ANA(All Nippon Airways) has started asking passengers to go the bathroom before they fly, claiming lighter bowels and bladders mean light passengers and thus a lighter plane, which means less fuel.
Now, we always go to the bathroom before boarding for other reasons than green concerns. For one, asking people to get up if we aren’t at the aisle is a pain, there is often a line for the lavatory, and airplane lavatories are not very spacious for tall people. It is just courteous to make a pre-boarding trip to the airport bathroom.
That said, we’re not quite certain this is a green initiative, or even news. The news is that the airline feels the need to make this a program, which is still surprises us. But, the best ideas are often the ones that seem most obvious.
But, for passengers, it is courtesy, for the airlines, they see it as cost-savings. So, how will they pass these savings onto us? Airlines like Ryanair have proposed charging overweight passengers by the pound/kilo. So, it would become vitally important to visit the lavatory before you go to your final weighing. Hopefully, airlines will not impose such considerations on us though.
Ultimately, just visit the lavatory. If not for the supposed green effect, for the sake of not having to get up and wait in a lavatory line.
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