The airport experience no one wanted is going to arrive shortly

Aug 14, 2015

The only thing we do not like about going on holidays is packing.

Trying to decide how many pairs of shoes we actually need is one thing. When it comes to making sure our bags aren’t over the allowed weight limit, things can get tense.

Now there’s yet another reason to fear the dreaded baggage scales. One airline has made the announcement that they are not only going to weigh luggage, they will be weighing passengers.

Yes, people, on weighing scales, in airports. Rude.

There is one silver lining for us though, unless you’re a frequent flyer of Uzbekistan Airlines then you shouldn’t have to deal with this new procedure.

The airline claims that they need to calculate the gross weight of the aircraft before it takes off, so therefore weighing both luggage and passengers is necessary.

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

They claim that it is a necessary procedure outlined by the International Air Transport Association. In a statement they said: “airlines are obliged to carry out the regular procedures of preflight control passengers weighing with hand baggage to observe requirements for ensuring flight safety.”

But the IATA have denied that this is true.

“All airlines have policies in place for load calculations, weight, and balance of their aircraft,” an IATA spokesperson said.

“These policies in turn are subject to the rules and regulations of their national aviation regulator.”