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I'm confused between people who claim that every airplane is calibrated to exact weight of stuff and the fact that I observe with my own eyes how even airlines

I'm confused between people who claim that every airplane is calibrated to exact weight of stuff and the fact that I observe with my own eyes how even airlines known for safety seem to ignore this all the time. Even setting aside passenger weights and carry on, are you saying any time I pay for an overweight piece they literally rebalance everything and add more fuel?

alphager 3y ago
Yes, which is why your flight sometimes is delayed until the refueling truck comes around. Pilots calculate the needed fuel depending on weight of the cargo, distance to target, and meteorological conditions on the path. They can only calculate it once they've got the cargo weight (to within a certain degree.)
orwin 3y ago
It might depends on the trip and the company, but on Corsair CDG-FDF: yes. No evidence for other flight I took.
fransje26 3y ago
> Even setting aside passenger weights and carry on, are you saying any time I pay for an overweight piece they literally rebalance everything and add more fuel? Very much so, yes. After the check-in is closed, the pilots will calculate the required amount of fuel for the flight based on the number of passengers they have, and the weighted hold luggage. And although the checked-in luggage will not be placed in the hold piece by piece to rebalance the plane correctly, they are roughly distributed to not unbalance the plane too much. (Different story for smaller aircrafts, as they have much stricter weight-placement requirements).
- throwaway290 3y ago
  I guess I stand corrected? Haven't observed it myself. Definitely hear it happen on small planes but Korean Air doesn't really fly them AFAIK.
  - inferiorhuman 3y ago
    Probably the best known incidents with a large aircraft are the Concorde and the Atlas Air 747 (freight).
inferiorhuman 3y ago
It's the difference between what should be happening and what does happen e.g. https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/faa-investigates-southwest-over-baggage-002511094.html https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/faa-investigates-southwest-o...

alphager 3y ago

Yes, which is why your flight sometimes is delayed until the refueling truck comes around. Pilots calculate the needed fuel depending on weight of the cargo, distance to target, and meteorological conditions on the path. They can only calculate it once they've got the cargo weight (to within a certain degree.)

orwin 3y ago

It might depends on the trip and the company, but on Corsair CDG-FDF: yes. No evidence for other flight I took.

fransje26 3y ago

> Even setting aside passenger weights and carry on, are you saying any time I pay for an overweight piece they literally rebalance everything and add more fuel? Very much so, yes. After the check-in is closed, the pilots will calculate the required amount of fuel for the flight based on the number of passengers they have, and the weighted hold luggage. And although the checked-in luggage will not be placed in the hold piece by piece to rebalance the plane correctly, they are roughly distributed to not unbalance the plane too much. (Different story for smaller aircrafts, as they have much stricter weight-placement requirements).

throwaway290 3y ago
I guess I stand corrected? Haven't observed it myself. Definitely hear it happen on small planes but Korean Air doesn't really fly them AFAIK.
- inferiorhuman 3y ago
  Probably the best known incidents with a large aircraft are the Concorde and the Atlas Air 747 (freight).

inferiorhuman 3y ago

It's the difference between what should be happening and what does happen e.g. https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/faa-investigates-southwest-over-baggage-002511094.html https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/faa-investigates-southwest-o...