Airline Seating Policies Cause Confusion and Embarrassment

From Your Weight Matters magazine, Spring, 2010: Being forced to purchase a second seat is a no-win situation in many ways for fliers who have obesity. Airline policies on this subject are discriminatory, confusing, shame-inducing and costly. But how will you even know if you must buy another seat? Moreover, is there anything you can do to change the rules? While airlines will tell you their policies on second seats are clear, it is often hard to find the policy related to second seats on airline websites and some airlines have no policy listed online at all. A careful search will show that the policies of airlines with stated positions are relatively similar, but differing interpretations by reservation and gate agents, pilots and flight attendants can lead to unequal application of the policy even within the same airline. Find some ideas on making the journey easier and what you can do to help challenge the rules in a Your Weight Matters magazine article here.

Authors: William Hignett, MPH, and Ted Kyle, RPh, MBA