Another airline, another scale.
Finnair has become at least the third airline to begin weighing its passengers.
But the carrier insists it is only a three-month program and voluntary. It will only be used for the collection of data to help customize its planes. Carry-on bags will also be weighed alongside their owners.
The pilot program is only being used at Finnair's hub in Helsinki, Finland to refine weight estimates.
Everything will remain anonymous as Paivyt Tallqvist, Finnair’s senior vice president of communications, said only the member of staff at the gate will see the weight. In the first four days of the program, more than 800 adults consented to being weighed with their luggage. Tallqvist said Finnair was “positively surprised by the number of volunteers.”
“We have communicated about this survey to Finnair customers via our social media channels and our mobile app, and the first volunteers were proactively asking to take part even before the equipment was set up,” she said.
The weight of an airplane—including that of the passengers, baggage and cargo—is calculated before each flight.
“While airlines know the weight of all other aspects, the weight of customers and their carry-on baggage is calculated using average weights confirmed by the Civil Aviation Authority,” said Tallqvist.
The weights will be used for loading calculations from 2025-30. The process needs to be done every five years.
Satu Munnukka, Finnair’s head of ground processes, said “The collected data is not linked in any way to the customer’s personal data. We record the total weight and background information of the customer and their carry-on baggage, but we do not ask for the name or booking number, for example. Only the customer service agent working at the measuring point can see the total weight, so you can participate in the study with peace of mind.”
Air New Zealand and Korean Air have previously instituted similar weight studies.
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