US Airlines May Need To Start Weighing Passengers Per FAA Rules
Well, this could really stink. News is buzzing that passengers may have to potentially be weighed before boarding a flight. There's new pending rules from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that changes how airlines measure their weight and balances for aircraft. You can really get into the specifics in the actual documentation itself, or read ahead and I'll get to the nuts and bolts of it.
The changes have to do with the FAA realizing passengers are getting bigger.
Yeah it's no surprise that obesity has been on the rise. Therefore, people are weighing more, so the FAA doesn't want a best guess anymore from airlines on how much their planes are weighing. Planes can only carry so much weight. That weight also needs to be balanced to ensure a safe flight.
Random people may be weighed to get an average weight.
You may get randomly selected to be weighed. That's because the FAA is going to want actual weight averages numbers. Language in the document says that a person can declined to be weighed, and then the airline would have to randomly select another passenger.
It's not just how much you weigh, it's your carry on and clothes.
Airline employees would weigh passengers, their carry on, and account for their clothing. Airinsight.com also says that you could just be asked your weight. Then an employee would add 10 pounds.
Your weight would be confidential, not everyone will see it.
If it's any comfort, it's not like you'll be stepping on a scale where everyone in line can see how much you weigh.
This could lead to major changes for airlines and passengers.
If the weight averages go up (which they likely will), that will determine how many seats an airline can fill on a plane. So if there are less seats they can fill, that means likely the price per seat will go up. Smaller planes are more likely to run into issues.
Most countries around the world already weigh their passengers.
Airline bogger ViewFromTheWing explains that there are plenty of places around the world where passengers need to weigh in.
It all really comes down to safety at the end of the day.
The FAA's job is to keep passengers safe. It may not be the best news in the world that people could be weighed at the gate, but it's for a good reason. People are getting heavier, we can't deny that. If planes aren't being properly loaded and balanced, it could cause some potentially fatal accidents. If you needed another reason to go on a diet, you just got one.