Yes, this. I understand that there will be people who are over any weight limits through no fault of their own (Shaq?), but for the most part, weighing a lot is completely optional. People should be charged accordingly.
Between 1926 and 2008, the average weight of an Aussie female adult increased from 59 kilograms to 71 kilos and the average weight of an Aussie male adult increased from 72 to 85 kilos.
These increases represent weight gains of around 0.23 per cent and 0.20 per year for woman and men, respectively. Since 2000, the extra loading that an average adult passenger carries is about 2 kilos.
So what does this increase mean for additional fuel consumption on a big, modern aircraft like the A380?
On a route like Sydney to London via Singapore, it means around 3.72 extra barrels of jetfuel per flight is burnt, which at current prices cost about $472.
This tally may not seem like a lot of money but when you add it up over all flights for a year the extra cost can all but wipe out an airline’s profits, such is the thinness of margins these days particularly on international routes.
