff who had measured his waist in public at New Dehli airport in 2005 and decided he was too big for a single seat.
A lawyer representing Air France told a court on Tuesday the company had a clear policy of asking obese passengers to pay for two seats.
"Let's be objective. This man is fat," lawyer Fernand Gamault told the court in Bobigny, according to Le Parisien newspaper. "He barely fits on the courtroom chair. How could he sit in an airplane?"
Gamault was not available for comment but Jauffret confirmed the lawyer's comments and said he was denounced as "fat" and "enormous" on countless occasions during the hearing.
"I felt shocked and humiliated by what he said," Jauffret added.
Jauffret said he weighed more than 160 kilos (352.7 lb) and said he had flown numerous times, including on other Air France flights, without ever being asked to pay more.
Air France's website urges overweight passengers to reserve a second seat, adding that failure to do so might mean they are refused access to an aircraft if it is fully booked.
Jauffret has asked for 8,000 euros ($10,580) in damages and 500 euros reimbursement for the cost of the additional ticket. A verdict in the case is due on Feb. 20.
Reuters