Airline fuel costs affected by obesity

Airline Industry Information, Nov 5, 2004

AIRLINE INDUSTRY INFORMATION-(C)1997-2004 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has revealed that airlines are facing increased fuel costs not just from more flights and high oil prices but also the level of obesity in the US.

A new government study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine claims that obese passengers cost airlines an extra USD275m in fuel costs in 2000 by forcing aircraft to burn 350m more gallons of fuel due to the extra weight. The consequences of the extra fuel being used goes beyond money, according to the report, with an additional 3.8m tons of carbon dioxide being released into the air because of the increase.

A spokesperson for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that the average weight of an American rose by 10 pounds throughout the 1990s and that the agency wanted to highlight other problems caused by obesity. The Air Transport Association of America said that it had not confirmed the report's figures but believed that they were not outside the realms of possibility, reports The Associated Press.

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