The post sparked a heated debate, quickly racking up over thousands of comments, with many suggesting that larger passengers should be required to pay for two seats if they can’t fit into one.
The post quickly sparked a flurry of reactions, ranging from support to harsh criticism. Some people argued that passengers who cannot fit into a single seat should be required to pay for two seats. “If you’re using two seats, you should be paying for two,” one commenter bluntly stated, echoing a sentiment shared by many others. Another added, “Tall passengers pay extra for legroom, so why should width be treated any differently?”
”Personal choices…”
Another person suggested: ”Easily solved, if you are this large, you need to buy two seats OR they should make oversized seats for people like this and charge them extra for the larger seat. Plain and simple.”
”The reason the majority of large people are large is not a medical reason, it’s personal choices. And those personal choices have ramifications…”
A third commenter added: ”People who buy one seat shouldn’t have to give half of it to someone spilling into their seat. If anything, they should pay half.”
Another remarked: ”As someone who is currently down 90lbs, being largely overweight is a choice 99 percent of the time.”
However, there were many voices against this idea, calling attention to the shrinking size of airline seats. “Airlines have been downsizing seat sizes for years to cram more passengers onboard. The lack of comfort isn’t just affecting plus-sized people — it’s affecting everyone,” one user pointed out.
Plus-size travel influencer joins the debate
The conversation took a more personal turn when plus-size travel influencer Jaelynn Chaney, known for advocating for ”fat liberation,” joined the debate. Chaney, a 28-year-old who frequently speaks out on behalf of larger passengers, argued that forcing individuals to change their bodies to fit into airplane seats is not the solution.
“Why should I have to shrink myself to fit into spaces never designed for me?” she asked in a TikTok video. “The issue isn’t me — it’s the system.”