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A Finnish airline has begun experimenting with the weight of volunteer passengers with the aim of improving the aircraft's ability to take off, arranging seating places, and distributing weights on board the plane, amid fears of the consequences of this experiment on passengers, especially those who are overweight.

The number of volunteers reached more than 800 volunteer passengers in one week - according to the Finnish national airline Finnair - which plans to implement this experiment with the help of 1,200 volunteers at the departure door at Helsinki Airport throughout the month of February.

The experiment will resume next April and May, and the data from this experiment will be used in flights starting next year until 2030.

In an attempt to dispel the concerns of overweight travelers, the Finnish company confirmed that it will not impose fines on travelers because of their weight, stressing that the goal of the experiment is technical and not profitable, according to the British newspaper “The Guardian”.

Many believe that the experience violates the privacy of travelers, which prompted the company’s head of ground operations, Sato Monoka, to quickly respond, saying: “We record the customer’s total weight along with his luggage and basic information in complete confidentiality, without recording his name or ticket number, and then we share this data with the Finnish Ministry of Transport and Communications.” Just".

supporter and opposer

The "Shabakat" program - in its episode dated (2/13/2024) - monitored the interaction of social media platforms in the Old Continent between supporters of the experiment and the need to move forward with it, and opponents who believe that it does not naturally take into account the suffering of some travelers from diseases that negatively affect weight.

Edgert seemed to welcome the Finnish airline's experience and its content, and said: "I weigh 80 kilograms and I pay an additional amount for a bag whose weight exceeds the permissible limit. How can it be fair that a person who weighs more than 120 kilograms does not pay an additional amount for his excess weight?!"

On the other hand, Mike called for some fairness and the need for reciprocity. He said: “As a large person, I have no problem paying extra fees for a regular passenger, but then I get a bigger seat. Not all large people are fat!”

As for Tomler, he tried to overcome some of the obstacles that appear during travel in order to save some money. He said: “My girlfriend and I are both thin, so we decided to wear all our clothes on the trip back from vacation so that we would not pay the fine for being overweight. It was not comfortable, but we saved 200 pounds!” ".

In turn, Davis tried to reassure some, clarifying some controversial points, and pointed out that “airlines will not charge lower fees from small people, but they will charge higher fees for large people. It will be more profitable.”

For his part, Charlie described the experience as an injustice, and added, "There are people who suffer from obesity and eating disorders, and there are those who are in recovery but their weight is relatively large. Why should they be exposed to such a ridiculous situation?"

It should be noted that the shares of the Finnish airline rose by 2.3%, which was interpreted as investors welcoming the new policy because it would provide them with new profits.

Source: Al Jazeera