Cattle class crush pain for flyer

THE case of a plane passenger who is suing an airline after he was squashed painfully in his seat during a 14-hour flight from Sydney to LA could have ramifications for economy seats on all airlines.

Michael Anthony Taylor, 67, of Wollongong, is suing American Airlines after cabin crew refused to move him from his seat, despite his claims that he was being crushed by two obese fellow passengers. After spending most of the flight “crouching, kneeling, bracing or standing”, Mr Taylor says he was left with permanent back and neck injuries for which he is now seeking more than $100,000 in damages.

His lawyer Thomas Janson said: “If Michael is successful, this throws open the doors to potentially a large amount of cases against airlines and how they’ve designed their seating.”