A very large airline passenger became jammed in his British Airways first-class seat and had to be winched free when he was still stuck three hours after landing.
A cabin door needed to be removed, London’s Sun newspaper reported. BA cabin crew tried but failed to shift the man.
According to the newspaper, emergency services were called, and a door was removed so the enormous traveller could be freed using a hoist.
The incident occurred following a six-and-a-half-hour flight from Nigeria to Heathrow.
A BA insider told the Sun: “The passenger was mortified. It’s astonishing because the seats are the most spacious available.
“It was as embarrassing as it can get for him – especially when a door in the cabin had to be removed.”
Although the incident has a humorous side, fellow passengers felt sorry for the man.
“It was abject humiliation in front of hundreds of disbelieving passengers. Crew members did all they could to calm the man.”
The report did not specify the type of aircraft involved, but British Airways uses a B777-300ER to operate the route between Nigeria’s Murtala Muhammed International Airport and London Heathrow.
The passenger was seated in 1A – generally regarded as the most desirable seat on the plane. He reportedly tucked into gourmet food and wine in his A$13,565 suite before the plane landed just before 5 a.m. on Saturday.
The Sun quoted an engineering note saying: “A volumetric passenger is stuck in seat 1A. The plan is to remove the suite door and use a hoist to eject [him] from the seat.”
The number of “volumetric passengers” taking to the skies continues to expand. Experts predict that over half the world’s population will be overweight or obese by 2035.
People are getting fatter globally, yet the average width of an aeroplane seat keeps shrinking.
Being seated next to a very large passenger is every economy class traveller’s nightmare – but it’s seldom a problem in seat 1A.
Written by: Peter Needham
