An undisclosed airport has come under backlash after a TikTok was posted showing a passenger being publicly weighed before a flight. The woman, who was made to stand on a baggage scale before takeoff, has sparked a huge internet controversy.
The video, which was posted in March by user @lilwessel, has since been watched by 1.6 million viewers. The user explained that the woman claimed she was 130lbs (59kg) and was told by the airline that her weight needed to be confirmed for safety reasons, due to the small size of the plane.
Comments on the video were divided between those defending the woman and those who sided with the airline. One user commented, “Why are people so mean,” with another saying “That’s not okay”. Others, however, argue that the airline did the right thing, with one user saying “They care about weight limits on small planes because they need to have the center weight in a certain part of the plane”.
This controversy comes amidst the rise of body-positive influencers on the platform, who have been extremely vocal about the “discrimination” of airlines.
This has been amplified through the Federal Aviation Administration’s 2021 advisory, which announced a Weight and Balance control program for aircrafts. This would mean that passengers may be required to give their weight or step on the baggage scale before boarding aircrafts. Whilst this was revoked one month later, it has led passengers to question the extent to which airlines have been designed to accommodate plus-sized passengers.
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