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Weighing Baggage Costs
Could you imagine if people had to get on the scales today!
The heavier a plane and its cargo, the more fuel it needs to fly. Airlines were never more aware of that fact than last year when the cost of fuel skyrocketed. These extra fuel costs were partly offset by a new fee charged by the airlines for checked luggage, as well as rules that changed the size of carry-on bags passengers are allowed to use. Some passengers complained about the new baggage fee and wondered if this was going to cause airlines to charge more for heavier customers.
The airlines say they aren’t going to start weighing customers, but if they did it would really be nothing new. Anyone who flew in the 30s or 40s was likely weighed with his or her bags before boarding the plane. Of course, back when commercial flight was new airlines calculated exactly how much the plane would weigh for logistic reasons.
They allowed 135 pounds for the single stewardess aboard and about 120 pounds for small items on the plane from everything from pillows to magazines. These were added to the weight of the plane itself. Then each passenger and his bags were weighed and added to the total. They had to know how much the plane and its cargo weighed to make sure the plane could actually take off and sustain flight.
The practice of weighing passengers ended in the 1950s, but even though you may not be aware of it, your weight it still assessed when you board a plane. Airlines use tables for estimating weight, put out by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The FAA updated the tables in 2005 so that they estimate 200 pounds for an average man and 179 pounds for an average woman. Five pounds are added starting in November until April to account for bulkier cold-weather clothes. The FAA plans to revise the tables again if a consensus of United States government health agencies decides that society on a whole gets heavier by two percent.
When airlines weighed passengers in the early years of commercial flight, it was to make sure the plane could fly. After all, the planes didn’t have the capacity or the power they have today, so weight was a huge factor. The first cross-country flight in 1933, from San Francisco to New York, only carried 10 passengers and a flight attendant. The entire plane, a Boeing 247, weighed less than 17,000 pounds at take off. Compare that to today’s 747 which weighs about 400,000 pounds completely empty and can weigh up to 970,000 pounds at take off and you can better understand the industry’s desire to lower baggage weight.
Even in the 1930s, weight concerns also resulted in larger passengers paying higher prices to board, which is many people’s concern today. Though airlines, even American Airlines which was the first to charge for checked baggage, claim they aren’t going to start weighing passengers, the trend of charging for luggage and requiring smaller and smaller carry-on bags seems here to stay.