Airline Weighs Passengers

Lufthansa, West Germany’s national airline, has begun weighing its passengers.

To provide up-to-date statistics on the average weight of today’s flying public, Lufthansa is asking passengers at its airport terminals in Frankfurt, New York and Bangkok, Thailand, to step on the scales with their hand luggage before boarding.

The weigh-in is voluntary and will last only for a limited period. Two thousand passengers at Frankfurt airport will be weighed by the end of next week, a Lufthansa statement said.

To spare embarrassment, weights are recorded on a computer and not made visible unless requested by the passenger. When Lufthansa last weighed its customers, in 1978, the heaviest clocked in at 370 pounds together with coat, hand luggage and duty-free goods.