Allowing obese people to encroach onto other passengers is more than about customer service - the airline can be liable for injuries sustained, and at least one has been taken to court in such a situation: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/2346319.stm
I support it. If you don’t like it, don’t fly. Or better yet, book your flight at a date and time when the plane will be les full so that you’ll get your refund.
A related question: do you think something like this is an incentive for very obese people to lose weight? I don’t mean to trivialize the difficulty of losing weight–trust me, I know it’s one of the hardest things a person can do. But is there anyone who puts in the hard work and time and willpower to drop down to a healthy weight so that they can fit into things built for an average-sized adult? Airplane seats, movie theater seats, amusement park rides, etc. are things I wouldn’t want to miss out on. If Southwest’s policy encourages some people to reclaim their right to those things (and regain their health and self-confidence too), then I’m all the more in support.
That hasn’t been my experience. I fly for business virtually every week and from last September to the end of the year virtually al lof it was on Southwest. FWIW I am not a person of size. I’m a huge fat bastard. I recently tipped the scales at 400lb. That has to change but is an entirely separate topic.
I can lower a coach seat armrest around my ass but in most cases the person next to me has said I can raise it if I want. I need to use a seatbelt extender and in all cases the crew has been discreet and courteous.
Why don’t the airlines charge just like UPS and FedEx charge? Your fare should be based on your weight and the weight of your luggage. And if the package is oversized (be it luggage or passenger), you pay an extra fee.
Hell, I’m 140 lbs. soaking wet…I could travel the world with no luggage for next to nothing! 
There are wider seats available, usually in 1st class. If you’re going to make the over-sized person pay extra, why not just give them discounted first class seating where they’ll still fit into one seat, but compensate them by letting them have the first class extras? Most of the flights I"ve been on are underbooked in first class anyway.
Definitely not imagining it.
I think it’s more or less fair and legal, but I’m not yet sure it’s moral, or ethical, or polite.
Personally I’d rather be squished between two large people than be on the same plane with even one screaming infant. Large people make nice headrests when I’ve had too many Bloody Marys and pass out because I hate long flights.
Well, I’m all for charging extra for screaming infants as well. Sadly, it’s a little harder to justify as a simple business expense.
Seriously, though, when you buy a plane ticket, you’re clearly paying for a seat, as opposed to simple transportation. Airlines don’t sell standing room. They won’t let you fly cargo. And if you take up more than one seat, that’s a seat they can’t sell to someone else, ergo, you should pay for it, if the plane is sold out.
Personally, I’d like to see this policy extended further into the world. You wanna park your Expedition? You pay for the two spots it occupies. You wanna walk busy city streets with a golf umbrella? Well… okay, I can’t see an easy way to charge for it. So people should just be allowed to kick you, once you fold it up and they can get close enough. 
Southwest doesn’t have first class seats, though.
However, I’m 6’ tall and about 225-230; I flew Southwest twice last autumn, on one occasion with my 6’4" boyfriend who is about the same proportionate size I am. Neither one of us had any problems fitting into their seats; legroom was much more comfortable on the exit row, but no problems even when we didn’t sit there.
I could probably weigh another 50 or so pounds and still fit COMFORTABLY into their seats (at least, assuming I had pants that fit. Tight pants are my nemesis since I’ve put on some weight).
Corr
Frankly, no. I don’t think that the hugely obese need an airline policy to remind them of their size and the limitations it imposes: if the ability to fit in airline seats, movie theatre seats, and amusement park rides were enough of a concern to prompt someone to lose weight, they wouldn’t have gotten that large to begin with. Not to say that it isn’t a benefit of losing weight, and therefore could very well be part of the goal, but in and of itself it’s no incentive. IMHO.
I think that the large people would rather pay for a second seat than be used as your drunken headrest.
Nothing to add, really, I just want to say that I’ve admired and agreed with every post I’ve seen of yours. I hope that you decide to stick around at the end of your trial membership.
Single biggest pet peeve of mine.
I live in Vancouver, where it’s a serious issue. The faintest little shower and suddenly the sidewalks downtown are unnavigable. Argh! All that’s missing from some of these buffoons’ brollies is microbrewery logos.
