I was seated next to a plus-sized plane passenger — I complained and the airline surprised me
They weren’t going to let this space invasion slide.
A furious flier is being praised for the way they responded to a plus-sized passenger who was taking up some of their seat space.
The inflight incident was outlined on Reddit, with the poster proclaiming that they were seated next to the heavyset passenger on a recent American Airlines flight, leaving them little to no space.
They reported the alleged encroachment to the flight attendant, who said she would speak to a supervisor.
“When I informed the flight attendant that someone was taking up part of my seat that I paid for, they told me a supervisor would make a decision on how to handle the situation,” the Redditor recalled. “She said they would most likely rebook me instead of the passenger taking up two seats saying I ‘refused’ to take my seat.”
They added: “I told her I wasn’t refusing, just requesting the space I paid for.”
While the flyer said they didn’t begrudge the crew member her response, they feel like her corporate platitudes did little to resolve the situation.
“She was doing her job and I get it,” they wrote. “Told me I can call and complain and maybe get points. What a load of BS.”
The perturbed passenger ultimately ended up taking the seat as they needed to get home, but not before complaining to American Airlines on X.
The following was their response, per the Reddit post: “Please be assured we’ve shared your comments with the appropriate leadership for internal review and training. Feedback like this helps us zero in on areas of improvement. We look forward to your next flight being a better one.”
The poster elicited a tsunami of sympathy from his fellow Redditors, many of whom floated their own ideas on how to handle “spillover” from plus-size passengers.
“Alright hear me out. At theme parks they have test seats at the ride entrance,” suggested one Redditor. “You don’t fit = you don’t ride. Apparently that is not fat shaming, so how about test seats at airline check in. You don’t fit = fee and seat reassignment or you don’t fly.”
“How about if the dividers between seats go all the way up, so each person is in a separate cubby and there’s no way to overflow,” said another.
A third wrote, “Fattie here (I’m working on it). Anyone who takes up that much space should buy two seats. No ifs or buts about it.”
Coincidentally, American Airlines requires those with extra space requirements to purchase an extra seat.
“If a customer needs extra space outside a single seat to travel safely, another seat is required. We encourage customers to address all seating needs when booking,” they write on the site. “When you call to book, Reservations will make sure you get 2 adjacent seats at the same rate.”
They added, “If you didn’t book an extra seat in advance, ask an airport agent to find out if 2 adjacent seats are available.”
