Many airlines want scales: This is why Switzerland doesn’t want to weigh its passengers

class=”sc-29f61514-0 icZBHN”>

There have been increasing reports of airlines weighing their passengers before takeoff lately. Korean Air has made headlines, as has Air New Zealand, and now Bangkok Airways is following suit. New examples of airlines asking their passengers to weigh the scales continue to emerge.

Good to know: In most cases these are temporary measures. Airlines want to use them to collect data to reach the ideal takeoff weight. Airlines use average weights to determine how much fuel is loaded on which routes and the maximum amount of cargo that can be loaded. In Korea, for example, a test run of data collection on passenger weights is required by law every five years. Therefore, it is in no way a kind of “body shaming measure” as criticized on social media.

Switzerland relies on standard weights

However, many people fear that in Switzerland too you will have to weigh yourself at the gate before setting off. Upon Blick’s question, local carriers confirmed that this would not be the case. For example, Swiss spokesman Michael Pelzer says, “Weighing passengers is not a problem for us.”

Switzerland plans its flights with standard weights determined by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). These are gender and age dependent and are legally binding. “We constantly check this data with flight data we collect ourselves, such as effective fuel consumption, and are therefore able to verify EASA’s requirements,” Pelzer concludes.

That’s why weight data is needed

An aircraft’s takeoff weight is central to calculating the required thrust, amount of fuel and minimum runway length. Added to this is the weight distribution, which determines an aircraft’s center of gravity. This must act within a certain framework to ensure unrestricted controllability of the aircraft and comply with the load limits of the aircraft structure, such as the wings.

The basic calculations include a safety margin that already takes into account a certain inaccuracy within the legal framework, such as the exact weight of the passengers.

Before each flight, an aircraft’s weight and center of gravity are determined using a document called a “load sheet.” This is due to the weight of the passengers, their luggage, the cargo carried, the empty weight of the aircraft and the full amount of fuel. The planning software used for this is connected to the check-in system.

Source :Blick