EasyJet passengers asked to leave flight after it was deemed 'too heavy' for take-off

An EasyJet passenger thought the captain was “joking” when he said the plane they were on wouldn’t be able to take off as it was deemed too heavy. However, due to the weather and short runway, the aircraft was in fact, carrying too much weight, meaning the load had to be lightened.

Passenger Kelly Wayland said the pilot initially asked for six people to leave the Malaga-bound flight, taking off from London Southend Airport, before they could take off and that staff had considered the idea of flying the luggage out separately. The 45-year-old added that within about 10 minutes five people had volunteered to leave.

An EasyJet spokesperson explained how the weight limit of aircraft is dictated by weather conditions and the length of the runway. The airline’s spokesperson confirmed the passengers walked off the flight, which was scheduled for 8.40am on Saturday (April 11), voluntarily.

Independent travel agent Kelly, said passengers were only delayed about 20 minutes. She said: "I honestly couldn't believe what was happening - I thought he was joking at first. It was bizarre, I had never heard anything like it before.

"The pilot came out of his cockpit and told everyone we couldn't set off unless six of us got off the plane. He said it was either that or we leave all of the luggage behind.

Kelly added: "I was travelling with my dad, who is disabled, my mum, and my partner, so it would have been hard work for us to get off. Five people got off fairly quickly in around 10 minutes."

The disembarking passengers were given free travel from Essex to London Gatwick for an alternative flight later that day, and were offered compensation. Those remaining on the plane also gave the five volunteers a round of applause as they left.

The compensation offered has not been confirmed but according to UK Civil Aviation Authority guidance, cancelling medium-haul flights of this kind entitles passengers to between £175 and £350, depending on how long their delay was.

Flight records show the plane - an Airbus A319 - was due to fly at 8:40 am but it set off at 8:59 am. EasyJet said the flight was delayed by 12 minutes. The airline spokesperson said: "The safety and welfare of our passengers and crew is always easyJet's highest priority. Weight restrictions are in place for all airlines for safety reasons."

It’s not the first time something like this has happened, in fact, passengers taking the same Southend to Malaga route in 2014, experienced a similar incident. The situation can sometimes arise as airlines do not routinely weigh passengers before a flight and instead work on average weights for each passenger.

An Airbus A319 has a max take-off weight of 75.50 tonnes, according to Airbus. The mean passenger weight including carry-on luggage, according to the European Union Safety Aviation Agency’s most recent study carried out in 2022, was 84kg.