Kazakhstanis are discussing a social media post in which passengers of low-cost carrier Fly Arystan complained about being asked to pay for non-existent excess hand luggage, reports infohub.kz.
A user with the handle jakentus posted on Threads about an incident at Astana airport. According to his account, before departure they weighed their hand luggage on their own scales, which showed 7.1 kg. However, upon entering the transit zone, Fly Arystan staff weighed the same luggage on the airline's scales, which indicated 12 kg. The passenger was asked to pay 11,000 tenge. When he requested a different scale, the second scale showed 7.1 kg.
“Today at Astana airport we weighed our hand luggage out of curiosity. The scale showed 7.1 kg. After we entered the transit zone and before boarding the Fly Arystan flight, staff weighed passengers' hand luggage. And surprisingly, our hand luggage weighed 12 kg on Fly Arystan's scale. They told us to pay 11,000 tenge. We asked to change the scale, and the other scale then showed 7.1 kg. What does this mean? I hope it's a scale malfunction,” wrote the Kazakh citizen.
Fly Arystan responded to the publication. In a comment, the airline stated that an internal check found the gate scales have a valid calibration certificate. Currently, the equipment has been sent for technical inspection and temporarily taken out of service. The airline thanked passengers for their understanding.