Air New Zealand announced that they will begin weighing passengers and cargo, including checked bags, before each flight. This is a temporary process that will take place to collect data on averages. A spokesperson representing the airline says that nobody will be embarrassed with some sort of weight read-out on a large screen above the scale in the terminal. The data will simply be collected and sent to a server. This same process will happen every five years or so to understand the average weight that each passenger brings with them. This includes the weight of their bags and also their physical weight.
This data collection process makes perfect sense because flight safety depends on proper weight distribution and management. If a flight routinely books 200 seats and, over the course of 10 years, the average weight per person increases by 5%, that could pose a risk for the aircraft. At that point, adjustments will be made… such as simply offering fewer tickets or attempting to cut weight in the aircraft in other areas aside from cargo and the passengers themselves. The data on weight could also bump up routine maintenance schedules.
SOURCES:
Air New Zealand Weighing International Passengers – One Mile at a Time
Air New Zealand is weighing passengers before they fly, but it’s not what you think – The Points Guy
Air New Zealand to weigh passengers before they board the airplane | CNN
Air New Zealand Will Now Weigh International Passengers Flying From Auckland
Air New Zealand weighs passengers for international flights : NPR
