Big Passanger

[Shadrach]

Quote: TLSDriver

I have an awkward question.  I have a new neighbor that keeps asking me to take him for a flight.  Normally that would be a fun and I would go in a second.

Here is the issue:  I don't know for sure but I think he weighs around 300lbs....(range  is 275-350.)

Wondering if there is a nice way to ask him how much do you weigh?  Will the wing be happy with this weight on it?  Seat take that weight?

I can already imagine we would be cozy but I want to make sure I am not getting my self into a dangerous situation or one that may do some harm to the plane.

On the other hand if not then lets go fly!  Would like to be a good neighbor.

The plane is a 1998 Bravo.

 

Thoughts on how to handle this?

 

[rbridges]

Quote: 201er

Getting in is one thing, getting out is a whole other story! I've had passengers weighing less than that barely be able to hoist themselves up to get out.

[201er]

Quote: allsmiles

Wasn't it US Air or some airline that was charging a double seat price for overweight passengers?!

[fantom]

Quote: 201er

I wonder how the FAA would feel about splitting pro rata share based on pro rata weight

[flyboy0681]

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[Shadrach]

Quote: fantom

I wonder how the FAA would feel about splitting pro rata share based on pro rata weight

[rbridges]

Quote: fantom

I wonder how the FAA would feel about splitting pro rata share based on pro rata weight

[John Pleisse]

Quote: rbridges

 Seems reasonable to me....

The trim wheel would be the least of my worries

 

[PTK]

How much does a standard "FAA adult" weigh again?!! Got my private some years ago and apparently things may have changed!

 

[jetdriven]

You can stagger the seats for more width and I would venture to say, even with spillover that trim wheel is easier to reach than the fuel selector on a pre- 1979 bird. Our electric trim quit and it got fixed immediately

[jetdriven]

It wanst long ago we made fun of black people, gays and lesbians, jews, and anyone else that didn't make our definition of "normal".   Perhaps you have a small penis.  You deserve to be laughed at.

I suppose everyone that gets cancer, hit by a car in an intersection, gets diabetes,  or has a mechanical failure in an airplane resulting in injury or fatality deserved it, and lacks personal responsibility. Ha ha ha. Suckers.  Screw you, i got mine! It must be your fault!   Perhaps when something happens to you, well , you deserved it.  

Quote: allsmiles

Have your neighbor consider losing some weight as an incentive. Make it a condition to have him lose say 100 pounds. It will be healthier for him and your Mooney!

Wasn't it US Air or some airline that was charging a double seat price for overweight passengers?! I'm not suggesting charging him but have him lose some weight for crying out loud! Not all things we do are for everyone. I wouldn't feel bad saying no to him until he loses weight! Assuming he has control over his weight he bears the whole responsibility and should not be dissapointed. Your responsibility is to educate him. I personally have no sympathy for people who lack personal responsibility. 

 

[RJBrown]

Quote: jetdriven

 PC gone TOO far. This over reaction IS what it tries to condemn. The harshness of judgement, the pure hatefullness of the statement, jetdriven should be ashamed. Once again the left is the author of hate. The Irony is no longer subtle. HATE spewed profusly, blindly and selfrightously at any thing real or imagined.

 Weight is by and large controllable. Weight is the LARGEST (No pun intended) Health issue today in our country. There appeared no malice in the original statement. In fact there appeared to be concern.

Airplanes transport freight by weight. The weight of the cargo IS what costs. To charge by weight for freight but not for passengers discriminates against the many to the benefit of the few. Oh wait a minute that's just what some do in every situation. I agree with allsmiles closing phrase "I personally have no sympathy for people who lack personal responsibility." The failure of so many to accept personal responsibility is at the root of most of our ills as a society.

[Becca]

Jetdriven's hyperbole aside, I am personally disgusted by the litinany of fat jokes on this board.    You have no idea if this person is 6'6", for instance, which is a lot different than someone who is 5'1" weighing the same.  You don't know if this person's weight is because he's "fat" or because he's a gym nut (I have a girlfriend who can do one armed pullups on a door frame but always qualifies as "overweight" because of her muscle mass).  You don't know if this person just lost 50 lbs and this is as skinny as he's ever been in their whole life.  You don't know if this person has medical problems.  You don't know if this person has fought eating disorders and yo yo dieted all his life.  You may have never have even had a challenge losing weight yourself - yet you are fast to decry someone else's lack of "personal responsibility".  Some people can have two slices of cake and a mcdonalds every day and stay skinny, but no one is talking about their lack of "personal responsibility".  Whereas some people run marathons (I know some of these people) and will always qualify as obese on a BMI index.  Yes, there is an element of personal responsibility toward weight - there is also an element of genetics, environment, and a myriad of other things.  You just resorted straight to fat jokes.  Byron may have used some extreme language, but everyone who made a joke before him should be ashamed of themselves.  Just call me the PC police. 

