Standard weights for baggage - You make me laugh...
Every airline, every airport, every agent, do different. I will give you an idea.
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Imagine a busy airport, summer vacations season, somewhere in Europe.
Some 300 passengers to travel. One agent is missing for check-in, so the two other agents are seriously busy. Baggage limit is... 20 kg.
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Check-in procedures, usual stupid questions by passengers i.e. "is the plane on time" (check-in agent not dispatcher, sorry) or "oh yes, my wife's passport, it was here in my bag, let me see, oh no, must be in her bag" etc. etc. Now, comes the weight of the bags...
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Limit 20 kg we said... that piece is 22.5 kgs... Is it worth (to the agent's own opinion) the time to generate a baggage supplement ticket for 2.5 kgs, and spend 3 extra minutes doing it. So, the baggage is "weighed" at 20 kg... And same story for the next passengers, with pieces of 21 to 25.7 kgs. So the paperwork will show 450 pieces of baggage with some 10 to 15% error. So, the "accurate paperork" of "weighed baggage" is not accurate. It just reflects check-in agents willingness to simplify their job (or soon they will go on strike) or delay the departure for adequate overweight billing documents.
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Other situation. Here we are in the Middle East, in the very holy area of the desert shrine where pilgrims have obligation to go to at least once in their life (I shall not mention where, for political correctness). Now we deal with 500 pax to travel to a distant point in Africa, or maybe to South Asia...
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The passengers present theirselves with 10 kg stereos, 25 kg microwaves, or 30 kg televisions (if not a 100 kg refrigerator - I saw that) as their "cabin baggage", all this with their 25 kg of "holy water" jerrycans. But who says Middle East - also means inherent "little business" for the passengers and agents. We all know that the once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimage is for prayers, and not for shopping...
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The conversation leads to this. Passenger has 200 kg of baggage extra, so, lots of dollars. But all is negotiable in the Middle East, as when you go buying a carpet. So the passenger and agent "negotiate" the extra fees. The agent reduces the "200 kg overweight to 100 kg". All this with a little "commission" for the agent (his salary is miserable). So the paperwork (which must be reflecting the extra charges received by the agent) "converts" the 200 kg into 100 kg of baggage. That is the "accurate" weight, that you pilot, will receive.
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The "weight and balance indexing system" mentioned here above by Mike773 does indeed exist. I remember once on these flights, such system showing us some 15,000 kg extra weight for the aircraft ramp weight, compared to the "accurate paperwork" presented for baggage we had. Great piece of fiction indeed.
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I know another thing. An airplane flight planning showing 75,000 kg fuel burnoff, but actual burnoff on arrival happens to be 80,000 kg. It is not because I have poor climb/cruise techniques as pilot. I am average, as anyone is (except you, being better than me). Such a burnoff, tells me that the airplane is seriously overweight. I could play the game in entering the burnoff chart backwards and find what the actual aircraft weight was. And why is it that the plane is in dire need of vitamins when climbing from FL310 to 350...
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I am an old fart yes... but dont pull my leg. I know the music and dance.
You are an idiot to believe that all is like in the pilot academy or as shown on traffic paperwork.
As accurate as your TAF that gives your destination CAVOK, but when you arrive, the RVR is 400 meters.
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Happy contrails