luggage

[slomo]

This rant is a long time coming!!! Why do people bring huge bags on to airplanes? My wife and I bring a back pack and a SMALL duffle bag on to the plane. The rest of my wife's garbage goes into the belly of the plane. I pay like 600.00-800.00 to ride an airplane to go do something. However, before I can do that I have to wait like 30 minutes while some douch bag argues with the flight attendent trying to tell them that the hugh suit case will fit into the overhead bins. While this argument is occuring all I'll I want to do is crack this person's head open and give them a healthy face hating. Am I a prick? When did people stop listening to the airplane people? Does anyone else feel like me?

Cheers!

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

When did people stop listening to the airplane people?

When they started charging $5 for peanuts and $20 per pound for check-in.

 

[JJL]

Yup. Blame the airlines. How could this type of thing not happen when they went to "a la carte" pricing for bags, food & drinks, headphones, etc.

 

[JonM]

I hate it when i follow the rules and common courtesy like the OP and others show up with a huge bag, a second huge bag ( but they call it a "purse" even though it's the size of a gymbag) AND a friggin laptop case because, I guess that doesn't count.

 

[Revvy]

Whatevr happened to those little measuring racky things that you had to put your carry on into to see if it qualifies/fits BEFORE you stepped onto the plane. Or am I the only one that ever bothers to use them to make sure.

This thing.

 

[TrainSafe]

I agree with almost everything. I say almost because I don't hold the airlines completely responsible.

Their customers have said that we aren't willing to pay more for a base ticket. At the same time, fuel prices are up, health care costs increase by double digit percentages each year, and employees kinda like raises every so often. Airlines were in bankruptcy a few years ago. They needed to increase revenue and we, as consumers, told them to move away from the 'everything included model'. So now we pay for pillows, meals and luggage.

I fly about 30 flights a year. It used to take a lot less time to board planes when everyone's bags of dirty underwear were checked at the ticket counter and loaded under the plane.

 

[KingBrianI]

I fly fairly often and haven't really run into this issue. Some planes do have smaller overhead bins than others so the carry-on you brought may not fit as well as usual, but the attendants and gate staff usually make this known when boarding and require that oversized bags are gate-checked. And even on planes with the larger bins, if they see someone with something that won't fit, they will make the passenger gate-check the bag. And if someone does somehow get on with a bag that won't fit, the attendants quickly take the bag to a closet or to the ramp where it is put under the plane.

My bigger gripe is for the people who take 10 minutes getting settled like there aren't 100 people waiting behind them to get by.

 

[azscoob]

I hate that I can travel to mars with little more than a backpack or small duffel bag, yet some people (like my wife feel the need to bring every stitch of clothes she owns) have these massive suitcases that they unpack and rearrange at the counter because it is 40 lbs over weight.

We got married back in 2000 in Hawaii, she brought a massive suitcase full of nothing but SHOES!! while there for a month all she wore was one pair of flip-flops, yet I got to drag like 60 pounds of shoes to 3 islands. She also had 2 suitcases worth of clothes that were never worn because we were mostly in bathing suits or super casual clothes. I was completely packed in a carry-on size duffel, because guess what, they have Laundromats there!

I would rather do a little laundry than drag a ton of dirty clothes around with me on vacation, if I get tired of what I brought I will go buy a shirt or whatever.

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

I hate it when i follow the rules and common courtesy like the OP and others show up with a huge bag, a second huge bag ( but they call it a "purse" even though it's the size of a gymbag) AND a friggin laptop case because, I guess that doesn't count.

I have travelled a lot and for many airline a camera bag and a laptop case do not count against the allowed carry-on limit. In fact most allow x carry on bags AND a laptop case AND camera bag AND a diaper bag.

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

I hate that I can travel to mars with little more than a backpack or small duffel bag, yet some people (like my wife feel the need to bring every stitch of clothes she owns) have these massive suitcases that they unpack and rearrange at the counter because it is 40 lbs over weight.

We got married back in 2000 in Hawaii, she brought a massive suitcase full of nothing but SHOES!! while there for a month all she wore was one pair of flip-flops, yet I got to drag like 60 pounds of shoes to 3 islands. She also had 2 suitcases worth of clothes that were never worn because we were mostly in bathing suits or super casual clothes. I was completely packed in a carry-on size duffel, because guess what, they have Laundromats there!

I would rather do a little laundry than drag a ton of dirty clothes around with me on vacation, if I get tired of what I brought I will go buy a shirt or whatever.

Ha. My last trip overseas we were allowed 2 large check-in bags each (4 people) and 4x the carry on. It was me, my wife, my toddler, and my infant.

My son's and I occupied 2 bags between the three of us yet, she still managed the 6 bags. the sixth was practically empty so she'd "have room for the stuff she brings back".

 

[weirdboy]

I fly about 30 flights a year. It used to take a lot less time to board planes when everyone's bags of dirty underwear were checked at the ticket counter and loaded under the plane.

I don't see how you cannot blame the airlines for charging separately for checked bags, but NOT for unchecked bags. Of COURSE that is going to result in people hauling their huge bags with them on the airplane. There is no other possible outcome when you implement a moronic policy like that.

 

[azscoob]

I don't see how you cannot blame the airlines for charging separately for checked bags, but NOT for unchecked bags. Of COURSE that is going to result in people hauling their huge bags with them on the airplane. There is no other possible outcome when you implement a moronic policy like that.

If you drag it on the plane and it doesnt fit or there isnt room they will stow it bottomside at no charge, and last in is also first off, maybe these people do it on purpose to speed things up when they arrive and save money as well

 

[JJL]

If you drag it on the plane and it doesnt fit or there isnt room they will stow it bottomside at no charge, and last in is also first off, maybe these people do it on purpose to speed things up when they arrive and save money as well

I don't see how you cannot blame the airlines for charging separately for checked bags, but NOT for unchecked bags. Of COURSE that is going to result in people hauling their huge bags with them on the airplane. There is no other possible outcome when you implement a moronic policy like that.

I agree. They put a rule in place that encourages people to carry on as much as they can get away with, and then when they do bring to much on, there's no penalty. In fact, since their stuff gets valet checked if it is too big, they are actually getting rewarded for breaking the rules.

 

[TrainSafe]

I don't see how you cannot blame the airlines for charging separately for checked bags, but NOT for unchecked bags. Of COURSE that is going to result in people hauling their huge bags with them on the airplane. There is no other possible outcome when you implement a moronic policy like that.

It makes perfect sense from an economic standpoint. Carry on bags don't ever get handled by the airlines. Checked bags need to get handled by airline workers at least six times. Add up the labor, baggage tractors, belts, and related costs. It isn't free. I am sure their workers compensation costs dropped significantly from not having to lift my wife's 75# suitcase.

This "moronic" policy is the result of the free market. And it is working as intended. I am not a fan of it either as I wish everything was free. Especially Blichmann's awesome equipment. However I can't blame a company who uas to make sure that revenue equals expenditures.

They can either raise ticket prices or charge fees. Either way it will cost you and me the same.

 

[weirdboy]

It makes perfect sense from an economic standpoint. Carry on bags don't ever get handled by the airlines. Checked bags need to get handled by airline workers at least six times. Add up the labor, baggage tractors, belts, and related costs. It isn't free. I am sure their workers compensation costs dropped significantly from not having to lift my wife's 75# suitcase.

They also delay take-off and landing times because now boarding and exiting the airplane take several times as long as previously, resulting in increased wages for all the people who end up working overtime. And they lose customers to airlines that DON'T charge extra for luggage, like Southwest.

And my argument isn't even that I wish it were all free, even though that is the case. My argument is that by encouraging people to carry-on, they have very effectively created a service that NOBODY likes. Most of my customers are pretty close to where I live nowadays, but I still do travel decent distances for day trips along the coast. But, there is now a much wider range that I am willing to drive instead of fly because of the extra hassle and length of time it takes to fly. How can that possibly be good for business? The only saving grace for my air travel here is that there are a couple of airlines that service all the places I tend to go that don't charge for luggage, and hence don't suffer from the ensuing issues getting on and off the airplane. e.g. Southwest, JetBlue.

Do Delta, United, etc. get my money nowadays? Hell, no. Not one red cent. And the last time I checked a bag for air travel was probably 10+ years ago. It's not about the fees so much as the consequences of charging them.

 

[C17-EHSE]

I travel a bit for business, both international and domestic. I see a lot of people trying to dodge the rules because they somehow think they are special. I usually carry two computers. One belongs to the company and the other is my personal laptop. I have a large computer bag that they both fit in. I also carry my camera. The rest goes in the belly. That's because the company is paying.

When I need to fly for personal trips, I use SWA. They don't charge me for a bag and they are generally very competitive with their fares. It's cattle class, I know, but I still get there just the same as if I paid for a more expensive ticket. I'm willing to put up with a bit of inconvenience.

However, you see the same thing on SWA. Bin hogs because they are too damned lazy to check a bag. They don't want to wait a few extra minutes. They don't want to be inconvenienced, but the selfish pricks that they are, they don't mind holding an entire plane load of people while they try to stuff their steamer trunk into the overheads.

 

[slomo]

However, you see the same thing on SWA. Bin hogs because they are too damned lazy to check a bag. They don't want to wait a few extra minutes. They don't want to be inconvenienced, but the selfish pricks that they are, they don't mind holding an entire plane load of people while they try to stuff their steamer trunk into the overheads.

I too fly SWA, and on my last flight I was thinking to myself. What possible reason could cause all these people to bring there suit cases on board. It can't be the money because SWA doesn't charge, and I seriously doubt that all these people have had their bags routed to some other place that they were not going to. The only other conclusion that I was able to come to was that these people are rude, inconsiderate human debris. Whose sole purpose is to spread there misery to all of us good folks who follow the rules. Glad to know I am not the only one that feels this way.
Cheers