DAILYMAIL, THURSDAY, JANUARY 24TH, 2002

Report by: Andrew Loudon and James Chapman

A HOLIDAYMAKER who feared he had ‘economy class syndrome’ after a cramped long-haul flight struck a major blow against the airlines yesterday. Businessman Brian Horan won £500 in damages from a holiday firm after enduring two eight-hour flights to Canada unable to sit straight. On his return, he developed severe pains in his legs and feared he had a potentially fatal blood clot. Though tests for deep vein thrombosis (DVT) proved negative, a judge yesterday ruled that tour operator JMC had breached its duty of care by not flying him in reasonable comfort.

Mr Horan’s victory comes on the day doctors claim stress could be a major factor in causing DVT (see story right). Last night experts predicted his display of passenger power could lead to a string of claims from others fed up with unbearable conditions on flights. Mr Horan, 56, managing director of a storage systems company, said he had been in distress on the flights with his family from Manchester to Calgary last year. At 12 stone and 6ft, he had to tuck his knees to the side of the seat in front. Eating and reading was difficult and sleep was impossible. ‘The discomfort became excruciating to anyone of my height,’ he said. ‘The seat was like a straitjacket.’ Judge Andrew Wallace, sitting at Macclesfield County Court in Cheshire, agreed. The judge said: ‘I am satisfied Mr Horan did suffer some quite considerable discomfort as a result of the cramped conditions in the cabin. I accept that there may well be considerable commercial ramifications following this case.’ As the hearing took place in the Small Claims Court, it does not set a legal precedent. But the outcome could inspire other angry passengers to fight back. ‘You have to let these people know they cannot treat their customers like cattle,’ Mr Horan said. He said the case, in which he had represented himself with some advice from his lawyer daughter, had been fought as a matter of principle. He is donating his £500 damages to a hospital near his home in Broken Cross, Macclesfield. He was also awarded £160 costs.

Yesterday JMC, Britain’s third-largest tour operator, said the safety and comfort of passengers was its priority. It was ‘disappointed’ at the outcome of the case and was considering an appeal. Mr Horan and his wife Val flew with Mrs Horan’s sons Andrew, 22, and Gregory, 11, on a £6,600 package skiing holiday last year arranged through JMC subsidiary Neilson. At the check-in Mr Horan asked for a bulkhead seat with extra leg room but none was available. ‘I was physically unable to sit straight,’ he told the court. ‘I had to sit with my legs akimbo. I was unable to read because the seat in front was too close. Eating was a nightmare, and it wasn’t possible to sleep.’ He pleaded for a better seat on the trip home but nothing was done. Sharon Sanderson, for JMC Holidays, said the Boeing 767, which had been leased from Airtours, was not cramped. She said it complied with CAA standards but conceded that the regulations covered aircraft safety rather than comfort. Mr Horan was delighted with the outcome, especially as his daughter had warned he had little chance of success. ‘The courts are littered with claims ‘They treat us like the enemy’against the airlines which seem to have the laws of contract drawn up in their favour,’ he said. ‘ I think JMC felt I was not a serious threat to them. They misjudged the implications and strength of my case. ‘I am absolutely delighted and I hope this forces airlines like JMC to consider their passengers. We are the people who pay their wages and give them their profits but they treat us like the enemy. We are not the enemy. ‘I think the vast majority of people flying long-haul would not mind paying an extra £50 rather than suffering 16 hours of torture. ‘I am fit but if I had been 70 and had two hip operations it would be unimaginable. It is not human to treat people like that. ‘We booked a five-star holiday, we didn’t expect to be transported in veal crates both ways.’ A JMC spokesman said seat spacing on its own aircraft and on those of third-party carriers such as Airtours all complied with Civil Aviation Authority safety requirements. These laid down a minimum pitch of 26ins for safe evacuation in an emergency. The pitch is the distance from the seatback of one row to the back of the seat in the row in front – effectively the passenger’s personal space. JMC and Airtours use a pitch of 28ins, the most cramped conditions on any UK-registered holiday jets. An industry expert said increasing seat pitch on a 767 by two inches would involve removing two rows of seats. This would cost 16 passengers per flight and millions of pounds a year. ‘That would have a direct effect on holiday prices and in this highly competitive industry price is king,’ he said. ‘If one carrier made a move like that it would instantly lose business to rivals who kept the pitch tight.’

Dr Farrol Khan, of Oxford’s Aviation Health Institute, said the minimum legroom between seats should be raised to 32ins in the interests of passenger safety and comfort. ‘I would now expect a spate of claims against the airlines,’ he said. ‘If people are frustrated by the conditions they have endured, they will follow this passenger’s example.’

Source: Aviation Health Institute, December 2001 AVERAGE LEG ROOM IN ECONOMY CLASS* Figures in inches - Monarch Airlines 28 JMC 28 Gulf Air 28 Flying Colours 28 Britannia 28 Airtours 28 Air 2000 28 Ryanair 29 Go 29 Easy Jet 29 Virgin Atlantic 30 Qantas 30 Delta 30 Caledonian 30 United Airlines 31 KLM 31 Iceland Air 31 British Airways 31 Singapore Airlines 32 Lauda Air 32 Emirates 32 Cathay Pacific 32 British Midland 32 Austrian Airlines 32 Aer Lingus 32 Alitalia 33 Thai Airways 34 Malaysian 34 Lufthansa 34 Japan Airlines 34 American Airlines 34 Air New Zealand 34 Air France 34 Air China 34 Air Canada 34

Report by Beezy Marsh, Medical Reporter - STRESS caused by fear of flying could be a key factor in causing deep vein thrombosis, experts said yesterday. The effect, which leading surgeons are calling for research into,could affect up to two-thirds of air passengers. Anxiety is known to cause a surge of the hormone adrenaline, which makes blood more likely to clot and causes vessels to constrict. This may provide a crucial ‘kickstart’ for the formation of a potentially fatal blood clot. Sitting for long periods in a cramped aeroplane seat and dehydrating through a lack of moisture in the air and too much caffeine or alcohol may complete the process. The clot becomes fatal if it breaks free of veins in the leg and travels to the lungs, causing a pulmonary embolism.

Experts backing the new theory, put forward by medical engineer Professor David Hughes, say two thirds of air passengers could be affected by the stress of flying. In Britain alone, this would mean 40million people a year may have an increased risk of DVT. DVT proves fatal for an estimated 1,000 British passengers each year. Cases are three times as likely to occur in economy class, but passengers flying business and first class have also been affected. Vascular surgeons from leading hospitals in London are calling for research into the link between DVT and stress. Professor Geoffrey Savidge, consultant haematologist at St Thomas’s, said: ‘Clotting factors are elevated under stress. ‘It may be a primeval response, involving the “fight or flight”mechanism. The theory seems to fit quite neatly. What we now want to do is develop a prospective study.’ Professor Hughes, who proposed the link after inventing an in-flight device to prevent DVT, is seeking backing from airlines for a study. Fear of flying ‘could increase DVT risk’ ‘The theory seems to fit’ By Beezy Marsh Medical Reporter

disclaimer