Hundreds of North Sea workers too heavy for new helicopter rules - BBC News BBC Homepage Skip to content Accessibility Help Your account Home News Sport Earth Reel Worklife Travel Culture Future Music TV Weather Sounds More menu More menu Search BBC Home News Sport Earth Reel Worklife Travel Culture Future Music TV Weather Sounds Close menu BBC News Menu Home Climate World UK Business Tech Science Entertainment & Arts Health In Pictures More BBC Verify Newsbeat Scotland Scotland Politics Scotland Business Edinburgh, Fife & East Glasgow & West Highlands & Islands NE, Orkney & Shetland South Tayside & Central Hundreds of North Sea workers too heavy for new helicopter rules Image source, Getty Images Image caption, New weight rules for travel offshore will come into force in November By Rebecca Curran , BBC Scotland  and  Ken Banks , North east Scotland reporter , Reporting from Aberdeen Published 2 September 2026 Updated 3 September 2026 Hundreds of North Sea workers are still too heavy for offshore helicopter travel less than two months before new rules come into force, BBC Scotland has learned. From November they should weigh no more than 19st 7Ib (124kg) in their clothing and footwear, so they can be winched to safety in an emergency. When the plans were announced by industry body Offshore Energies UK (OEUK) last year, they said more than 2,200 workers were above that limit. New figures suggest up to 800 still exceed it. Jobs could be lost as a result, and an occupational health expert said some had left the offshore industry rather than lose the weight. However an employment law specialist said alternative onshore roles could also be explored by companies. More stories from North East Scotland, Orkney and Shetland Listen to news from North East Scotland on BBC Sounds The new safe weight limit policy , external came after the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) warned that rescue winches - which are critical during offshore emergencies - cannot safely lift he