![]() In 2022, Flyers Rights, a nonprofit organization, petitioned the FAA to regulate a minimum seat size, citing concerns about medical risks, including blood clotting, due to limited space, among other issues. “The agency is reviewing the thousands of comments it received on whether current seat size and spacing affect passenger evacuation,” the FAA said in a statement. When approached for comment by CNN, the FAA pointed to a 90-day public comment period, on minimum seat dimensions necessary for airline passenger safety, which was held last year.Īre airplane seats too small? Senators want the FAA to look again “With shrinking seats, there should be acknowledgement that plus-size people may require certain accommodations in order to allow them to fly safely and comfortably.” “So not only does it deter them from flying, but it also makes it incredibly uncomfortable for those that do choose to fly. ![]() “This has had such a negative impact on plus-size travelers,” says Leanne. Meanwhile, according to a study by the World Obesity Federation, around 38% of the world population are overweight or obese. ![]() Over the past two decades, the width of the average seat has shrunk from 18.5 to 17 inches. “I thought I would get one or two negative comments as I always do with videos talking about being plus-size, but not to the extent that I did.” “I was sharing my experience with the airlines and showing other plus-size travelers what to expect, so I didn’t expect so many people to think that the points I made were complaints of any kind,” Leanne tells CNN Travel via email. Leanne, who is also the founder of website Plus Size Travel Too, says she was shocked by the sheer volume of negative comments she received after sharing the clip, which detailed many of the problems she and other plus-size travelers face while onboard a plane. “I have chosen to focus on the positivity and support,” she adds.Įarlier this year, content creator and plus size travel expert Kirsty Leanne went viral after posting a video of herself struggling to fit in an airplane seat while flying with a budget airline. While Chaney stresses that much of the feedback she’s received since launching her petition has been hugely positive, she admits that she’s been subject to abuse, and even death threats, from members of the public. “It can just be such an uncomfortable experience. “And that they’re available on all flights.”Ĭhaney admits that having to ask for a seat belt extender “isn’t always the most comfortable experience,” particularly when faced with hostile passengers, or even flight attendants, on some occasions.Ī post shared by Kirsty Leanne stereotypes that surround plus-size travelers, and the hostility towards us when we’re traveling by plane is honestly horrendous,” she adds. “It surprises me every time that many people don’t know that seat belt extenders exist,” she adds. “There’s so many different things, obstacles, that are in the way,” she explains.Ĭhaney regularly shares tips on flying as a plus-size person on her TikTok channel and says that one of the questions she’s asked the most is, “What do I do if the seatbelt does not fit?” “It can be a slippery slope.”Īccording to Chaney, aside from being a “financial burden,” the prospect of paying for two seats is an added complication to an experience that is already very difficult for many plus sized travelers. “I’d be very concerned to see this type of argument being advanced where immutable characteristics of a person are being used for assessing fees,” he adds. ![]() Why reclining seats are vanishing from airplanes United Airlines, one of the US airlines that requires larger passengers to purchase an extra seat, declined to comment.Ĭhaney dismisses suggestions that plus-size travelers are asking for special treatment, stressing that they are simply “asking for the same dignity and respect from an airline that someone in a smaller body gets.” If anything, our experiences are a little bit more challenging.” “And we have to pay two fares, even though we’re getting the same experience. “People with smaller bodies get to pay one fare to get to their destination,” she says. Because I didn’t know how to advocate for myself.”Ĭhaney feels that airline policies that require plus size travelers to buy an extra seat while flying are “discriminatory,” pointing out that passengers like her are “paying twice for the same experience.” And being such a young child at the time, traveling without my parents was really stressful for me. “There was a really tight fit on the seats. Air New Zealand to weigh passengers before they board the airplane
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