Peaceful? plane ride
A plus-sized influencer has demanded the Federal Aviation Authority and airlines give overweight flyers as many free seats as they require to fly comfortably. Jaelynn Chaney, a travel and lifestyle creator based in Vancouver, wants the US Federal Aviation Authority to ‘protect’ plus-sized travelers and make flying in coach ‘comfortable and accessible for everyone.’
She also wants airlines to be forced to refund overweight passengers for any extra seats they’re forced to purchase when booking to accommodate their size. ‘As plus-size travelers, my partner and I have unfortunately experienced discrimination and discomfort while flying,’ she wrote in her petition, which has been signed by around 4,300 people as of Saturday afternoon. Turning her attention to reimbursements, Chaney added: ‘Airlines should offer a refund for plus-size passengers who purchase additional seats independently. This should be a straightforward process that can be accessed online or through customer service.’ Chaney admitted ticket prices would have to rise if she were to get her way, and conceded non-overweight passengers could be faced with higher costs to help cover improvements. ‘During a flight from Pasco to Denver, my fiancé was subjected to hateful comments, disapproving looks, and even refusal to sit next to them, amounting to discrimination. ‘Similarly, on another flight, I was forced to occupy only one seat with immovable armrests that caused me pain and bruises.’
On the other side: A teenage traveler has claimed she was dubbed “fatphobic” after requesting to switch plane seats because she was sandwiched between two plus-sized passengers. The awkward incident reportedly occurred while the teen was on a flight from Las Vegas to New York. “My assigned seat was a middle seat, and both people next to me were plus sized,” she explained. “I wouldn’t have any problem with this in any other situation, but plane seats are terribly small and neither of my neighbors were able to fit comfortably into their seats.” She said that her seatmates seemingly spilled into her chair with their thighs and shoulders “on top” of her — which was especially “uncomfortable” given that it was allegedly a “very long flight.” About an hour in, the sandwiched traveler decided to take action. “I walked up to the flight attendant and explained the situation as privately and gently as I could, and I asked if there were any other seats available,” the teen recalled. “She managed to find a seat a few rows behind mine that I could sit in. “Getting my bag from under the seat in front of me and moving was pretty awkward, but the rest of the flight went fine,” she added.
But when the young lady got off the plane, she saw that one seatmate was waiting for her — and the passenger proceeded to give her quite a tongue-lashing. “She essentially told me that I had embarrassed her and the other man and that traveling while plus-sized is hard enough without ‘people treating fatness like a contagious disease,’” recounted the Redditor. “She also said that I made it a public demonstration to everyone that plus-sized passengers are an ‘inconvenience’ and opened the door to fatphobia on flights.” A responder to that complaint said, “They should be happy that you moving would give them extra wiggle room too!” Another commenter argued, “I honestly believe that if you’re aware that you can’t really fit into a single airline seat, it’s your responsibility to buy a second one.” The incident follows a New Zealand airline’s announcement of a plan to weigh passengers. What do you think?
Coping with seats
In the midst of the pandemic, passengers flying with United Airlines are shocked to see that the middle seats on their flights are booked. Meanwhile, passengers flying with Frontier Airlines are shocked to see that any seats on their flights are booked.
The bus driver asked one of his inebriated frequent flyers, “Did you get home alright last night?” “Of course why do you ask?” “Well when you got up and gave the lady your seat last night, you were the only two in the bus.”
When I was a child my parents would pretend food was an airplane.
They would make me wait hours to eat.
A timid little man was seated in the window seat of an airplane next to a scowling brute of a guy. The little man was terrified of flying, and as soon as the plane took off, he felt sick. But his seatmate was fast asleep, and he couldn’t figure out how to get past him to go to the bathroom. And then it was too late; he got sick all over the big guy. As he frantically wiped up the mess, careful not to wake the giant, the brute’s eyes flew open. The timid man smiled and said in a shaky voice, “Feeling better now?”
October 6th Birthdays
1990 – Scarlett Byrne, 1968 – Melania Robbins, 1970 – Amy Jo Johnson, 1964 – Elizabath Shue
1993 – Cameron Kennedy, 1846 – George Westinghouse, 1955 – Tony Dungee, 1949 – Les Moonves