I’ve written in the past about the pros and cons of traveling with carry-ons vs. checked bags, and I’ve also written about how to avoid gate checking bags. An OMAAT reader asked me a question along the lines of this topic, which I haven’t addressed before. I’m sure he’d appreciate other perspectives, and for that…
Continue reading: Are Carry-On Rules Always Enforced For First & Business Class Passengers?
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
I regularly bring onboard a 15kg cabin roll on + big hold all on virtually every widebody flight (Qantas / Cathay / Singapore) biz cabin and am never asked about it. I hate checking in luggage but wouldn't try this in economy due to limited space. Agents never even raise an eyebrow, I assume they know there's enough room for everyone in that cabin but economy is a whole different story, esp in economy.
My only rule is to avoid Lufthansa economy class! Or Lufthansa owned affiliate....as it pertains to carry ons!
How is Lufthansa “unique” in allowing two carry-ons in business? My impression is that the majority of airlines, such as KLM, Qatar, SAS, Turkish and Virgin, allow this?
Anyway, I always (and I do mean always) travel with a carry on that is both larger and heavier than allowed, and I’ve never had an issue. All my flights are in business class and I have elite status. Some airlines weigh carry ons at check in or at the gate. Lufthansa and LOT seem to do this quite often, but I’ve always just been given an “approved” tag and allowed to bring it onboard.
Once again limits for carry on are directly associated with incidents that happen onboard a craft, hence why there are restrictions , I’d ask you have you ever been hit in the head with a bag that is 15kilos falling onto you on Ltake off - well, first hand experience over 36 years , it can and does result in a head/brain injury so pull your head in and respect the be limitations
Sometimes it’s not the airline but security that weighs your luggage. At PVG, China Eastern didn’t care what I had when I checked in. However, when I went through security before we got in the security line they had airport security there with a scale that were weighing everyone’s luggage, biz class or not. I got sent back to the China Eastern line for being overweight and had to check it. So sometimes it’s not the airline policing it but airport security.
Really bad advice here.
The answer is "it depends" - on many things, including the mood of the airline staff at the moment you deal with them. It's impossible to predict with any certainty the degree to which (if any) they will enforce the limits. It's a roll of the dice. