Fat Tax

My big thing is, and has always been, that if you are charging extra fees for baggage and specifically "overweight baggage" then why not weight people and there stuff, and charge by the pound? Airlines will claim all day long that more weight = more fuel consumption and that is why they charge for overweight baggage.  

At ~135 pounds I should be allowed to take 100+ pounds of luggage for free if the typical 250 pound American male can take 50 pounds for the same ticket price.

In reality I think many airlines go by the if your rear fits between the two arm rests you're okay.  As a big guy I think they have already crossed the line of cramming too many people into too small of space.  I accept that flying is uncomfortable and compact myself into as small of footprint as possible, usually including rolling my shoulders forward with crossed arms for the duration of the flight.

What happens when the airlines shrink the seats another 2 inches so they can get one extra seat in across a big plane and more people fall into this category?  What is an appropriate limit?  

The same thing applies to long legs on many airlines, with extra charges for extra leg room.  Maybe they should have some extra space seats that are sold at a premium, but less than two tickets or a first class seat.     

I wonder does it make a difference if the 250 lbs is on a 5'8' obese guy or a 6'4" Well muscled guy?

I usually book the escape doors rows over the wings, because they have a little more leg space.  Otherwise my legs are hitting the seat in front of me.  It is not a fun thing to fly for me after I hit 6'  tall and at 6'3" it really sucks.  Tuck my arms in and just feel uncomfortable for the entire flight.  I have flown since for over 40 years now, when Braniff Airlines was still in existance.  Pretty much since I was in junior high (middle school for you younger folk), I was too tall to fit in planes and it got worse as the seats got narrower and leg room went away.

Ok, for a lot of people, not so much for taller people.

I was just wondering the same thing. If the argument is the extra fuel to carry the weight, the airplane doesn't care if it is fat or muscle. And if it is the room taken up in the seat, then a person who weighs 200 pounds at 5'0" is taking up more room than the same weight on a person 5'8"

Have a box for people just like they do for carry ons.  If you can shove all your fat or muscle in there, you're good to go.  Otherwise, that'll be an extra $100.

I have noticed that when people fly they always want to get on the plane as soon as possible so they can get a seat as close to the exit as they can. I guess so they can get off 2 minutes faster. I use to do this too until I was lucky enough to be chosen by an extremely large woman to be her seat buddy. It was the most uncomfortable flight I have ever been on. I told myself never again. I now wait to be one of the last people on board that way I get to pick who I sit by.

most airlines are assigned seating so the primary reason i see that so many hurry to get on the plane is to ensure the have room in the over-head compartment for their carry-on baggage.  the last people on the plane always have to get their bags checked if there is no more room.  that's just one more reason people who travel a lot like me value their priority satus.

i think if they could find a way to discreetly weigh people at check-in it would be easier to charge by weight.  throwing people on a scale or having them see if they can fit in a seat before boarding would be an airline's death sentence.  i'm assuming they would rather lose some money on overweight passengers than be that airline that embarrasses people at the airport.  that can't be good for business.

Honestly no, not to me.  If you're (the airlines, not you) are telling me that my 51 pound bag is going to cost $50 extra dollars because of the increased fuel usage than I should get a discount on my ticket because it will cost you less to fly me to Miami than the 250 pounder.

The time or two I've been in this situation, I gently ask the seatmate to help me put the armrest down.  When I'm the first one on (I flew a lot last year, so I get priority boarding now), I lower the armrest so it's down when the seatmate arrives.  I'll also say that one or two airlines require that the armrests be lowered along with the seatbacks raised and tray tables stowed, so in those situations, the onus is on the other passenger to squeeze into the allotted space. 

In addition to not wanting to embarrass the person, you'll be the one holding up the flight and who wants the flight to take off late?

I fortunately haven't had it so bad where the arm rest is up but I would be pretty frustrated, especially on a long flight.

If you can't fit into a half seat to accommodate your neighbor, you need to lose a few.