Flight Delayed as Passengers Asked to Deboard Due to Weight Issue

1. The delay was caused by inclement weather and the weight of the plane.
2. The pilot explained the situation to the passengers, emphasizing the importance of safety.
3. Passengers were asked to volunteer not to fly.

According to the media sources, 19 passengers on an EasyJet aircraft from Lanzarote to Liverpool were forced to disembark because the jet was “too heavy to take off.” The incident occurred on July 5, 2013.

The plane was supposed to take off about 9.45 p.m., however it was delayed due to inclement weather and the weight of the aircraft.

Passengers were encouraged to volunteer to “choose not to fly,” and the flight took off at 11:30.

The pilot can be seen explaining the issue to the passengers onboard in a video that has since gone viral on social media.

The captain announces the situation in the video, which appears to have been recorded by a passenger on the same flight. “Thank you all for getting here today. Because there are so many of you, it’s a pretty heavy aircraft we’ve got today.”

“That heavy aircraft combined with a fairly short runway here in Lanzarote, and some winds which aren’t completely favourable at the moment, mean that with the current environmental conditions here in Lanzarote, the aircraft is too heavy at the moment to depart,”  he continued.

Given the wind conditions and safety being their top priority, the pilot emphasized that the flight cannot take off without the passengers deboarding.

“There are a number of factors – it’s very hot, the wind isn’t fantastic, the direction isn’t great. Now, you might be wondering what happens next and that’s what I’ve come in here to say. I have spoken with our operations team and the one way to solve a problem with a heavy aircraft is to make it slightly lighter,” he continued.

The pilot then asked for volunteers to refuse to fly aboard the plane. To compensate, he stated that the airline will offer up to 500 euros to each customer who did not continue their journey.

According to an EasyJet representative, “Easyjet can confirm that 19 passengers on flight EZY3364 from Lanzarote to Liverpool yesterday evening volunteered to travel on a later flight as a result of the aircraft being over the weight limits for the weather conditions.” This is a typical operating decision in these circumstances, and weight restrictions are in place for all airlines for safety reasons.”

“In the event that a flight exceeds weight limits, we ask passengers to volunteer to transfer to a later flight at no cost, which is what happened on this occasion, and volunteers are compensated in accordance with regulations,” the spokesman continued.

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