Interesting flight YYZ-PIT. 3 empty seat and needed to un-load 3 pax. Is there a load factor issue. 2 free ticket with USAir express to get off the flight.
So 6 empty seats and our load was OK. ????????????????????????????????????

DashPilot can better explain this and in pilot terms. However from the gate/ramp agent side, yes the Dash 8's can be very weight restriction. Especially if there is some weather or a whole lot of bags. If they hadn't got the volunteers they needed they would have had to have pulled checked bags.

I don't know if you were concerned about it being safe after they unloaded those people, but once the weight is set, the plane is safe.

Yeah, its fairly common to have bump pax off a Dash 8-100. Even though there are 37 seats, with the new weights imposed on us by the FAA, we are usually restricted to 34 or fewer. In some cases it can be 30 depending on how much fuel and bags we have to carry.

With the spring break folks out in force, we're carrying a lot more checked bags than usual, adding to the dilemna. I just got done flying a PIT-ALB flight and had to take 2 people off the airplane.

I've run a weight and balance on this site before, but I'm much too lazy to go search for it, so here's another. This would be on a -100 series.

Airplane weighs 24,000 lb, max TO weight of 34,500, and a zero fuel weight of 31,300. ZFW is the most the aircraft can weight before the fuel is added. Its a structural limitation just as the others are.

The weight of the airplane includes the full crew, our bags, catering, engine oil, hydraulic fluid, blue juice, etc. Even if the flight crew goes on a diet, it still doesn't get this weight down.

Airplane= 24,000
Fuel= 3200
30 pax (189 lb each) = 5670
50 checked bags (30 lb) = 1500
16 carry ons (20 lb) = 320
ZFW = 31,490 (overweight)
+ fuel = 34690 (also overweight)

We've got to lose 190 lb. Pax are assumed to weigh 189, so we're either leaving 2 pax at the gate, or 1 pax and their carry on. We also have the option of leaving checked bags, in this case we'd have to offload 7 bags. That would get us below both MTOW and ZFW.

50 checked bags is a lot. The usual number is around 25-30. With a normal load being the case, here's another packed flight.

Airplane = 24,000
33 pax = 6237
25 checked = 750
15 carry on = 300
ZFW = 31,287
fuel = 3200
TOW = 34,487 (legal)

With the -300's we do very well. I've never had to bump anyone due to weight restrictions.

Airplane = 27000
50 pax = 9450
40 checked = 1200
30 carry on = 600
ZFW=38250 (39500 max)
fuel = 4000
TOW = 42250 (43,000 max)

You can see that this airplane allows us a lot of wiggle room for adding things. 4000 lbs is a lot of gas for us, and even with that load, we can still take more fuel, more stuff, and even the jumpseater trying to get to work.

It also blows a 50 seat RJ out of the water when it comes to hauling a heavy load. There is no comparison.

slightly OT .......

but wanted to let EVPRINCESS and DASHPILOT know we're glad they're still with us here on FT. Your up to date and inside knowledge of ever changing policies and procedures help those of us on the other side of the operation better understand what's going on around us.

Please stay!!


.......now back to your regularly scheduled program .................

Thanks for the compliment!

slightly OT .......

but wanted to let EVPRINCESS and DASHPILOT know we're glad they're still with us here on FT. Your up to date and inside knowledge of ever changing policies and procedures help those of us on the other side of the operation better understand what's going on around us.

Please stay!!


.......now back to your regularly scheduled program .................

Ditto here. I always appreciate your posts on the technical side of things.

Thanks for the compliment!


Ahh, they like us :)

Thank you so much also for the compliment.

We actually figured out who the other is, so we'll pat the other on the back when we see each other.

Thank you Dashpilot. ^