Hello my fellow fats!

[guess_thebetta]

I am leaving in a week to fly to Missouri, and am slightly panic-y about the whole ordeal.

Comments

[vesperholly]

I'm so sorry you had a bad experience the last time. Can they really do searches outside of security? The boarding line seems a little ... last minute.

What I would suggest is to approach the plane people (the ones who take your ticket) and say that you will need a seatbelt extender. They might be able to pull a flight attendant aside and get that problem resolved quickly so it doesn't make you anxious. The other thing would be to tell the flight attendant that you are afraid of not fitting into a seat, and if the flight isn't full, they may be able to arrange seating to have you next to an empty seat. I'm sure if you appealed to the kindness of a flight attendant, they would help you out.

[jeveuxsavoir]

Unfortunately, they can and do.

Semi-related story (re: search) - my first time flying post-9/11, I got pulled for a gate search. I remember they made me undo my jeans (I was taking another international flight later in the day, so I had a money belt on) and it felt pretty invasive...and the worst part of it was that I was only 14 at the time. I was traveling with my mom, and they made her board the plane instead of stay with me (she was pissed as hell, seeing as I was a minor). Wound up with me shaking and sobbing for a good half hour once I got on the plane, nasty experience. I know after awhile they stopped the gate searches in the US, but they seem to have brought them back within the past year or so.

[synj_munki]

i like to check out the airline and plane on http://www.seatguru.com/ they have the widths of the seat and whatnot (handy tip-- the *middle* of the plane has the widest seats, sometimes by a couple inches). Also, I like to get a window seat so some of me spills out of the seat into the wall of the airplane (i am also as wide in the shoulder as the hip and hate getting nicked by the drink cart in the aisle!)

[my_familar]

I'm really sorry you had a shitty experience the last time you flew. I flew to Missouri just a couple weeks ago, from NY, on Frontier. I'm about your size (24) and didn't have any trouble fitting into the seat. I mean, I wasn't super comfortable but I fit in the seat. The seat belt fit also, just about at the end. I have had other seat belts that didn't fit and have never had a problem asking for an extender

[ejw829]

Sorry about the crap flight last time

[51stcenturyfox]

Too many people think that one carryon + one personal item = two huge bags that really should be checked

Completely agree!

I usually wear jeans on the flight if bringing them, since they're bulky to pack. I usually take black pants, a black tee, a couple of shirts and maybe a skirt. Black flats and some flip-flops also. If I need sneakers or boots on the trip, I wear them on the plane, even though they're a pain to take off for TSA. I take a few scarves for color and cute jewelry.

I always bring sunglasses on the flight in case my seat mate likes open windows and I want to nap.

[leatherfish]

I'm sorry to hear about what happened to you last time. That sounds horrible

[_keena]

thank you for this. I'm a 26/28 all over and i had a HORRIBLE experience with southwest airlines last year. I'm afraid that I might have to flyy sometime this year and i'm just DREADING it. i'll keep US air in mind. thx again.