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Also the size of cabin luggage is starting to get out of hand, and there’s only minor attempts to mitigate the problem. During my last two flights airlines were
by mihaifm 7y ago
Also the size of cabin luggage is starting to get out of hand, and there’s only minor attempts to mitigate the problem. During my last two flights airlines were offering to check-in luggage for free for those who volunteered, yet almost nobody did, people still preferred to carry huge cases in the cabin just for the convenience factor. Without some stricter rules people will always choose the easy way.
- TeMPOraL 7y agoThere are at least three factors making people strongly prefer carrying to checking in. One, you can't "lose" a carry-on, unlike check-in. Two, obviously, tickets tend to be cheaper without check-in luggage. Three, you don't have to wait ridiculous amount of time for the luggage (IME it's usually 10-15 minutes, but once I waited an hour), you can just grab your carry-on and leave the airport. If it was just the price, or just the fear of lost baggage, it would be much easier. But with all three, the incentives are all aligned against check-in. So as you say, it would require stricter enforcement of rules to fix. And/or much stricter rules. And maybe fixing the luggage pick-up times would help. EDIT: fourth factor I just remembered. If you opt for checked-in luggage, you suddenly have to arrive 60-120 minutes earlier and spend that time in a queue. Adding pick-up time, that's 20% of your waking day spent just dealing with luggage.
- notacoward 7y agoAnother factor in the US (and often copied by other countries) is the absurd security-theater restrictions on what you can bring with you. If you need/want to bring several types of creams, lotions, gels, etc. you're out of luck. Ditto if you need/want to bring any tools with questionable points or edges. Or several other categories of items you can find on placards at every security bottleneck (each one a worse security problem than what they purportedly seek to prevent). I don't absolutely need any of these things, but I don't like being caught flat-footed without some of them when I'm on the road for a week or more each month, so I end up checking bags. > you suddenly have to arrive 60-120 minutes earlier That seems like a bit of an exaggeration. I travel a fair bit. The worst bag-checkin delay I've ever encountered was barely over half an hour. The security lines are routinely longer than that, and everyone carrying huge roll-aways makes those worse. Those, or the lines to re-book when flights are changed, are the real reasons to arrive early.
- unreal37 7y agoA friend of mine just recently lost his carry on because he forgot it on the plane. The airline can't find it now. So it's not impossible. It's just more in your control to lose it.
- ryandrake 7y agoI wonder why airlines don't just charge for all carry-on baggage and make checked baggage free. Doesn't it make sense to charge for behavior that you want to discourage?
- lazyasciiart 7y agoIt would be a nightmare to police. Can I have things in my pockets? Can I carry my handbag if I don't have pockets? What about a bottle of water? Or a snack for my kid or myself? What if we keep kosher and can't eat anything you have on board? What if I'm diabetic?
- tomjakubowski 7y agoAll of those cases would be covered by the existing "small personal item" allowance.
- lazyasciiart 7y agoAh, so you can keep carry on baggage, you just want to reduce the allowance.
- systemtest 7y agoWith cabin luggage, I can leave my airport (Rotterdam) in less than three minutes.