Uzbekistan Airways Now Weighing Passengers

On it’s face, the weighing of passengers seems like overkill. And that may very well be the case. But know this: the weight and balance of a plane is very important to keeping it in the air. The most important number to keep in mind when loading a plane is the center of gravity, or CG for short. Keeping the CG within the specified limits (which is different for each kind of aircraft) is essential for a safe flight.

The smaller the plane, the more important it is to keep an eye on the CG. Because one bag, or person can throw it out of whack. And that could easily turn fatal. The plane crash that killed pop star Aaliyah is a good example. It was overloaded.  

Having said that, the bigger the plane, the more it can carry, and the less you have to worry about the CG being out of whack. Simply, because, it’s bigger. It’ll take a lot to move the planes CG out of the “safe zone.” Which is why you typically don’t hear about the big boys getting bent out of shape about a plane's weight and balance.  

But Uzbekistan Airways feels they need to weigh you:

Please be informed that Uzbekistan Airways airline carries out the procedure of preflight weighing for determination of the average weight of passenger with hand baggage.

According to the rules of International Air Transport Association, airlines are obliged to carry out the regular procedures of preflight control passengers weighing with hand baggage to observe requirements for ensuring flight safety.

After passing check-in on flight and prior to boarding into the aircraft, we will suggest you to pass the procedure of weighing with the special weighing machine placed in the departure gate zone.

The weighing record will only contain the corresponding passenger category (i.e. male/ female/ children). As for the rest, the full confidentiality of results is guaranteed.

We will appreciate your assistance and thank you in advance for the help in the solution of our common task of flight safety!

Now, they’re not the only airline that does this. Samoa Air already does. They actually go a step further by charging you for a ticket based on your weight.

Bottom line

At the very least, you now know a little bit more about what it takes to get a plane off the ground (and back on the ground) safely.

I honestly don’t think Uzbekistan Airways really needs to do this simply because most of their planes are big jets. Think about this though: if you’re flying Uzbekistan Air, they most likely already have your name, credit card info, address, and possibly a few other tidbits about your life. What’s one more number?

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