https://apnews.com/article/southwest-plus-size-seating-rule-change-addbdb8264ce4d4b6598772540c5719f

Plus sized passengers will now need to purchase an additional seat if they don't fit in between the armrests. The carrier will refund the extra ticket if the flight is not full, and will rebook a passenger if they have not purchased a seat ahead of time and the flight is full. I think it will be tricky to enforce and might make the job of the gate agents a bit more interesting. Not sure if this will catch on and other airlines will follow for domestic and international.

I am sure the airlines have been battling with this for sometime. All it takes is one or two to start and the rest will follow. I am sure if they have the numbers, the discriminatory angled lawsuits can be weathered. 

I recall one short flight regional airline had a weight qualification. Yes, they had weighing scale at check-in. Forgot which one. 

To say that I'm not a fan of gate agents would be a gross understatement.  I have never seen them enforce the boarding groups rule or the carry on rules.

I agree with the fat people rule as long as long as it stays "between the armrests ". But if airlines are going to do that I think they should have to go back to seat widths of the old days.

10 minutes ago, ValleyCowboy said:

But if airlines are going to do that I think they should have to go back to seat widths of the old days.

Back in the recip days max weight reached before using up space, with the advent of jet power the opposite is true, I'm afraid "leg room" and wide seats on short flights are a thing of the past.

5 hours ago, jetdoc said:

Back in the recip days max weight reached before using up space, with the advent of jet power the opposite is true, I'm afraid "leg room" and wide seats on short flights are a thing of the past.

Sadly you're right. Some carriers are worse than others and when I'm booking a flight I take that into consideration. When I was younger I'd suck it up but now on any flight longer than about 3 hours it's PE or better for me.

Fair enough, the size of some Americans is ridiculous (and Brits aren’t far behind). 

1 hour ago, RickyH said:

Fair enough, the size of some Americans is ridiculous (and Brits aren’t far behind). 

Flight pricing should be based on weight.....80kgs. X amount.....80/100kgs X+ amount over 100 kgs should be stowed down below in the hold.

I,m 64kgs so I should get a discounted price....

Edited August 26, 2025Aug 26 by petermik

33 minutes ago, petermik said:

Flight pricing should be based on weight.....80kgs. X amount.....80/100kgs X+ amount over 100 kgs should be stowed down below in the hold.

I,m 64kgs so I should get a discounted price....

If you want to go weight based, ok, but include all the carry on crap people drag aboard in the total weight. The pic doesn't show all the crap he's got strapped on the front.

16 minutes ago, ValleyCowboy said:

If you want to go weight based, ok, but include all the carry on crap people drag aboard in the total weight. The pic doesn't show all the crap he's got strapped on the front.

Sounds fair … and would probably cut boarding time in fair.  Though, related to on-board baggage, the airlines are at fault with their baggage fees.  More appropriate would be charging more for carryon and less for checked luggage (though as a carry-on only passenger, I’d be stick with extra costs with such a policy change).  Point is, passengers tend to overstuff the shit they’re carrying on board to avoid fees for checked luggage.  I’ve no idea what the fees are as I’m often entitled to 2-3 checked bags for free, but I’ve heard of fees of up to 300 USD for a checked bag.  

Edited August 26, 2025Aug 26 by momo5

44 minutes ago, momo5 said:

Sounds fair … and would probably cut boarding time in fair.  Though, related to on-board baggage, the airlines are at fault with their baggage fees.  More appropriate would be charging more for carryon and less for checked luggage (though as a carry-on only passenger, I’d be stick with extra costs with such a policy change).  Point is, passengers tend to overstuff the shit they’re carrying on board to avoid fees for checked luggage.  I’ve no idea what the fees are as I’m often entitled to 2-3 checked bags for free, but I’ve heard of fees of up to 300 USD for a checked bag.  

I blame the airlines for the carry on issues. If they just enforced the rules they already have in place it would solve the problem. I always seem to be "the chosen one", so I don't cheat. Anymore I usually just have a personal item that fits under the seat and weighs less than 7kg. And at the EVA gate in SFO out of all the people they weighed my bag 😂

Just a way to make more money. It will become industry wide soon, and then they will look at something else like height (impact on people in front). they should do it with personal hygiene. I don't mind a big guy next to me but a smelly MoFo for 12 hours- no sir I am complaining like fuck. 

We travel 3 times a year from the Philippines and the amount of stuff that Filipinos, particularly the ladies, can bring on as carry-on is amazing.