Pilot Tells Passengers Plane Is Too Heavy: 'There Are So Many of You'

Captain of easyJet flight asks for volunteers to make the load lighter so it can take off
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 9, 2023 11:20 AM CDT
Pilot of Loaded Airliner Tells Passengers 'There Are So Many of You'
An easyJet Airbus A321 approaches Lisbon for landing on June 13.   (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

It wasn't that the pilot was suggesting that any individual passengers were too heavy, but as a group, and when you add in luggage, and then consider the weather conditions for takeoff, and the length of the runway, it would just be best if some of them just got off the plane, an easyJet captain announced to his displeased customers. The plane was sitting at Arrecife Airport in Lanzarote on Wednesday night, otherwise ready to leave for John Lennon Airport in Liverpool, Live Mint reports. The pilot began his announcement by thanking everyone for arriving while noting "there are so many of you."

That made for a big load, he told them. "That heavy aircraft combined with a pretty short runway and with the current unfavorable conditions here in Lanzarote, means the aircraft is too heavy to take off," the pilot said. "It's very hot, the wind isn't fantastic, the direction isn't great," he added, after assuring passengers that he and his senior first officer are plenty experienced with this sort of thing. His conclusion: "There is no way, with the current wind conditions, that we could get this aircraft airborne." So he asked for volunteers to stay behind, explaining that "the one way to solve a problem with a heavy aircraft is to make it slightly lighter."

A video shows passengers shaking their heads at the request, per Glasgow Live. The pilot asked for as many as 20 volunteers; there were 19. They were offered 500 euros apiece for changing their plans. The airline later confirmed the situation. "This is a routine operational decision in these circumstances and weight restrictions are in place for all airlines for safety reasons," an easyJet spokesperson said. The flight left the airport, in Spain's Canary Islands, nearly two hours late, about 11:30pm, and landed safely in Liverpool. (More airline delays stories.)

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