Finnair, Finland’s leading airline, has recently declared its intention to weigh passengers along with their luggage. This initiative, which will be implemented on a voluntary basis until May, aims to refine balance calculations to bolster flight safety. Finnair plans to gather data by weighing willing passengers and their hand luggage at the departure gate.
The airline has assured that the process will be voluntary and anonymous, with the collected data solely used to fine-tune Finnair’s existing aircraft balance calculations. The weighing of passengers will aid in ensuring that the airline does not surpass the stipulated maximum weight a plane can carry before takeoff.
Finnair has committed to not utilizing customers’ personal data in this process. Satu Munnukka, the head of Finnair’s ground processes, stated that the weighing data will be used for average calculations necessary for the safe operation of flights. The data collected will not be associated with the customer’s personal information in any way. Munnukka also mentioned that the airline will not request the name or booking number of passengers who volunteer to be weighed.
Industry observers have noted that evolving eating habits and diets are resulting in heavier passengers, which can potentially impact flight safety. Shem Malmquist, an instructor at Florida Tech’s College of Aeronautics, explained that weight is a significant factor in various performance calculations such as runway length, climb, obstacle clearance, landing distances, and altitude capabilities.
Most European airlines use the average passenger weight as determined by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). According to EASA, the average weight of men is 82.2 kg (181.22 lbs), while women average 67.5 kg (148.8 lbs). Meanwhile, government statistics reveal that 42% of the US population aged 20 or older was classified as obese in 2020, a significant increase from just 10% in the 1960s.
Airlines have faced criticism for their treatment of plus-sized and obese passengers, with some passengers expressing dissatisfaction about having to pay for extra seats if they cannot fit into one. Several domestic carriers, including United, Spirit, Frontier, Hawaiian, and American, require customers who cannot fit into a single seat to buy another ticket. Advocates for obese individuals argue that airlines have reduced seat widths to maximize profits per flight.
Finnair joins the ranks of Korean Air, Hawaiian Air, Uzbekistan Airways, and Air New Zealand, all of which have weighed customers in the past. Last year, a new law requiring domestic carriers to weigh passengers and their carry-on luggage at least once every five years sparked outrage among Korean fliers.