Thai Airways International said passengers with a waist size above 56 inches cannot fit in the special safety belts installed in the premium cabin of its Boeing 787-9 “Dreamliner” planes.

Airline passengers with a larger waistline can typically make use of a seatbelt extender, which is often provided by the airline themselves.

However, the new Dreamliner belts have a built-in airbag which must be centred in order to deliver protection to the passenger, The Independent reports, and this would be affected by an extender.