I’m normally quite impressed by the knowledge and passion Chrissy Teigen displays when it comes to air travel. Not this time, however. A stinging rebuke of American Airlines by the supermodel really misses the mark.
Supermodel Rebukes American Airlines Over Filling Middle Seats
It’s one thing to complain about airlines choosing to fill middle seats. It’s quite another to call them murders for doing so. But Teigen alleges that American Airlines does not care if you get sick and die; it only cares about the almighty dollar.
Not to be dramatic but American Airlines only cares about money and doesn’t care if you get sick and die. https://t.co/6q8ZfZiduB
— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) July 3, 2020
As View from the Wing notes, when Chrissy Teigen addresses a travel-related matter, you listen. Her celebrity status may have given her the platform, but she has proven over the years to offer interesting, informed, and useful thoughts concerning air travel.
- Model Brings “Emotional Support Casserole” on American Airlines Flight
- Fascinating: Foul Play and Intrigue Onboard ANA Flight to Nowhere
- Supermodel’s Account of the 8hr ANA Flight from LAX to LAX
That makes this latest outburst all the more disappointing.
Is American or other airlines putting lives at risk by filling middle seats? We’re going to address that on a scientific basis next week on Live and Let’s Fly. But even if the answer is yes in an absolute sense, the cost/benefit analysis is not unreasonable. Why do we have higher speed limits in some jurisdictions or why are cigarettes still sold despite their strong link to lung cancer? That’s a different discussion for a different time, but the answer is summed up in the many tradeoffs we make based upon a cost-benefit analysis.
But Teigen didn’t say AA is putting lives at risk. Instead, she said that American doesn’t care if you get sick or die. Come on Chrissy! Reality is a bit more complicated.
CONCLUSION
In this case, I defend American Airlines. Teigen’s charge was unbecoming of her. We can discuss–and will discuss–whether it makes sense to block middle seats–but let’s not call airlines murderers if they choose to fill middle seats.
image: Chase
Maybe I’m naive, but I don’t think a corporation cares if I live or die, unless they hold a life insurance policy I purchased.
Would it have been more correct for her to say AA cares more about money than whether you live or die? Probably so.
Do you really think that keeping that seat empty is in any way keeping you safe. If so your an idiot. Airlines are doing everything they can to make air travel as safe as possible. But all a empty seat does is give you a place to put your elbows. If you think it’s so unsafe drive your own car
Thank you, Matthew, for your opinion. Please double check your spelling and grammar (i.e. conclusion).
As a former American Airlines employee, American Airlines is a great airline that does care about all passenger regardless of what People think. Working there for many years, they go out of their way to try to keep passengers safe.
Passengers Have a choice to fly or not to fly. American , In my opinion , has one major job…..to get passenger from one airport to another SAFELY. Passenger are responsible for their own health. If they don’t like the arrangement, stay home.
Teigen is an is an overprivileged undereducated America-hating dumba$$ who can afford to fly up front and likes to tweet about it. She posts topless selfies becasue that the only way she she can get attention. Not sure why anyone cares what she has to say.
Amin
Perhaps she should just stay home or chartered a private aircraft?
You sound like your parents were first cousins, am I correct?
American airlines cant make money on dead customers. With a disease that is airborne and fills a room and stays contagious for several hours you would be ignorant to think the middle seat makes a difference. Also it’s not a good business model to operate at a loss. Every empty seat is lost revenue for a business buring through millions a day.
What makes you say she hates America? I don’t get that from her at all.
Nah. You and your Dear Leader are the ones who truly hate America.
Sounds like a #RumpRider (talkin’ loud, sayin’ nothin’)… quit hatin’ on #ChristyTeiigen. #socialdistancing
Amen ! Maybe with your money, fly private. “ Sweetie,“ they are trying to stay in business ! Baron Trump’ school got a small business loan. not kidding.
“Supermodel”? You’ve GOT to be kidding me, I can see their standards have dipped SIGNIFICANTLY since the term was coined.
Dear so called supermodel?
Instead acted like a drama queen, posted and blasted Airline, why don’t you stay home or may I suggest you chartered a private aircraft ?
Another one ………
Indifference to death is not the same as murder. I do wish that you had left this one alone as it’s liable to be a siren song for intel trolls looking to insult an attractive, intelligent, accomplished woman.
Sorry, incel not intel. An autocorrect error.
You mean like Min?
I tend not to listen to so-called celebrity opinion on subjects not directly associated with their trade. And I have little to no interest in their trade.
And yet, here you are commenting on an article about a celebrity opinion on a subject not directly associated with their trade…hmmm.
People complaining need to stay home! No one is forcing you to fly! Just stay home!
And I agree. She is SO ugly. I’ve never understood how she got labeled a supermodel! She looks like a cat that’s had a lot of plastic surgery. Gross.
