Ryanair hits back after being accused of fat shaming a passenger who complained their ‘window seat’ didn’t have a window

• The disgruntled passenger took to Twitter to complain about a lack of window
• Ryanair’s response was interpreted as fat shaming because of a camera effect

Budget airline Ryanair has hit back after being accused of fat shaming a passenger who complained their so-called window seat didn’t have a window.

The disgruntled passenger had taken to Twitter on Thursday to complain that despite booking a seat furthest from the aisle, they were sat next to a solid wall.

In a photograph posted to the social media platform, the young man shared a photo  of himself – taken by the person sitting next him – with his thumbs up sarcastically and a wry smile on his face, with no window in sight.

The photo was taken with a 0.5 ultra-wide (also known as fish-eye) lens, a feature of many modern smartphones which allows users to capture a wider field of view.

As a result, the passenger’s body – specifically his dark green sweater – appeared distorted, making him appear unusually wider around the waist and legs, while making his head appear unnaturally small.

Budget airline Ryanair has hit back after being accused of fat shaming a passenger who complained their so-called window seat didn’t have a window (pictured). The disgruntled passenger had taken to Twitter to complain that despite booking a seat furthest from the aisle, they were instead sat next to a solid wall

It was not clear from the post where the passenger was flying or what time of day it was, but it was clear he was not thrilled at being sat in a seat which would normally allow someone to take in the views during their journey. 

‘Where’s my window seat?’ he asked on twitter, tagging the airline in his post.

Ryanair’s Twitter account is known for responding in its own sarcastic manner to disgruntled passengers. 

In its Twitter bio, it says: ‘We sell seats, not windows,’ in reference to the public complaint, which was not the first time someone had taken to social media to say that they had booked a window seat without getting the view.

The Irish airline responded to the post hours after it appeared on Twitter.

‘Pay for the baggage you’ve stored under your jumper & we can talk,’ it said, in a joking reference to the distortion caused by the wide-angle lens, making the passenger’s jumper look much larger than is natural.

While many users brushed this off as a sarcastic remark typical of Ryanair’s Twitter account, one person hit out at the airline.

‘Fat shaming isn’t cool,’ they wrote, apparently interpreting Ryanair’s comment as the account calling the passenger overweight.

The comment received dozens of ‘likes’ from other Twitter users, but not as many as Ryanair’s response, which garnered over 2,000.

Ryanair’s Twitter account, which is known for responding in its own sarcastic manner to disgruntled passengers, responded to the post. ‘Pay for the baggage you’ve stored under your jumper & we can talk,’ it said, in a joking reference to the distortion caused by the wide-angle lens, making the passenger’s jumper look much larger than is natural

While many users brushed this off as a sarcastic remark typical of Ryanair’s Twitter account, one person hit out at the airline. ‘Fat shaming isn’t cool,’ they wrote, apparently interpreting Ryanair’s comment as the account calling the passenger overweight. The airline clapped back: ‘Tell us you don’t get the 0.5 lens joke without telling us you don’t get the 0.5 lens joke’

Ryanair’s Twitter account is known for responding in its own sarcastic manner to disgruntled passengers. In its Twitter bio, it says: ‘We sell seats, not windows’ (pictured)

The airline’s Twitter account clapped back: ‘Tell us you don’t get the 0.5 lens joke without telling us you don’t get the 0.5 lens joke.’

The ‘fat shaming’ accusation was not the only criticism of Ryaniar’s response.

Another user wrote: ‘Another sarcastic response on SM from Ryanair. The last time this happened they insulted a newly wed couple, suggesting their marriage wouldn’t last. To be expected I suppose from this customer service nightmare airline.’

The airline responded bluntly: ‘This isn’t a customer service channel.’  

Another asked: ‘People still use Ryanair?’ to which the Twitter account responded: ’16 million people did in April, to be exact,’ receiving another slew of likes. 

MailOnline has contacted Ryanair and the passenger for comment.

The twitter exchange came as Ryanair ordered 300 new Boeing 737 Max aircraft in a deal that will create 10,000 jobs, and could mean lower air fares. 

The twitter exchange came as Ryanair ordered 300 new Boeing 737 Max aircraft in a deal that will create 10,000 jobs, and could mean lower air fares

The move – which involves firm orders for 150 of the planes and options for another 150 – is worth more than $40billion dollars (£32billion).

The delivery of the aircraft between 2027 and 2033 will allow the airline to create more than 10,000 jobs for pilots, cabin crew and engineers, Ryanair said.

Each plane will have 228 seats, some 21% more than the Boeing 737 Next Generation aircraft, which half of the deliveries are expected to replace.

Ryanair expects annual passenger numbers to rise from 168 million in the year to the end of March to 300 million by March 2034.         

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