Time to Weigh In: Airline Puts Passengers on Scale Before Boarding
It's not quite "pay-what-you-weigh," but passengers will weigh in just the same.
— -- It's not quite "pay-what-you-weigh," but one airline is putting its passengers on the scale before they board their flight.
"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,” company officials posted to their website Friday.
They're not the first airline to enact the controversial policy. In 2013, Samoa Air became the first airline to weigh passengers at the airport before boarding. Unlike Uzbekistan Airways, however, Samoa Air ticket prices are directly related to a passenger’s weight.
It's unclear why the airline adopted this policy, and company officials have not responded to ABC News' request for comment.
Uzbekistan Airways cites International Air Transport Association (IATA) rules in its policy. "Airlines are obliged to carry out the regular procedures of preflight control passengers weighing with hand baggage to observe requirements for ensuring flight safety," the airline said.
IATA, a trade association representing the airline industry worldwide, told ABC News they were "not aware" of an IATA rule about weighing passengers and hand luggage prior to flight.
"All airlines have policies in place for load calculations, weight and balance of their aircraft," IATA spokesman Perry Flint told ABC News. "These policies in turn are subject to the rules and regulations of their national aviation regulator."
But not to worry: No one besides you and the machine weighing you will know about last night's burger binge.
"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 website reads.
“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."
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