All Drama queens perhaps must stay home or chartered private aircraft
I suspect the vast majority of Americans would prefer to pay cheaper fares with middle seats occupied than more expensive fares with middle seats empty. Do the people attacking AA for this policy understand tickets will be more expensive if they get what they want? Do they understand that social distancing is basically impossible on a plane middle seat or no middle seat? The worst part of this pandemic is going to be years and years of hygiene and health theater — just like after 9/11 — which will take forever to be undone, at least in the United States. (Thankfully, Europeans are more reasonable.)
The problem with that reasoning is that many people would also elect to buy cars without airbags and seat belts if it saved the money and would vote to remove traffic lights and stop signs if it reduced their taxes. As a society, we have an obligation to protect each other’s lives and American Airlines is ignoring its obligations to passenger safety in the name of the almighty dollar. No real surprise since that is what corporations tend to do. But as consumers, we vote with our money. she expressed her opinion that they don’t care about their customers’ lives, which is probably true. She has the right not to fly them anymore, as do the rest of us. Those who value cheaper plane tickets more so than reducing their risk of infection can go ahead and keep flying with American Airlines and United. Good luck to you…
Teigen is a supermodel in her own mind. I could post a nudes of anyone and people would look. That’s human nature. She is not unattractive but has the potential to whale out in a few years. I don’t find her hot and any real man would avoid this the type anyway. How fast can she strip down an AR? Can she drive the tractor? What real world skills does she have?
She is correct about one thing, AA management could care less about customers or employees health. 10,000 Flight Attendants and Pilots were sickened by the TwinHill uniforms, some died and management denied the problem. AA adopts a mask police strictly for effect. And Parker said so. Project an image that we care.
Those heapa filters on jets we hear about are changed every few years at “D” check. Once the fwd door is closed the recirculating fans disperse every atom of air thru the cabin over and over. Viruses pass thru masks, filters and get around plexiglass barriers. The only real defense is your own bodies fighting them off with a healthy immune response. If you are in a hi risk category then stay home. Only a total moron will take Bill Gates and Co’s vaccine.
AA and others will not survive this. There will be consolidation and bankrupt carriers next year. This is like when deregulation killed off all the legacy carriers. I see re-regulation CAB style.
“any real man would avoid this the type anyway.”
What are your definitions of a “real man” and “this the type”? Just curious.
“Only a total moron will take Bill Gates and Co’s vaccine.”
What are you basing this opinion on? Just curious.
I agree that at this tragic time all airlines take less passengers to insure safety. They charge quit a lot and over the years services have been cut but prices still go up. I paid over $100 to get a bulkhead seat and I’m not rich by any means.
Everything has gone up and keeing an airline flying is no different. If all airlines kept the middle seat empty that bulkhead seat would cost you $250!
Like all businesses, American Airlines is in business to make money. I highly doubt Ms. Teigen has ever sat in coach.
Well if you have to ask….
A real man wants a soulmate not a self absorbed bimbo with tits.
Gates and co have orchestrated the entire corona adventure we are living. He wants to vaccinate every person on the planet at a cost of $400 per jab. Do the math.
“A real man wants a soulmate not a self absorbed bimbo with tits.”
Well, one could say a misogynistic point of view would lead one to calling a woman who likes to express her POV as a bimbo…from all intents and purposes, she and her husband seem to be very happily married and enjoy multiple interests and activities together. But I guess in the misogynists view, he wouldn’t count as a real man…
“Gates and co have orchestrated the entire corona adventure we are living. He wants to vaccinate every person on the planet at a cost of $400 per jab. Do the math.”
Oh dear, anti vaxxer alert! Is this the new conspiracy theory going around these days? From the same people who think the earth is flat?
Hoo boy. Misogynists are idiots. You don’t need to keep proving it.
Dude, you’ve had enough koolaid. Please get out of the gene pool…
I just flew on American yesterday. It was a cluster trying to leave Hawai’i. Horribly disorganized. Things were so bad, you would have thought this was a first time run for a new company.
And the crew was despicable. They were so rude to everyone. I detest AA. Unfortunately, I had to fly for a family emergency (why else would I leave my home in Hawai’i during a PANDEMIC) and was extremely limited in my flight options.
The crew could not care less about the people, and I firmly believe that is a company-wide feeling.
I flew on American last week. My flight was not only booked,it was oversold. They started offering 550 vouchers to people. Needless to say I’m not flying American anytime soon again.
Chrissy who?
If you are not comfortable flying, drive, take a train or bus. A plane is a plane. Middle seats being empty does not make a difference.
You know it’s not ok to risk lives for moneg5, right. These corporations have made money for so long. Can’t they practice a little safety. The author offers no reason, except for money, to defend American Airlines. I am never booking a flight with them again. They pack their flights. It’s not cool at all!
I look forward to your cost-benefit analysis discussion. These are the conversations we should have been having back in March before the shutdown. But now, the damage has already been done. Tragic.