# Are Fat People on Airplanes Becoming a Big Problem **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 27, 2013, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130 "2013-03-27T20:30:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2013, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/101 "2013-11-15T16:29:15Z")
Anyone here ever sit next to a zombie fat person on a flight? I’ve heard those are the worst. ---
**Author:** ![brazil84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8491ac/32.png) [@brazil84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brazil84)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2013, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/102 "2013-11-15T16:31:05Z")
> [@Tapiotar](#): > > Yes, I know people tend to fool themselves. That’s why I keep careful records of intake and of exercise. Most likely your records are inaccurate. Depending of course on what you meant by “modestly” and by “excess fat.” > [@](#): > > People are very different. Yes, a lot of people pig out and gorge and become fat, and a lot of people pig out and gorge and stay thin. I am highly skeptical that a lot of people pig out and gorge on a regular basis and stay thin. Unless you are talking about people like Michael Phelps. Or people with some rare medical condition(s). > [@](#): > > There are factors other than intake and exercise that govern metabolism, Such as? And how big of an impact do they have? ---
**Author:** ![DummyGladHands](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/49beb7/32.png) [@DummyGladHands](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DummyGladHands)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2013, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/103 "2013-11-16T04:16:30Z")
I had a young man once, probably around 16 or so, who was big, not tall, not fat, but just big. He thought he had to sit with his legs akimbo as far as possible. I am 5’9" and it’s all legs, so that didn’t work. I just kept shoving his damn legs back. Then he complained because he wanted the entire arm rest. ---
**Author:** ![Doggo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/87869e/32.png) [@Doggo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doggo)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2013, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/104 "2013-11-16T06:07:10Z")
I live in constant dread of being sat next to an obese person on my next flight ( hasn’t happened yet, though I have had the sprog experience ), though it probably helps that I always reserve an aisle seat, so I don’t get trapped. I did read somewhere that they always try and leave the armrest up, but it is policy to leave it down at takeoff, so I can visualise the conflict, as I insist they put it down. If someone is so big that they can’t sit with the arm rest down, they should buy two seats. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2013, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/105 "2013-11-16T12:39:02Z")
> [@brazil84](#): > > I am highly skeptical that a lot of people pig out and gorge on a regular basis and stay thin. Unless you are talking about people like Michael Phelps. Or people with some rare medical condition Sucking on a bong, getting the munchies, downing two quarts of Breyers ice cream and a 32 oz. bag of Cheetos and then hitting swim practice the next morning is not indicative of a rare medical condition. Nor is it a marker for a rare genetic trait that turns trans-fats into muscle. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Myrnalene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@Myrnalene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myrnalene)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2013, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/106 "2013-11-16T15:53:18Z")
> [@Doggo](#): > > I live in constant dread of being sat next to an obese person on my next flight… Uh. Really? You sound a little irrational to be honest. ---
**Author:** ![ethelbert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/958977/32.png) [@ethelbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ethelbert)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2013, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/107 "2013-11-16T16:28:37Z")
I don’t fly a great deal, but on those occasions when I have had an obese person next to me they have always done whatever they could to avoid discomfitting me. Now it is always true that sitting next to an asshole is annoying, but I find that assholes come in all sizes. ---
**Author:** ![brazil84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8491ac/32.png) [@brazil84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brazil84)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2013, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/108 "2013-11-16T17:34:12Z")
> [@Cartooniverse](#): > > Sucking on a bong, getting the munchies, downing two quarts of Breyers ice cream and a 32 oz. bag of Cheetos and then hitting swim practice the next morning is not indicative of a rare medical condition. Nor is it a marker for a rare genetic trait that turns trans-fats into muscle. 😕 I have no idea what your point is. Can you just spell it out for me? Exactly what did I say that you disagree with? ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2013, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/109 "2013-11-16T19:16:14Z")
This whole problem would be solved if airlines didn’t feel the need to book 100% of the seats on each flight. Back in the good-old-days there were way more empty seats. In the case of empty seats there would at least be the option to move people around to accommodate extra size. The whole problem is due to airlines being rapacious for every extra buck. It’s the airlines fault, not the peoples’ fault. The airlines created this situation. ---
**Author:** ![Doggo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/87869e/32.png) [@Doggo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doggo)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/110 "2013-11-18T08:43:02Z")
> [@Myrnalene](#): > > Uh. Really? > > You sound a little irrational to be honest. So you think not wanting to be spending 12 hours being crushed by someone that can’t control their intake is irrational? Well good for you. Enjoy any future trips you might be taking with an obese person invading your space for half a day. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/111 "2013-11-18T11:16:50Z")
As a smaller person, I often get larger people who sit next to me and think “Woo-hoo, extra space for meeeee!” I am sympathetic, but at the same time I get a little resentful. I put a lot of effort in to staying my size, and I’d like to enjoy the benefits of that. In any case, the arm rest stays down, and if I’m in the middle, I get dibs on at least one of them. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/112 "2013-11-18T12:50:55Z")
