Many travelers weigh their suitcases before leaving for the airport. If they don't exceed the maximum weight on the scale at home, they usually don't exceed it at check-in either. With hand luggage, it's a bit more complicated because size also matters. However, no one at the airport usually cares whether you weigh 60 or 90 kg. However, one airline checks the weight of each passenger as if they were baggage themselves. What sounds like an absurd obsession with control actually has a very real justification, writes inside-digital.de.
Cape Air connects remote places with small propeller planes. The line carries a maximum of nine passengers in the cramped cabins of Cessna 402s. Weighing passengers before take-off is routine, because in such conditions every seat and every kilogram can affect the balance and center of gravity of the aircraft, and therefore its flight stability.
The protocol is simple: passengers are politely asked about their weight at check-in. Honesty is the most important thing here. Only those who provide accurate data protect themselves and their fellow passengers. The crew then adjusts the front and rear seats to ensure proper balance.
Even a few careless weight estimates can cause problems, as former Cape Air pilots report: If the center of gravity remains too far back, the plane is unable to cope with the critical moment during takeoff. With dramatic consequences.
See also: Passengers' extra weight can be a problem for airlines. Changes are coming
Luggage weight is not everything. What about passengers? “Mathematical precision”
Improper weight distribution in small aircraft can have tragic consequences. Experts warn: if the weight limit is ignored or the center of gravity is shifted too much, in the worst case there is a risk of losing control of the aircraft.
The mathematical precision applies only to very small passenger planes, such as those operated by Cape Air and other regional airlines.
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The situation is different for wide-body aircraft. Weighing, if it takes place at all, is usually voluntary and anonymous. This is, for example, the case of Finnair, Air New Zealand, Korean Air and Bangkok Airways. In this case, it's primarily about collecting statistical data, not about surviving in the air. Passenger weight test is needed for routine balance analysis of aircraft.
See also: They ask passengers to weigh themselves before flying. The prize is a pendant
So in the case of Ryanair, Eurowings and the like, it doesn't matter whether you weigh 60 kg or 90 kg. At least for now. Because low-cost airlines are constantly inventing new fare systems, summarizes the portal inside-digital.de.
There is still the issue of crew weight. As reported in 2023 by the Chinese tabloid “Global Times”, stewardesses of the private Chinese airline Hainan Airlines, whose weight will exceed by 10%. strict limit set by the carrier, were to be suspended from work with immediate effect. Women were to be obliged to carry out a 30-day “independent weight loss”.
Source: inside-digital.de
