Whine Wednesday: Wildly Variable Carry-on Size & Weight Requirements

How much attention, if any, do you pay to the carry-on size and weight requirements that airlines have that are often cabin dependent?

When I took a couple of flights from Finland recently, the airport operator had these displays on airports that passengers could check if their carry-on met the requirements of the operating airlines.

As you can see from the enlarged image below, dimension requirements and weight allowances considerably fluctuate between airlines.

How can BA allow your carry-on weight to be 23 kilos while Finnair only accepts 8 kilos? The maximum dimensions of the bag are identical.

Airlines often claim that the weight limit is due to cabin safety but have we heard about any injuries or deaths due to BA’s generous allowance?

You could argue that BA saves cash when it allows passengers to handle their heavier bags as long as they easily fit the overhead compartment.

I am sure that the extremely low allowance (size and weight), or no allowance at all beyond a backpack that can fit under the seat, is a revenue enhancer for many LCCs that rely on advertising ridiculously low fares that can easily double/triple/quadruple after all “mandatory” add-ons are included.

Conclusion

I have ever since the pandemic began started to check in my carry-on that is “black 22” in airline lingo and fits the overhead compartment wheels on, excluding super tiny planes like the Bangkok Airways ATR today. It weighs 15 to 18 kilos and is heavier than all airlines allow, except BA, but it is usually not an issue on widebodies.

I wouldn’t mind checking in a bag always, but do you want to wait 30 to 60 minutes for your checked bag in cities such as Amsterdam or Barcelona?

There was once a “situation” in Sydney where the Emirates or Etihad check-in agent (outsourced) insisted that I need to check a bag when flying in F, where you have more than enough space for everyone’s carry-ons. So I had to get the airline’s airport manager to waive it.

A few weeks ago in Tallin, I had paid for one checked bag with Airbaltic. Only two agents were handling two flights leaving roughly at the same time and a hundred or so passengers in the line. There was no way that I would have made the checked bag cut off time and decided to check the bag at the gate. Well. That cost me an extra 60 euros.