Why Are Some Airlines Weighing Passengers?
As I lined up at the airport gate excited for my vacation to finally start, a strange announcement was made for all passenger to be weigh before boarding. This flight was “randomly” selected to participate in weighing all passengers. Only after walking on the scale we can then proceed into the airplane. What is the purpose of weighing us? What does the airline industry have in mind by weighing us?
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The airlines are looking for new ways to increase profits.
Pre-September 11 days, most airlines except LCC (Low-Cost Carriers) allowed for at least one free check in baggage. When September 11 happened, and the entire airline industry was left in shambles because everyone was afraid to flight. The U.S. government approved airlines to charge passenger their carry-on as a separate fee to help get the airlines back to profitability. Fast forward today, charging for carry-on is now a mainstay for most airlines and we assume it’s the new normal. Airlines made billions on carry on fees in 2022.
The airline industry future still looks gloomy despite record profits as there will be thousands of pilot shortage jobs in the market in the near coming years. This equal to less revenue for airlines and to compensate from this low revenue, setting ticket prices based on passengers’ weight is another approach they are now testing. Ticket prices in the future can very a lot more based on how many luggage you’re carrying, how heavy your luggage are, what class of ticket you purchase and now how much you weigh.
Airlines claim its for “safety” reasons
If you were to read other articles online regarding this subject, airlines claim its to improve passenger safety. How does weighing passengers improve safety you ask? According to Air New Zealand, its to help them calculate the “weight and balance of the loaded aircraft.”
“Civil aviation rules are all about keeping passengers and aviation operators safe, and determining the weight of everything that goes on an aeroplane is an essential step to ensuring it reaches its destination safely,” New Zealand aviation authority spokesperson Aly Thompson said.
https://time.com/6284039/air-new-zealand-airlines-weighs-passengers/
Based on what we know of the airline industry, the airplane is already one of the safest mode of transportation. When it comes to the few airline accidents, it is often cause by pilot error or poor maintenance. I have yet to come across an article stating poor weight distribution.
The airline end goal I believe is to normalize weighing of passengers and then charge people ticket based on their weight.
Airlines weighing passengers, is it ethnical?
I don’t believe it is ethnical because we are all from different backgrounds, some of us are heavier and taller than others. You shouldn’t have a different ticket price based on who you are. Also, the weighing of our weight brings a lot of privacy concerns. What would they do with this data that we weight this many pounds or kilograms? I do know some passengers will also feel uncomfortable knowing that the airlines or the airport staff can know their weight. All of this in the name of finding new ways to increase profits.
Ticket prices in the future can very a lot more based on how many luggage you’re carrying, how heavy your luggage are, what class of ticket you purchase and now how much you weigh.
What can you do about it?
Right now in its infancy stage, if you know an airline is randomly conducting passenger weighing such as Hawaiian Airlines, Air New Zealand among others, you can show your disapproval by not purchasing tickets from these airlines. What hurts any business is when the dollars disappears and that will catch the attention of their management that maybe weighing passengers is not the forward.
Airlines that implemented weighing of passengers that you may want to avoid
- Lufthansa Group of Airlines
- Air New Zealand
- Hawaiian Airlines
