Smallest free hand luggage

[davidjohnson6]

I flew today with an airline which give a free cabin allowance of just 25 cm x 33 cm x 20 cm. Yes, I thought this was small. Yes, gate staff do enforce. No, it wasn't Ryanair.

Clearly ancillaries have been a big part of airline profitability... and luggage is a major factor in ancillary growth.

How far can airlines go in shrinking the free hand baggage allowance that comes with the cheapest fare ? Could we eventually see an airline remove the hand luggage allowance entirely (with maybe just an exception for medications) ? Or is there some minimum size beyond which an airline just cannot shrink hand luggage any further ? Perhaps the size of a woman's handbag is an absolute minimum ?

[rog747]

Who was the airline >?

Frankly, the amount of hand luggage permitted onboard today especially on shorter flights is ludicrous - Fights for space and the poor Crews having to play social worker and prison warden all at the same time.
We should remember that we could once only take on a flight bag/holdall that would fit under your seat, and the aircraft had no overhead bins/lockers - just a hat/coat rack.
Sounds abit like your bag measurements yesterday LOL

We travelled OK way back then, and we checked in our luggage which was part of our fare - either 15 or 20 kgs was the norm.

If you want the cheapest fare - OK fine - then pay for your luggage - and check it in - that is how today it rock and rolls.
Keep the Cabins clearer IMHO.

[DaveReidUK]

Originally Posted by rog747

Who was the airline >?

The only reference I've ever seen to an item that small was EI's limit for your second carry-on item:


It's certainly a very unusual size.

[rog747]

Thanks - perhaps it was an airline using tiny J41 or ATR with small lockers >?

[davidjohnson6]

Originally Posted by DaveReidUK

The only reference I've ever seen to an item that small was EI's limit for your second carry-on item:

It's certainly a very unusual size.

Or to the *only* free carry-on item for those flying mainline short-haul (ie not connecting to/from the USA or flying on EI Regional) on EI on a Saver fare without frequent flyer status

Back to the topic.... how small can an airline make the free cabin bag allowance ? Is there an absolute minimum size limit that pax will tolerate ?

[Asturias56]

remember that for some time in the early 00's some airlines banned ALL carry on of whatever size due to security worries.

[c52]

Last time I flew with easyJet free hand luggage had to go under the seat in front.

For that reason I sent my suitcase in advance for about £1 more each way and had the luxury of it being taken from door to door so a long journey by multiple stages of public transport at the far end was painfree.

[PAXboy]

I do not know the answer to the question but my understanding of how we got to the current problem is this:

1. When carriers moved to Hub-and-Spoke, pax often found that their bags did not make the link at the hub.
2. So they started to carry the luggage with them to ensure that it would not get lost, especially if just travelling for a long weekend.
3. This problem was more prevalent in the USA by simple fact of their large domestic market.
4. Carriers soon discovered that trying to enforce the old carry on rules lost them pax.
5. More airlines carried more pax and aircraft got bigger.
6. They changed the rules and started the competition as to who would allow the most carry-on. Or, who would not enforce their rules!
7. Then came the era of Regional Jets and their smaller onboard stowage. It is debatable as to whether this made any difference to the pax's intention to carry on as much as possible ...
8. Now that many more flights are point-to-point, pax still like to have their bags with them for speed at each end. Again, particulalry if just a weekend trip.
9. SouthWest and RyanAir redefined the carry-on and made serious money out of ancillary charges.
10. We are where people chose to be: Pay as little as possible and carry as much as possible.

If someone can put some dates to the changes, that would be interesting.

I sit to be corrected.

[Less Hair]

It escalated when airlines installed more seats in aircraft cabins so bin volume per seat decreased overnight. They had planned to limit carry on or charge extra but this never really worked out. Airlines ended up with passengers in endless discussions with reduced airport staff and flight delays for reshuffling onboard stuff before start up.

[S.o.S.]

This led to, as we have discussed here in the past, the check-in agent, the gate agent and the cabin crew having their own view as to who was responsible for policing the size of carry on. I have seen it done effectively and even handed and no check at all.

[Rwy in Sight]

There is always the option to offer to check the bag for free - either at the check in as the pax collects its boarding pass or at the gate.

[S.o.S.]

True - but I think a lot of pax do not know how the return of the bag works. Will be handed to them at the steps? What if there is a jetway at destination? Will their bags just land up on the carousel?

[Rwy in Sight]

My local airport has improved its baggage service and they reach fairly quickly the baggage claim area, The delivery speed is a key issue...