The Finnish airline Finnair has started asking passengers to voluntarily weigh themselves before boarding the plane. This decision is not aimed at introducing surcharges for smooth travelers, the carrier’s representatives assured.
As the Daily Star reported concerning a Finnair representative, passenger weighing began at Helsinki Airport last week. More than 500 volunteers have already taken part in this process. According to employees, weighing is important for calculating the total weight of an airliner, which includes not only the weight of fuel, luggage, and provisions but also the weight of passengers. The representative of the carrier assured that information about the weight of each traveler will be visible only to the airport employee who is engaged in weighing. The procedure is confidential and is currently being conducted voluntarily.
It was clarified that the initiative of weighing passengers before departure is not new – similar practices were previously introduced by Air New Zealand. In their opinion, this helps ensure safe flights. The American airline company United Airlines allocated free seats on flights due to an increase in the average weight of passengers and then adjusted the seating of tourists.