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"Weight & Balance" is the commonly used phrase that is used to describe the process of determining both the weight of an aircraft and the position of its centre of gravity.

Performing a "weight & balance" check is an essential part of pre-flight planning.

Weight is one of the components of the lift-weight and thrust-drag couples that define the performance of a flying machine. It is essential that the position of the centre of gravity is established prior to flight, so that appropriate compensation can be made for trim on take off, and estimates made for landing.

The weight of an aircraft can be measured by using weighing platforms that can be positioned under each part of the undercarriage. To avoid cosine errors, the ground must be flat and the top surface of each weighing platform must be on the same horizontal plane. The total weight can be found by summing the weights on the individual platforms. The centre of gravity can be determined by entering the indivdual weights on each platform on the appropriate weight and balance chart for the aircraft type.

Weighing platforms may be based on single dual-cantilever type load cells (for small aircraft) or they may be based on several multi-column canister types of load cell (for larger aircraft). To ensure accuracy within known limits, all items of the weighing equipment should be properly calibrated over the temperature ranges encountered during the weighing operations.

To avoid the inconvenience of having long cables running across the area where the weighing is being performed, wireless telemetry systems are available with hand held indicators that can simply select the identifier of the scale being monitored. This radio telemetry method allows reduced setup times and eliminates the safety hazard caused by trailing cables.