Just because you take someone flying doesn't give you the right to dig into his medical and personal life or to "punish" them for lack of personal responsibility.   It is ok, as many people pointed out, to ask how much someone weighs and politely explain to him that you need it to do the weight and balance on the airplane.  When I take a married couple flying, I usually asked them for their "combined" weight, which allows them saving a little embarrassment.  Everyone understands when I say I can only take two people instead of three with full tanks and no one questions it.  There is nothing wrong with any of this.  What's wrong is saying "Geesh, 275 lbs, before you come in my airplane, I am going to have to put you on a diet".  if the math doesn't work out, you might say "Look, I just can't take any more than 250 lbs (or whatever the number is), its just a limitation of my type of airplane.  If you ever lose weight, I'd be happy to take you, just let me know.  If you are really interested in flying, though, there are some other types of planes I can help you find..."

The question here isn't whether fat people should be made fun of (and they shouldn't), its whether you can safely fly a Mooney with 275 lbs of cargo in the passenger seat.  The secondary question is what are some coping issues for the small amount of volume in the Mooney cockpit (I, for instance, have short legs and because of where I have to sit in the pilots seat, I have to use a pvc pipe with a notch cut in it to reach the fuel selector, because I can't lean over to reach it without my head hitting the yoke).   And I checked my plane's weight and balance, and the answer is yes, I can safely fly 275 lbs in the right seat - I might make some concessions, like leaving the left tank a little more full than the right or if I have a back seat passenger, balancing the weight a little by placing them in the left rear seat.  However, I wouldn't want to be trapped in a small cockpit with someone who has that little respect for human dignity that they'd try to teach someone a lesson by refusing to fly them until they lose weight just because they feel like passing judgment, regardless of if that person is skinny or fat...  

By the way, you all should check out this photo project: http://kateharding.net/bmi-illustrated/

 

[PTK]

Quote: jetdriven

 

[MARZ]

You guys need to get thicker skin - sheeze

"Hey can I go fly with you"

"Sure but I have weight restrictions for my plane, how much do you weigh"

"About 360"

"Well that's pretty close to the edge of the envelope - but if we take some fuel off it might work"

If in my mind the person looks like they may push the envelope on my weight and balance I have no qualms asking the question, in fact I always ask the weight question of all passengers, no reservations, no embarrassment.  

Here's a news flash - if the person is that heavy.... they know it.

If you have a conflict between possibly offending an overweight passenger or killing yourself and them because of weight and balance on your plane - fly alone because you're not a safe pilot 

[alex]

This PC crap is really sickening! I was really enjoying this thread until the leftists got all sentiMENTAL. I'll take a break and go throw up my lunch so I can look like Brad Pitt.

[MARZ]

Quote: alex

This PC crap is really sickening! I was really enjoying this thread until the leftists got all sentiMENTAL. I'll take a break and go throw up my lunch so I can look like Brad Pitt.

[Becca]

Quote: allsmiles

 

[Ksaunders]

You might overlook one rather embarrassing aspect, will the seatbelt adjust enough to "Make it Click".  (??).  Never saw that little road bump when I invited my next door pal (and retired 747 pilot) for a joy ride in my 201.  With the belt at max, it was a chore (and probably very uncomfortable ride for him) sucking in the spare tire to enjoy the flight. 

Anyway, my golfing buddy is 250 lbs and has a knee replacement.  2 sets of clubs, 2 suitcases and 20 Gal in each wing and we're off to practice our swearing on the next dog track.  Be very careful of your weight and balance and watch that CG.  He is more comfortable with the seat all the way back during flight.  The in and out is seldom an issue outside of my typical complaining that this former Navy Seal and 10,000 hour P-3 Orion Navigator is twice the man he was in the day!  Butt first in and out is usually the most comfortable for us all.   

[John Pleisse]

Look at your W&B Charts....there are seperate stations for various seat postions. This could help mitigate some moment problems of a heftier passenger and hedge your bets.

[MARZ]

Quote: N4352H

Look at your W&B Charts....there are seperate stations for various seat postions. This could help mitigate some moment problems of a heftier passenger and hedge your bets.

[PTK]

Quote: Becca

Hey Jetdriven, why don't you learn to read before you run your mouth!  I said  "assuming he has control over his weight". What do you think this means?  It means assuming the person is not ill and can't help it.

You also bear the personal responsibility to read before you speak. Of course assuming you can and are able to control your mouth!

And you Becca I suggest you do the same.  By the way I see nothing wrong in passing judgement after the person asked to be judged! He did that by asking to fly!  Of course I would never go up to an obese individual and start talking to them about their weight. Unless they ask me for my professional advice or to take them flying! 

I will never walk on eggshells trying to be politically correct. This is the crux of the problems we face today. Everything and anything goes. Everything and anything is justified as being correct and OK! There is no compass of any kind.

Let me tell you a secret: We can argue all day and till the cows come home as to what is right and what is wrong. But trust me, we can never argue that there actually is a "RIGHT" and there is a "WRONG". 

Nobody has a monopoly on virtue. Not even you jetdrivem nor you Becca.

[mooneygirl]

Perhaps we just need to complete this thread and move on to something a bit more positive and Mooney related.

[PTK]

Quote: mooneygirl

Perhaps we just need to complete this thread and move on to something a bit more positive and Mooney related.

[John Pleisse]

Quote: maropers

 Not so much the belts in my plane - they are anchored to the seat - that said when I replaced them I gave myself and my passengers a bit more adjustment by lengthening the latch side.