Loading related Boeing 767-338ER, VH-OGU, Honolulu International Airport, 21 January 2001

During cruise, the Boeing 767 (B767) crew noticed that the fuel
consumption was 230 kg per hour more than normal. After the cargo
had been unloaded at the destination, the crew had the cargo
re-weighed. The actual cargo weight was more than 3,400 kg greater
than the weight stated on the manifest.

The operator reported that its investigation revealed that four
pallets had been carried from Honolulu to Sydney and that all were
heavier than the weights recorded on the manifest. The
discrepancies were 2,277 kg, 887 kg, 220 kg, and 10 kg.

The two pallets with the greatest weight discrepancies had been
transported from mainland USA in a freight aircraft operated by a
US operator, and had been transferred at Honolulu to the B767 for
onforwarding to Sydney. The weights stated on the pallet tags for
the internal US leg were in pounds, but the B767 operator required
the weights to be in kilograms. The agent who handled the freight
for the US operator at Honolulu converted the weights from pounds
to kilograms and pencilled in the converted weights on the deadload
sheet for the Honolulu-to-Sydney flight.

When the agent who handled freight at Honolulu for the B767
operator received the pallet weights, she did not check the figures
against the loadsheet issued by Load Control. Consequently, she did
not realise that the weights stated on the loadsheet had already
been converted to kilograms, and applied the conversion a second
time. Also, as the agent for the US operator was confident that she
had passed the correct weights to the B767 agent, she did not
recheck to ensure that the B767 agent had received the correct
weight information.

The 220 kg and 10 kg weight discrepancies affecting the other
two pallets were probably the result of weighing or recording
errors.

The B767 operator has since amended procedures for its agent at
Honolulu. Under the new procedures, only the supervisor will carry
out weight unit conversions and liaise with other operators'
agents. This should minimise the risk of erroneous information
being passed between agents and help to ensure that all required
checks are carried out.

The B767 operator is monitoring the effectiveness of the new
procedures.