A COMMUTER BA32 FLC WAS GIVEN AN ERRONEOUS BAG COUNT. EXTRA BAGS IN THE TAIL PLACED THE ACFT IN AN OVERWT CONDITION FOR TKOF AND LNDG; ACCORDING TO CALCULATIONS WITH SOME OF THE ORIGINAL FIGURES GIVEN TO THE CAPT.

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FLT FROM STL TO BMI WAS THE LAST LEG OF A 9 LEG DAY. I WAS IN THE COCKPIT FILLING OUT OUR PAPERWORK; READY FOR DEP; WHEN I RECEIVED A ZONE AND CARGO WT SLIP SHOWING THAT THE ACFT HAD 19 PAX; 404 LBS OF BAGS IN THE POD; 384 LBS IN THE REAR AND 30 LBS IN THE COAT CLOSET OF A J32. AS I WAS BOARDING THE ACFT; THE BAGGAGE HANDLER TOLD ME WE HAD A LOT OF BAGS IN THE TAIL. I ASKED HOW MANY; HE REPLIED 16. OUR AVERAGE BAG COUNT IS 24 LBS PER BAG WHICH WOULD BE 384 LBS IN THE TAIL. THE FINAL PAPERWORK AGREED WITH THIS FIGURE. I COMPUTED THE WT AND BAL FOR THE TKOF AND DETERMINED THAT WE WERE LEGAL FOR TKOF AND LNDG. (I ASSUMED THAT WE WERE BULKED OUT AND COULD NOT FIT ANYMORE BAGS IN THE TAIL.) UPON LNDG AT BMI THE BAG HANDLER REMARKED THAT WE HAD A LOT OF BAGS IN THE TAIL. I REPLIED WE ONLY HAD 16 TOLD TO US BY THE STL STATION AND THEY WERE BIG BAGS. HE REPLIED THAT THERE WERE A LOT MORE THAN 16 BAGS. I DOUBLE CHKED MY PAPERWORK AND CONFIRMED I HAD 384 LBS. IF WE HAD MORE THAN 16 BAGS; WE MAY HAVE BEEN OVER MAX GROSS WT FOR TKOF OR FOR LNDG. AFTER REDOING THE PAPERWORK AND CONCURRING WITH THE FO; HE STATED THERE WAS ONLY 264 LBS IN THE POD INSTEAD OF 404 LBS. (THE FO OVERHEARD THE RAMP AGENT GIVE THAT WT IN THE POD.) BY RECALCULATING ALL OF THE NEW NUMBERS; WE WERE OK FOR TKOF AND LNDG; BUT IT WAS UNCLR AS TO WHAT BAGS WERE WHERE AND THE FINAL WTS. OUR BAGGAGE HANDLERS AND RAMP SUPVRS DID NOT GIVE ME THE CORRECT NUMBER OF BAGS. I BASICALLY DIDN'T HAVE ANY ACCURATE INFO AS TO THE BAG LOADING. BUT AGAIN; BY REDOING THE NUMBERS WITH THE FO'S WT OF 264 LBS IN THE BAG POD INSTEAD OF 404 LBS; WE DID NOT EXCEED ANY LIMITATIONS. THE ONLY WAY I COULD ASSURE AN ACCURATE COUNT IS COUNTING THE BAGS MYSELF. IT MAY HAVE BEEN AN HONEST MISTAKE ON THE BAGGAGE HANDLER'S PART; BUT I CANNOT CERTAINLY SAY WHAT THE REAL COUNT OF BAGS WERE; IN THE TAIL AND POD WITH ALL THE ERRONEOUS INFO I WAS GIVEN.