AARON KARP / WASHINGTON DC
A survey prompted by the crash of an Air Midwest Raytheon Beech 1900D in the USA earlier this year reveals that average weight calculations for passengers are too low, prompting some carriers to reduce the number of people they carry.
Twelve US regional carriers have discovered they are carrying more weight than they believed, and have been forced to alter operations to account for the difference. For some carriers, this means using less fuel, carrying less baggage and, in certain instances, carrying fewer passengers.
Following the January crash of an Air Midwest Raytheon Beech 1900D in Charlotte, North Carolina, the US FAA ordered operators of 10-19 seat aircraft to survey the weight of passengers being carried. While US carriers had been calculating weight by factoring in an average of 80kg (175lb) per passenger, 12 regionals found their average passenger weighed more - significantly so in some cases.
Several carriers have dramatically raised their their average passenger weight estimates, says US Regional Airline Association (RAA) vice-president of technical services Dave Lotterer.
He adds that at least one of the 12 carriers is now carrying a maximum of 17 passengers rather than 19. With the FAA considering officially raising the average weight of passengers, other carriers worry they too will be forced to reduce the number of seats they offer.
"It does stand to reason that if you do lose two seats, and the whole operation is based on 19 seats, it's going to have an impact," says Lotterer. "But if carriers see that their weight numbers aren't right, they'll make appropriate changes. We're not in denial here." The FAA says details of a new regulation are "still being determined".
US regional Gulfstream International Airlines, operating Beech 1900Ds in Florida and the Bahamas, found its average passenger weighs 88kg rather than 80kg, and the average weight of total baggage is 14kg rather than the assumed 11kg.
Previously, Gulfstream aircraft generally carried enough fuel to go from destinations in Florida to points in the Bahamas and back. Now the carrier refuels in the Bahamas and sometimes has to make "alternative arrangements" to carry some passengers' baggage.
Source: Flight International
