Couple told too heavy for plane take off

STUBBINGTON, England, Oct. 3 (UPI) -- A British couple who together weighed 532 pounds said they have lost a collective 172 pounds after they were asked to move so their plane could take off.

Alan Coupe, 54, and his wife Jan, 49, said they were seated in the back of a plane in April 2005 when a flight attendant asked one of them to even out the weight on the aircraft so it could take off, The Daily Telegraph reported Friday.

"The stewardess asked one of us to get up and move to the front, so Alan volunteered to move which I was thankful about as I was so embarrassed I just couldn't look up," Jan Coupe said. "We couldn't believe that we were too heavy for the plane to take off."

"It was a decent-sized plane full of holidaymakers so it was devastating to be told that even a big plane like that couldn't cope with all our weight being at the back," she said.

The couple said they joined a diet club and Alan has since lost 83 pounds while Jan has lost 89 pounds.

"I don't feel embarrassed about getting on a plane anymore -- we all feel so great we could fly around the world now without a hitch," Jan Coupe said.