> [@Doggo](#): > > So you think not wanting to be spending 12 hours being crushed by someone that can’t control their intake is irrational? > Well good for you. Enjoy any future trips you might be taking with an obese person invading your space for half a day. “Not wanting” is not irrational. “Constant dread” is irrational, or hyperbole. I took it as the later, **Myrnalene** read it literally. ---
**Author:** ![DragonAsh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/db5fbb/32.png) [@DragonAsh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DragonAsh)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/113 "2013-11-18T14:39:04Z")
I mostly fly business class these days, so now it’s literally _never_ a problem. When I have had to fly coach, I’d say 30% of the time I’d be next to someone spilling into my seat. They always lift up the arm rest like it’s their god-given right; I insist firmly that it’s staying down, no matter how much they bitch and moan about how ‘uncomfortable’ it is. I’m sure it is. Tough shit; I’m not sharing my seat space with anyone that isn’t family or someone I’m snogging. Thing is - it’s a problem for me personally 30% of the time, but the way to think about it is: It’s probably a problem for 30% of all passengers on 100% of flights, at least in economy. If you need an extension for your seat belt…you should pay for two seats. If you _brought your own extension_ you’ve probably already paid for two seats… ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/114 "2013-11-18T16:07:44Z")
The “seat belt extension” thing puzzles me. Not all seat belts are created equal. I did a whole lot of flying last month (home city -\> Dallas -\> LAX -\> Guangzhou -\> Beijing -\> Nanchang -\> Guangzhou -\> LAX -\> Dallas -\> home again), and my experiences with seats and seatbelts varied widely. Little puddlejumper planes? They tended to be older, and the seatbelts had room to spare. No extension needed. Big Airbus 380 across the ocean? Not a ton of room, but the seatbelt clicked, no problem, and I even had a bit of room between me and the belt at max extension. And the Airbus had the narrowest seats of any of the flights we took (17.3 inches according to SeatGuru, and also the rock-hardest seat cushions, by the way). The other US domestic legs, though? I needed an extension. And I don’t think I changed in size in only a few hours, which means that there is no standard length for seatbelts, regardless of seat width, and “needs an extension” is an extremely arbitrary standard. On all the China flights, concerned flight attendants asked me if I needed one, and I’d hold out my buckled belt and say, “Nope, I’m fine.” ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/115 "2013-11-18T16:59:13Z")
I fly all the god damn timed for my job, and to visit family, and not once, not a single time that I can recall, have I ever been afraid of a large person sitting next to me or having had it actually happen. I can’t even remember the last time I saw some grossly obese person flying on the same plane as I do. Then again, I’m not living in constant dread of it, so I probably just don’t notice fat people on planes, like some of you do. That being said, I usually pick a window seat, put my earbuds in, turn on the tunes, and fall asleep or play video games. I really couldn’t care less who sat next to me, fat or skinny. They’d have to be gigantically fat for it to be a problem for me. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/116 "2013-11-18T22:49:55Z")
To the op, zombie as it may be, [from a different angle](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/3048/followup): > [@Cecil](#): > > The Centers for Disease Control put the average weight gain of American adults from the early 1990s to 2000 at 8.5 pounds for men and 11.4 pounds for women. Hurling that bulk through the skies meant burning an additional 350 million gallons of jet fuel costing more than a billion dollars annually. > > There are safety issues to consider as well. In the wake of a 2003 plane crash where a suspected factor was excess passenger weight, the FAA ordered airlines to assume an extra 10 pounds per occupant when estimating aircraft loads. Also 2 million tons of excess greenhouse gas emissions. ---
**Author:** ![DragonAsh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/db5fbb/32.png) [@DragonAsh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DragonAsh)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/117 "2013-11-19T13:55:48Z")
> [@Max\_Torque](#): > > The “seat belt extension” thing puzzles me. Not all seat belts are created equal. Don’t know why that’s a problem. Airline have different regulations for luggage sizes & weights, and we somehow manage. > [@drewtwo99](#): > > They’d have to be gigantically fat for it to be a problem for me. Or American. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/118 "2013-11-19T14:03:58Z")
Bwuh? An “all Americans are gigantically fat” joke? How long did it take you to come up with that one? For the record, I’m an American and I only fly domestic, and I just simply do not see tons and tons of fat people everywhere, squishing up against me and flabbing onto my lap as I sit in my flight. I probably do actually see fat people, but as I tend to mind my own business and not have issues with other’s body weights, it doesn’t stick in my mind. -drewtwo99, not fat, but also doesn’t care if you are a fatty who wants to sit next to him on an airplane ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/119 "2013-11-19T14:26:44Z")
> [@DragonAsh](#): > > Don’t know why that’s a problem. Airline have different regulations for luggage sizes & weights, and we somehow manage. > > Or American. Don’t you mean [Mexican since they’re the fattest country in the world?](http://blog.chron.com/healthzone/2013/07/were-no-2-u-s-no-longer-worlds-fattest-country/#13890101=0) Or is the lame joke only a knee slap when it’s repeated _ad nauseum_? ---
**Author:** ![DragonAsh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/db5fbb/32.png) [@DragonAsh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DragonAsh)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130/120 "2013-11-19T14:36:16Z")
> [@stpauler](#): > > Don’t you mean [Mexican since they’re the fattest country in the world?](http://blog.chron.com/healthzone/2013/07/were-no-2-u-s-no-longer-worlds-fattest-country/#13890101=0) Or is the lame joke only a knee slap when it’s repeated _ad nauseum_? Mexicans (and Canadians, btw) are Americans. Oh, and I guess - congratulations, as of this year the USA, the richest country in the world (GDP: approx. $16,000 billion), is only the -second- fattest country in the world, by one percentage point, over Mexico (GDP: approx. $1,800 billion). Yes, I can see why you’re so butthurt by the allegations of fattiness. :rolleyes: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-fat-people-on-airplanes-becoming-a-big-problem/654130.md?page=7)