These days, with Easter just around the corner, many have launched themselves in search of some air bargain to take a mini-vacation. But it is not easy to find something affordable. And, sometimes, the cheap rates in the end are not so cheap if we start adding supplements, such as those for cabin luggage, where there is enormous chaos since, to this day, there are no common criteria between the different companies, which that forces us to read the fine print of those ‘low cost’ flights well.
“The final price of the ticket does not always include the free transport of a small suitcase (55x35x20)”, warn the Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU), since cheap tickets are usually designed to travel “with what is on, without billing suitcases and with hardly any hand luggage.
In theory, the price of the ticket should include free transport of hand luggage (including purchases made at the airport and small bags, which are not even considered luggage), as stated in the Air Navigation Law. It sounds good, but it is a regulation with many gaps, so many that it is the airlines themselves that set the weight and dimensions of those packages that travel free of charge. As denounced by the OCU, “some abuse by setting rickety limits.”
Among the airlines in our environment there are up to eight different sizes for hand luggage
And here chaos breaks out: the passenger must be ready to find out what they can get into the cabin for free and what not by reviewing the airline’s own rules. What’s more, you should also look at the route you have chosen since, within the same company, it may be that the admitted size and weight vary and that we get an unpleasant surprise, such as having to pay an extra that can go from 8 to 40 euros.
That is to say, we must be attentive to three factors: how many packages we can carry in the cabin, of what dimensions and with what maximum weight. And here begins the pandemonium, because there are variations from one company to another. For this reason, the OCU has carried out an investigation to determine how many packages can be carried in the cabin with the ‘economic’ rates on the market – it has studied, among others, those of Iberia, Air Europa, Ryanair or Vueling-.
The conclusion of their work is that “70% allow two pieces of luggage to be carried in the cabin: a small suitcase with dimensions 55x35x20 -the standard recommended by the International Air Transport Association (IATA)- and a personal accessory” such as a bag or briefcase. ». But, be careful, it has also been denounced that there are at least six airlines -of the 23 that the organization has analyzed last December- that only allow a single piece of luggage in the cabin and, on top of that, of smaller dimensions than the standard. They are, according to the OCU study, Easyjet, Eurowings, Norwegian, Ryanair, Vueling and Wizz Air, which for this reason “are poorly valued” in the organization’s comparison, which also highlights that these companies “charge a supplement, times large, which makes these cheaper tickets more expensive” if we exceed their constrained carry-on limits.
The normal, 10 kilos
For this reason, the OCU claims defined minimum hand luggage measurements common to all airlines. “It is that there are up to eight maximum dimensions among the airlines analyzed: the most popular is 55x40x23 centimeters, somewhat larger than the IATA standard,” they censure.
And, be careful, you don’t just have to measure cabin luggage. It is also necessary to weigh it. Traditionally, these packages could not exceed 8 kilos and some companies continue to maintain this criterion, although the trend is to increase it, so that “most airlines have increased this limit and accept up to 10 kilos or even 23, as is the case of British Airways.
However, the OCU issues a warning: some companies -Transavia, Air France, KLM or Finn Air, as they add- “include the weight of the second package (hand bag) in the calculation of the total weight of their cheapest tickets (with those with higher rates are more generous).
Scales, tape measures, number of packages, fine print… What happens if the time comes to board and our suitcase exceeds the admitted measurements? That the company can force us to invoice and, almost certainly, “we will end up paying a higher rate than if we had previously done it ‘online'”, they warn in the OCU. And if the ‘caught’ is at the boarding gate… «the stick can be even greater». We can also be lucky: if we have not exceeded much or the plane is very empty “perhaps they will turn a blind eye”…
And if we pass?
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On the counter. First suitcase: There are companies that allow suitcases of less than 15 kilos paying a supplement of between 40 and 60 euros. For packages of more than 20 kilos, the amount can go up to 200 euros. Only Emirates, Qatar and Tapo allow a zero cost hold bag at their cheapest rate.
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On the counter. Second suitcase: If we have already checked in a package, the price may be even higher than the first. It usually costs between 15 and 30 euros more than the first suitcase.
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Boarding gate: Most will charge as if we had checked in, but there are exceptions with more expensive rates (over 70 euros), for each extra kilo.
#packages #cabin #plane.. #free