HELSINKI, Finland – Finnair, a European carrier, is conducting a unique project at its Helsinki Airport hub. The airline is weighing volunteer passengers and their carry-on bags at the departure gate in order to refine weight estimates for planes before takeoff. This initiative is aimed at improving the accuracy of aircraft balance and performance calculations that are crucial for the safe operation of flights.
The trial, which began on Monday, has already seen 800 volunteers participating by Thursday morning. The airline plans to weigh 1,200 passengers for the winter season, and more for the summer. The collected data will be used for loading calculations from 2025-2030.
The weighing process is anonymous, with only the staff at the gate seeing the weight. Finnair’s senior vice president of communications, Päivyt Tallqvist, assured that the data collected is not linked to individual bookings or passenger data.
The weight and trim of an aircraft can impact where passengers can sit, the number of passengers allowed onboard, and the amount of luggage that can go in the hold. Aircraft weight is calculated based on the weight of everyone onboard, as well as cargo and baggage in the hold, and items like catering and water tanks onboard.
Finnair is undertaking this project for both winter and summer seasons, taking into account the tendency of passengers to wear heavier clothing and coats during the cold Finnish winters. The airline aims to calculate an average weight from the measurements taken and send the data to the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency for verification.
Overall, the initiative is part of the airline’s efforts to ensure the safety and efficiency of its flights by gathering accurate data on the average weight of passengers and their hand luggage. This has become an important consideration for airlines, as it directly impacts the safe and efficient operation of their flights.