Hi all One of the rare times I can contribute something...... What I found hard to believe was that Mrs Hewson had asked to change seats but was told that none were available - but the 23 stone (322 pound) woman's husband was sitting in the seat behind her. No wonder he didn't volunteer to change seats and sit next to his wife! According to the report in England's Daily Mail, the injuries were - broken blood vessels in her left breast and hand, torn leg muscles and sciatic nerve damage. She couldn't fasten her seatbelt because it was trapped underneath their bodies and the pressure of the buckle tore muscles in her buttock. All this was 2 years ago and she's still in constant pain and walks with the aid of a stick. Regards Keith Harris ----- Original Message ----- From: "Roger James" <ejames@escape.ca> To: <AIRLINE@LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU> Sent: Wednesday, October 23, 2002 7:50 PM Subject: Virgin won't change obese passenger policy after settlement > Virgin won't change obese passenger policy after settlement > > LONDON (Reuters) =97 Virgin Atlantic Airways said on Tuesday it would not=20 > change its policy for overweight passengers, despite paying $20,100 to a=20 > woman squashed by an obese woman on a transatlantic flight. Virgin said=20 > nearly all portly passengers already booked more spacious seats in the=20 > front of the cabin or two economy seats but in rare cases when an obese=20 > passenger had not booked extra room, it would charge them for an extra seat= > =20 > or an upgrade. "Our seats are designed to cater well into the high 90% of=20 > the population," a Virgin spokeswoman said. "Those passengers in the still= > =20 > very rare cases who need more space generally flag that up when they book=20 > with the airline." But Virgin recently paid compensation to Barbara Hewson= > =20 > in an out-of-court settlement after she sustained injuries during a flight= > =20 > from London to Los Angeles in January 2001, when an oversized woman sitting= > =20 > next to her spilled over into her seat. There were no spare seats on the=20 > plane. "She was on a flight sitting next to an oversized lady who basically= > =20 > caused her some injury during the flight," a Virgin spokeswoman said. "The= > =20 > lady sitting next to Hewson was too big for her seat and overspilled on top= > =20 > of Hewson." > > The airline, in which Richard Branson's Virgin Group owns 51% and Singapore= > =20 > Airlines owns 49%, said the reason for the long wait for compensation was=20 > that Hewson had to provide medical evidence of the injuries. Virgin said=20 > there would be no policy changes resulting from the "unprecedented case"=20 > but it would continue to advise large passengers to upgrade to bigger seats= > =20 > or purchase two seats. "We haven't had a case like this and we don't=20 > receive very many complaints of this order, so it's something that doesn't= > =20 > need to result in a policy change," the spokeswoman said. U.S. no-frills=20 > carrier Southwest Airlines earlier this year angered the National=20 > Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, with its decision to require=20 > passengers too large to fit into one seat to purchase tickets for two=20 > seats. "This is the de facto policy of nearly all airlines," said an=20 > executive from a European airline, who asked not to be named. The Virgin=20 > spokesman said: "At the end of the day if a passenger needs two seats then= > =20 > they need two seats and we haven't got any choice but to charge them for=20 > that and we think our other passengers would rather we did." > > > > The owner of Roger's Trinbago Site: > Roj (Roger James) > *************************************************** > escape email mailto:ejames@escape.ca > Trinbago site: http://www.tntisland.com > CBC Website > http://www.tntisland.com/caribbeanbrassconnection/ > The Trinbago Site of the Week: > (I95.5FM) http://www.i955fm.com > (Radio Station I95.5FM) > courtesy of Roj Trinbago Website & TnT Web Directory > Roj's Trinbago Website: http://www.tntisland.com > TnT Web Directory: http://search.co.tt > ********************************************************* >