Weight restrictions
I have recently had the misfortune of trying to get on as a stand-by non-rev passenger on SJO-IAH. The aircraft, a 737-800, left with 7 seats empty while I did not get on. I was told by the gate agent that this has been the case very often out of SJO, and aircraft have left with as many as 17 empty seats within the past week while leaving passengers behind.
Can someone explain to me why would this happen on a regular basis, with the 738 having capability to fly a route about twice the distance of SJO-IAH under more favourable conditions? I thought with such a relatively light fuel load, you could easily fill the plane to capacity with pax, and did not even consider the possibility that there could be a weight restriction when making my travel plans. BTW, the same airline flies the same aircraft SJO-EWR, which is a five and a half hour flight compared to the 3 hour SJO-IAH. They have weight restrictions on SJO-EWR, which is not surprising to me.
I hope this is in the right forum - its my first post, although I've been lurking on this site for a few years and find it very informative.
Martin