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Airline to charge overweight passengers more
This post Airline to charge overweight passengers more originally appeared on Truth About Bills
Samoa Air has become the world’s first airline to implement “pay as you weigh” flights, meaning overweight passengers pay more for their seats. While this isn’t coming to the United States currently it certainly might at some point with increased costs for flights. Many economist even seem to think that overweight and obese airline passengers should pay more per flight. While I’m not advocating charging more based on weight, I see a time in the near future where we will have this argument with our obesity trends in the United States currently going in the wrong direction.
Samoa Airline’s official statement
“This is the fairest way of travelling,” chief executive of Samoa Air, Chris Langton, told ABC Radio. “There are no extra fees in terms of excess baggage or anything – it is just a kilo is a kilo is a kilo.”
Like many Pacific island nations, Samoa has a serious obesity problem and is often included in the top 10 countries for obesity levels. As such, Mr Langton believes his airline’s new payment policy will also help promote health and obesity awareness.
“When you get into the Pacific, standard weight is substantially higher [than south-east Asia],” he said. “That’s a health issue in some areas. [This payment system] has raised the awareness of weight.”
Under the new system, Samoa Air passengers must type in their weight and the weight of their baggage into the online booking section of the airline’s website. The rates vary depending on the distance flown: from $1 per kilogram on the airline’s shortest domestic route to about $4.16 per kilogram for travel between Samoa and American Samoa. Passengers are then weighed again on scales at the airport, to check that they weren’t fibbing online.
Samoa Air operates BN2A Islander and Cessna 172 aircraft.
What do you think of Samoa Airline charging more based on weight?
This post Airline to charge overweight passengers more originally appeared on Truth About Bills
2013-04-02 11:47:19
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