Man Called "Fatphobic" After Complaining "Obese" Stranger Takes Up Seat
Traveler is slammed for admitting he didn’t want to sit next to someone “obese” on his flight.
Bad behavior on flights is always a topic of conservation and Reddit is blowing up right now with yet another story of a "rude"passenger. In the Reddit group where people explain their position to readers and others chime in to decide who is wrong, a man shared how he was on a crowded 12 hour flight and didn't want to sit next to someone "obese." Things got heated quickly and the man claimed he was kicked off the flight, and Reddit had plenty to say.
The Original Poster Said He and Didn't Want to Sit Next to Someone "Obese" on a 12 Hour Flight
The person who wrote the post stated he is 18 and was traveling to his home country, but didn't specify exactly where. He went on to say he was on a 12 hour long connecting flight when he, "had the delightful sight of an obese man that was taking up a good chunk of my seat." He added, "I am not a small guy myself. I have quite broad shoulders and am around 190 cm, so a full seat would already have been uncomfortable."
The Flight Was Full Which Also Upset the Poster
The passenger complained to a flight attendant hoping something could be done about the situation. He said, "I told the flight attendant about this issue and she told me that the seat was paid for by this obese person and the flight was full. I asked the flight attendant how it's possible that my seat was still rendered as available if it was being used for someone's literal rolls, as this wasn't an American airline (non-American airlines don't get overbooked)."
Things Got Ugly
The poster's comments landed him in trouble with the airline and things escalated. He explained, "These comments prompted the flight attendant to call me rude and just made her double down on me getting kicked off the plane, though she reassured me I'd be compensated for this trouble as I told her I wasn't travelling for vacation." Before the traveler left the plane, other passengers took note of his behavior and called him out. He said, "The fat man took his opportunity to call me fatphobic. Some other people around gave me the stink eye. I know they think I'm a bad person for this, but on the other hand I'm having to pay for the lack of discipline of another person as well as this airline's booking system. Hell I'd rather they called me the day before."
The Airline Staff Filed a Complaint
The passenger didn't name the airline he was traveling on, but shared that the staff filed a complaint against him. He said, "The airline staff sent a letter of complaint that I got appealed and the consequences in the complaint (being a temporary ban) were removed less than an hour later. In the letter of complaint it said I was being rude to other passengers and the staff." He went on to say, "Since it got appealed so quickly, and I got to travel the next day anyway," and then asked if he was" a jerk for his comments that "have offended both the fat man and the airline staff?"
Reddit Didn't Hold Back
Since the original poster asked about what people thought, commenters didn't hesitate to tell him. "OP"—the original poster—"needs to discipline that mouth!!" Someone else wrote, "It probably would've been handled very differently if you had handled it differently. I know air travel can make people turn into idiots, so please everyone, don't be that idiot." In a lengthy comment someone shared, "No matter the reason someone is fat (which they never owe anyone a justification for their existence. No one does) they deserve respect. Are airplane seats too small? Yes. Does OP think that us fat folks don't know and DREAD sitting on a plane?" The commenter added, " I'm a size 18 and I was just on a plane. The skinny old lady in the seat next to me was complaining about her armrests the entire time because I SWEAR those seats are getting smaller. OP just wanted to cash in on the whole "YEAH! Fat people are gross and lazy and how DARE this person need to fly on a plane while having a body! And I am really really glad to see people actually telling OP to shove it." Someone else wrote, "It's interesting he says that he shouldn't have to deal with someone else's lack of discipline — yet he made the entire plane deal with him as he threw his baby tantrum."
