The man had paid for a first class seat on an American Airlines flight to Houston.
Premium seats offer an extra 8 inches of space, which was important for this person who stands at 6 feet 3 inches tall.
Seat taken
When he sat down in his place, there was a passenger next to him with an assistance dog. The pooch was called Bear and weighed more than 100 pounds. He was taking up both the space near his owner's seat and encroaching on the gentleman's legroom.
In the images, the pooch appears to be a black Labrador Retriever, but the Reddit user compared his size to that of a St Bernard! The traveller was outraged. He wrote a message on social media platform Reddit stating: "I love dogs, but seriously... I paid for the first class and cabin upgrade, and it was like this for the entire flight. Nobody did anything".
Little support
However, the man specified in his post that the assistance dog's owner apologised for the inconvenience caused. Internet users weren't all sympathetic to the man, stating: "You had two options: act or do nothing. You chose the second option, so you can't really complain about the result. Also, acting doesn't mean arguing. You could have politely asked your neighbour to move his dog, or asked a flight attendant to help you resolve the issue."
Other internet users expressed their compassion for the animal itself: "I feel sorry for the dog...", wrote one user, whilst another asked: "What happens in case of turbulence or emergency? It's so dangerous for the dog and other passengers."
American Airlines states that trained assistance dogs can travel free of charge in the cabin if they meet certain conditions. The animal must be able to fit at a passenger's feet, under a seat or on their lap, if it's small enough to fit on the lap of a child under 2 years old. If the animal is too big or too heavy, the airline advises passengers to book a flight with more available seats, purchase a ticket for the animal or transport it in the hold.
