Should Airlines Charge More for Overweight Passengers?

Should airlines charge more for overweight passengers? The answer might not be as obvious as you'd think given how politically correct we have become about such sensitive issues as a person's weight. Nonetheless, with rising fuel costs and the possibility of higher airfares passed onto consumers, it is not without warrant to charge for "excess baggage"-whether having more than the permitted allowance or if one is overweight.

Now before I am accused of being insensitive or discriminatory-whether one is thin or heavyset, both would be charged the same excess baggage weight. Fair enough. However, if airlines are going to charge customers for having excess baggage and charge them a fee for the excess baggage weight to offset fuel costs, it makes perfect economical sense-from a strictly fuel point of view to charge a passenger who is above a standard or average weight. Discriminatory, yes but not without justification if we look at it from fuel costs and who has to pay for those costs. Would it be fair to say then, if overweight people are permitted to fly without paying additional costs and the airlines had to charge more that those higher airfares are shared by all? If we charge for excess baggage for that reason, then prudence dictates that the same apply to passengers.

I can totally understand the resentment that travelers who are overweight would feel if this were to become a standard airline operating procedure. It could very well be seen as a kind of discrimination against overweight people. One can only imagine the outcry when a person is told they are "too fat too fly" unless they pay a higher airfare. Of course, if this were to become a policy, an industry standard would have to be established; the problem with that would be who or what organization would set such a standard? What is the difference between obese, chubby, and pleasantly plump? Therefore, such a regulation if enacted would be both sensitive and discriminatory based on a person's actual girth and weight.

Inasmuch as it might seem unfair to a person who is a little on the heavy side to have to pay for all those extra pounds, it is not without justification. If you smoke, you accept that fact that you might have to pay higher insurance premiums because of the high risk factor. It would be unfair to pass those same high premiums onto a nonsmoker. Therefore, the same could be applied to one's weight and having to pay an additional, but fair overweight allowance. Of course, it might be a good idea to come up with a proper euphemism like "pounds plus." Better yet, it just might be a good idea to "travel light."