Plane passenger suing airline after sustaining injury caused by ‘being sat

An Australian plane passenger, who claims he suffered back pain after being seated next to an overweight man, is suing Etihad Airways.

A man is suing an airline because he claims the passenger next to him was so fat he git back ache. In the lawsuit, which Basso, 38, filed in Queensland, he is asking for more than $165,000 ($227,000 AU) in compensation for medical expenses and lost earnings, among other things.

“The safety and comfort of Etihad Airways’ passengers and crew is of paramount importance and the airline has a zero-tolerance policy towards unruly behaviour”, the spokesperson told Gulf News by email.

Mr Bassos is claiming damages for personal injuries.

Mr Bassos now claims Etihad Airways is to blame for the bad back he developed during the flight from Sydney to Dubai in 2011.

The man’s body encroached into Mr Bassos’s seat and he frequently coughed and expelled fluid from his mouth.

Bassos said he had asked to be shifted to a different seat, but the staff of the UAE-based airline allegedly refused.

“Etihad Airways will continue to oppose the action and now that Mr. Bassos will finally face a medical assessment in December 2015… we believe that the matter will proceed to an early conclusion”, the airline said.

Etihad said it was common for customers to be seated next to overweight passengers on a fully booked flight.

Etihad tried to have the claim thrown out and argued it was not unusual to have overweight passengers taking up too much space, or coughing passengers.

Etihad predicted in a statement on Friday that a court-ordered medical assessment in December would bring the case to a swift end.

In published reasons, Judge Kingham said she wasn’t convinced Mr Bassos had no chance of winning.

Mr Bassos claims he still suffers back pain and his sleep and concentration have been adversely affected.