These policies always make me wonder if you could buy two seats just for the heck of it. Southwest makes a point of saying that two of their seats are less money than a first class seat on another airline, so if you had money to burn, would Southwest let you buy two seats just to spread out and enjoy the extra room?
I think it’s a fair policy, and I’m not a small person. I fit in my seat at hockey games, but there isn’t room for anyone else! There’s a woman who often buys the seat next to mine and it squicks me out to have her thighs rubbing against mine.
Hey, that’s not a bad idea! I’m not obese, but I get restless legs, so whenever I’m at the movies in a newer theater, I make sure to flip up the armrest so I can sprawl and wiggle and move around with two seats’ leeway.
Your experience has been my personal experience as well. I’m also the type of person that when I was 334 pounds, I would have inquired before boarding as to whether or not I’d be required to purchase a 2nd seat.
I actually own a seatbelt extender given to me by a flight attendant. She quietly gave it to me when I asked for it, and when I attempted to give it back at the end of the flight insisted I keep it.
VCNJ~
I weigh less than 100lbs, and my baggage allowance is the same as the next guy, who weighs 400lbs.
Should I get to bring more luggage because I’m thinner? Nope.
Should he have to buy 2 seats if he can’t fit in one? Yes.
It’s not discrimination, just like it’s not discrimation that the luggage allowance is the same for everyone.
Of course, I know of flights in Papua New Guinea where the plane is so small, and with only so much fuel onboard, that the passengers and their luggage are weighed together and you pay by the lb…anyone over the limit can’t fly unless the plane as a whole weighs less than a certain amount.
This* would* be a crappy way to handle the situation, I agree. I’m sure that’s why SW encourages people who may encounter this need to preboard. That way, if a second seat is needed, it’ll be available (it would be mortifying to have to ask someone to move so I could purchase a second seat), and it’ll be a less public way to deal with it.
It’s a sad fact that nothing will keep the situation from being embarrassing or painful to a degree, even if handled appropriately (I’m morbidly obese, so this I understand all too well.). Still, it simply isn’t fair to ask a planeload of people to suck it up and be cramped and uncomfortable just so that I can avoid the emotional consequences of my own actions.
I’m actually undecided.
A friend of mine once saw an airline charging someone excess bagage because they needed a heavy oxygen tank and breathing apparatus because they were very ill. She thought this was rude and unfair and I would agree. Most airlines (though not this one) will charge a small bit extra to other passengers to accomodate for this kind of thing and I’m happy to pay this charge. The same goes for passengers in wheelchairs.
Now with obesity the trouble is that it is hard to define whether or not someone’s weight is “their fault”. I think there’s a whole spectrum ranging from medical reasons completely beyond someone’s control to someone who just chooses to eat lots and not exercise with all kinds of shades of grey in between.
I would actually tend to say that other passengers share the costs, even if many people who made their beds and should lie in them get lucky too, so that genuinely blameless people aren’t made to suffer. Then again, I can see why airlines and/or the general population aren’t willing to do this.
It’s not even 300. I came real close to crossing the line when my weight ballooned up to 275. I had to work to get my butt into one of those torture devices they call an airline seat. Even then, I was oozing around the armrests.
Losing 40+ pounds helped. The 40 more pounds I’m going to lose this year will help even more.
I don’t think it’s about fault, though. It’s about pragmatism. It’s not as though when you go to get on the plane, they ask you whether you have a thyroid disorder, or you just really, *really * like your cheesecake.
I agree that charging someone extra baggage for an oxygen tank is wrong, but it’s a different situation. An oxygen tank is a medically necessary device. There’s also a significant difference in the amount of inconvenience to other passengers. If I have to check my carry-on so that someone can have their oxygen tank, I’m pretty much okay with that. But I prefer to not have someone sitting on my lap for a three hour flight.
Aw… I’m getting the warm fuzzies! Free seats for everyone!
Thank you!
Which raises the question: since he’s paying for two seats, should he be allowed to bring on twice as much luggage?