A woman has slammed airlines for forcing her to foot the cost of two airplane seats due to her size and said fat people are treated like ‘a problem’ in society
A plus sized influencer has shared her outrage that she still has to pay for two plane seats due to her size when she flies – and demanded airlines give people in bigger bodies free seats so they have enough room.
Jaelynn Chaney also slammed airlines for their ‘shrinking’ seats as has reissued her demands to airlines, telling them to stop making plus-sized passengers pay more for more than one place to sit. She claims it’s “outrageous” that people “forced to pay twice for the same accommodation anyone else gets with just one ticket”. This isn’t the first time she has been vocal about the need for bigger plane seats, and claims the seats are getting smaller so airlines can cram in more passengers. The travel crusader took to TikTok earlier this week to share her thoughts and said it wasn’t about “giving fat people more, it’s about accommodating basic needs”. She slammed the “broken system” and said fat people are treated “like a problem”.
Jaelynn asked: “Why is it that other countries, like Canada, recognise this as a basic need, but here in the US, airlines are still making money off our discomfort? It’s time they stop profiting from our bodies and start treating everyone fairly. And let’s not forget, airline seats keep shrinking every year, making it even harder for people who already need extra space.”
She believes the US should adopt the same as the Canadian policy of ‘one person, one fare’ which was introduced in 2008. Airlines sich as Air Canada require passengers who need medical accommodations to submit paperwork and documentation from their doctors to make the request, which will be approved up to 48 hours before the flight, according to the Canadian government.
A passenger must also provide their height, weight, body mass index and surface measurements (the distance between the two widest points) in order to see if they are eligible for the one-person-one-fare policy through the Canadian airlines. However the US does not comply with this, and The Department of Transportation states: “Airlines are not required to furnish more than one seat per ticket purchased.”
Jaelynn added: “In Canada, people who need more space aren’t paying extra, they’re paying for the space their body needs – no extra charge for something that should be basic. Meanwhile in the US fat people are still being forced to pay double for what should be standard accomodation.”
In the video caption, the influencer penned: “When a fat person speaks up about small plane seats or needing to buy more than one seat because they don’t fit, they’re criticised and ridiculed.” She also slammed what she branded’bias’ and added: “The real issue is anti-fat bias that’s ingrained in society, making people think fat people don’t deserve basic accommodations. We’re treated like the problem when, in reality, it’s the system that’s broken.”
However people disagreed with Jaelynn’s opinion, as one TikToker commented: “If you take up two seats, then no other person can buy a ticket to sit there, so you have to pay for it,” and another added: “‘If you use two seats, shouldn’t you pay for two seats?” While one airline worker wrote: “I am Canadian and an aviation major and agree you shouldn’t have to pay more based on your body but the seats shrinking isn’t true.”
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