"Too Fat To Fly" Passenger Sues SW Airlines

She's right about the "consistency" issue ... 

http://www.aol.com/video/i-sued-southwest-airlines-after-they-said-i-was-too-fat-to-fly/517622396/?icid=maing-grid10%7Chtmlws-main-bb%7Cdl30%7Csec1_lnk3%26pLid%3D249922

While I agree that consistency is a problem -- there are some people who are 'too fat to fly' -- at least in a single seat.

I was infringed upon by a super-morbidly obese woman on my last flight (I had a window seat and she was in the middle seat) --- I know that she must have been uncomfortable --- I certainly was.  She fidgeted a lot, and her elbow constantly jabbed me, her thigh and jacket kept bumping me.

After take-off, the passenger in the aisle seat rang for the flight attendant and asked if there was an available seat that they could be re-located to -- and there was, so that passenger moved to the back of the aircraft and the woman next to me was able to move to the aisle for more space and comfort.

She should have purchased 2 seats to begin with since she clearly could not fit into a single seat without discomfort to herself and her seat mates.

I have yet to figure out why the airlines don't simply have a set of guidelines that specifically state that if your shoulder/arm width is beyond a certain number of inches or your hip/thigh width is beyond a certain number of inches you will not fit in a single seat and will have to purchase a second ticket.

I know that when I was at my heaviest, I was taking up part of the seat next to me.  Fortunately, on all but a couple of occasions, I was seated next to my mom who is thin and she didn't mind nearly as much as a stranger would have.  When I had to sit next to a very large (but fit) soldier returning to the US on a completely full flight from Germany, there was simply no way for both of us to sit back in our seats... there was just no room for both of our arms and shoulders.  We were both miserable.  He spent part of the flight sleeping hunched forward and then I spent part of the flight standing at the back of the plan talking to a friend so he could sleep normally.

Lora