Airlines all over the world are working to cut back on what they load onto their airliners in order to save fuel. Lighter loads equals less fuel equals less pain at the pump, what with soaring oil prices. Less cutlery, less cups – every little bit counts.

But nobody is talking about the obvious area of saving. The main cargo bit. The passenger. Obviously passengers are all created equal, even if they are not.

Here’s an idea. How about charging bigger passengers more, but also giving them bigger seats. As somebody who himself is also a plus sized gentleman, and who take up around 2m of altitude, I for one would prefer to have a little more individual space in economy, even if that comes at a price.

Passengers flying long-haul flights are normally requested to fasten their seatbelts over blankets, so that crew can see that they are fastened, in case the aircraft enters turbelence after the passenger has fallen asleep. This is to prevent them from having to wake up anybody to check whether the belt has indeed been fastened.

It would be so much more convenient for the airline and comfortable for the passenger, if seats are fitted with simple illuminators that light up when the belts are fastened. So a visual inspection of the seat will reveal if the belts is fastened under the blanket or not.