Airline Asks 20 Passengers To Get Off Overweight Flight
Photo: Massimo Insabato/Archivio Massimo Insabato/Mondadori Portfolio (Getty Images)
One of the most frustrating parts of flying with an airline is being bumped off an overbooked flight. While you’ll be compensated by the carrier, you usually have to spend an unexpected extra night before your flight. Getting booted off an overweight plane, though, is a different kind of gut punch. You’ve finally made it to your seat, then the pilot gets on the intercom to say that Mother Nature wants a bunch of people off the aircraft. This happened on a flight from the Canary Islands to Britain.
The EasyJet pilot making the necessary but unfortunate announcement
EasyJet, a budget British airline, was operating a flight last week from Lanzarote Airport to John Lennon Airport in Liverpool, England. However, not everyone on the plane was going to be leaving the popular Spanish tourist destination. USA Today reported the plane was overweight for the conditions, and the pilot explained that up to 20 passengers to going to have to get off the aircraft. He said:
“Thank you for getting here. Because there are so many of you, it’s a pretty heavy aircraft that we’ve got today. That heavy aircraft combined with a pretty short runway here in Lanzarote and some winds that aren’t particularly favorable at the moment. With the current environmental conditions here in Lanzarote, the aircraft is too heavy to depart.”
Dad Needs A New Ride With Better Visibility | What Car Should You Buy?
According to the Liverpool Echo, 19 passengers ended up volunteering and be compensated with 500 euros ($556). Admittedly, there was little else that EasyJet could do for the plane to take off safely. The single runway at Lanzarote is only 7,874 feet long. Most major international airports have runways that are over 10,000 feet in length. I would rather be stuck in the Canaries than risk everyone’s lives with an overweight aircraft. Though, I’d want more than $550 from the airline for the inconvenience.
