Definition
The weight of an aircraft component, part, or item by itself, with all packaging, containers, shipping materials, and any other extraneous matter removed.
Plain English
The weight of just the thing itself, without anything it came wrapped in or sitting on.
Context Anchor
Used during aircraft weighing and maintenance weight records, especially when scale readings include items that support or hold the aircraft during weighing.
Derivation
From the Old French 'net,' meaning clean or clear. The idea is a weight that has been 'cleared' of everything that isn't the actual item.
Why Pilots Care
An incorrect net weight can make aircraft loading records wrong, which can lead to unsafe loading decisions.
Analogy
If you weigh fruit in a bowl, the scale shows the fruit plus the bowl. The net weight is the fruit’s weight after subtracting the bowl.
Intuition Check
Do not assume net weight means the aircraft’s weight after removing fuel, cargo, or passengers. In this maintenance context, it means the scale reading corrected by removing the weight of items used only for weighing.
Example Sentence 1
The shipping label listed a gross weight of 25 pounds and a net weight of 22 pounds for the replacement starter.
Example Sentence 2
Shipping documents listed the net weight of the avionics unit to confirm it would not exceed the cargo compartment limit.