Sales of cargo pants – and jackets with voluminous pockets – may soar as Australia’s domestic airlines crack down on passengers sneaking overweight carry-on bags onto flights.
Several airlines are launching carry-on audits. These cabin-bag weigh-ins aim to stamp out a curse of modern travel – passengers lugging enormous overweight bags onto flights and stuffing them into overhead lockers. Passengers gamble their baggage won’t be weighed. Online check-in is making the practice easier to get away with and airlines have had enough.
Apart from taking up valuable overhead storage space needed by other passengers, overweight carry-ons can be dangerous in turbulence. Who wants to be hit on the head by a bag weighing as much as several bricks?
A long-established sneaky alternative – which entails transferring heavy items like books, chargers and electronic equipment into clothing pockets – may be harder to police. Passengers load the stuff into trays on the scanners and then replace them in their pockets after passing through security. Once aboard, the items sometimes go back into cabin bags.
Qantas has confirmed its is cracking down on passengers overloading their carry-on baggage, News Corp reports.
The airline is reported to be ramping up checks of carry-on baggage just before boarding. Qantas, and other airlines, is trying to stop flight delays caused by passengers trying to stow oversized carry-on luggage. It happens frequently in America, where people on cut-price carriers seek to avoid charges for hold baggage.
A Qantas spokesman confirmed baggage enforcement procedures were underway against owners of overfull or too-heavy bags. Qantas limits carry-on baggage to two pieces, neither of which can be over 7kg.
Jetstar charges for excess cabin baggage. Passengers can boost their carry-on bag limit from 7kg to 10kg, for a fee.
Tigerair Australia in September launched a new check-in process using a tag system to ensure passengers’ cabin bags have been checked and approved for boarding.
Cargo shorts. Sneaky alternative
The system weighs and checks carry-on bags, tagging them when approved.
Tigerair said its trial had succeeded “in relieving the common issue of congestion in the cabin overhead lockers by creating more awareness around customers being able to store their bags securely under the seat in front of them”.
Irish budget airline Ryanair charges for all cabin baggage brought aboard.
Written by Peter Needham
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