In Japan, a plane with a sumo team could not take off due to overweight (2 photos)

The airline was not prepared for such an influx of heavyweights.





The Japanese airline Japan Airlines had to use a special plane to deliver sumo wrestlers to the competition, who did not fit on two boards at once. More precisely, they fit, but before departure it became clear that the planes would not be able to take the required amount of fuel due to the excess weight. Of particular concern was the arrival airport on Amami-Oshima Island in Osaka Prefecture, which is difficult for large aircraft to take off and land. Therefore, they did not change the plane to a more capable one.

Both Boeing 737-800 aircraft with a capacity of 165 passengers departing from Tokyo's Haneda Airport had 27 sumo wrestlers, the smallest of whom weighed 120 kilograms (according to calculations, the average weight of a passenger is 70 kg). As a result, the airline had to add a separate plane to disperse the weight of the number of passengers. Moreover, an additional flight was allocated for sumo wrestlers to return home.



A sumo tournament starts on Friday on the island of Amami-Oshima as part of Japan's national sports festival. More than 460 heavyweight wrestlers gathered on the island.