Uzbekistan Airways announces it will start weighing passengers before flights

They say their new procedure is to 'help ensure flight safety'

Uzbekistan Airways said their new procedure is to help determine the average weight of passengers (Stefan Zaklin/ Getty Images)

Uzbekistan Airways has announced that they will weigh passengers before takeoff in an effort to "ensure flight safety".

The airline will even install a "special weighing machine" at departure gates, where passengers will be weighed along with their hand luggage.

A statement on the airline's website says that the new procedure is to determine the "average weight of passenger with hand baggage" - it doesn't seem like passengers will be turned away at the gate if it's found that they would put the plane overweight, or asked to pay more if they weigh more.

The statement reads: "According to the rules of International Air Transport Association, airlines are obliged to carry out the regular procedures of preflight control passengers weighing with hand baggage to observe requirements for ensuring flight safety."

However, a spokesman for the International Air Transport Association told CNN that they were not aware of any such regulation.

They added that airlines usually determine the weight of their plane with passengers and luggage based on estimates - not on precise weights.

Fortunately, for any self-conscious Uzbekistan Airlines passengers, the weight information is only put into three categories - man, woman and child - rather than being recorded with your personal information.