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Removing excess weight from an aircraft can have a tremendous impact on overall profitability and allows it to be more competitive by keeping fares lower. WestJet Airlines Ltd., for example, has gone to extraordinary measures to reduce weight, from shrinking the size of its in-flight magazine and printing it on lighter paper stock to using a lightweight paint on the aircraft. Simple things like switching to lighter service carts are saving roughly 1.8 million litres in fuel a year, the carrier said.

Air Canada has done the same, switching to lighter seat covers, carpeting, and even using iPads on flight decks rather than manuals, which save about 40 kilograms per flight.

Both airlines are reducing the amount of water — even the amount of fuel — they carry on shorter flights to lighten the load. The benefits are clear — Air Canada estimates that for each kilogram it removes from one of its Boeing 763 aircraft, it will save 3,925 kilograms of fuel every year.

At the same time, while charging for excess weight for checked bags has long been the standard, charging to check a second bag — even a first — has become common.

Air Canada and WestJet will also be rolling out higher-density cabins in the coming months using lightweight seats that allow for more passengers without overly impacting comfort or the weight of the aircraft.

Many passengers ask why airlines only charge for overweight baggage but not for overweight passengers, if weight is the key concern for an airplane operation and more weight results in more fuel consumption

But while passengers might be already feeling the squeeze, an economist from Norway has another modest proposal for airlines to better balance the weight they carry with the revenue they collect by charging passengers based on overall weight — including themselves and their luggage.