In a controversial new policy that is certain to have passengers weighing in – one way or another – Air New Zealand has announced that it’s going to start asking customers to step on a scale before boarding their flight.
The “international passenger weight survey,” which the airline stresses is “entirely voluntary,” is part of a once-every-five-years survey to determine the average weight of passengers and carry-on bags, which is then used on future flights.
The airline told National Public Radio that the survey is also mandated by the country’s Civil Aviation Authority.
Checked baggage is already routinely weighed, as anyone who has ever packed a sweater or two more than the weight allowance into their suitcase can attest.
Aircraft routinely take on only as much fuel as they need to reach their destinations, taking into account the weight of everything on board as well as the plane itself – with a hefty margin for error, of course. This prevents the expensive practice of using extra fuel to carry even more extra fuel that won’t be needed.
“The scales do not display the weight as this is fed directly into a computer and recorded anonymously along with thousands of other passengers,” the airline web site says, adding: “Thank you for contributing to the safe operation of our aircraft.”
The survey will take place at the entrance to the gate lounge of selected Air New Zealand flights departing from Auckland International Airport until July 2. A similar survey was conducted on the airline’s domestic flights in 2021.
The move stops short of a practice, adopted by the now-defunct Samoa Air in 2013, of charging passengers based on the combined weight of their bags and themselves, by multiplying a base fare for the route by their weight.
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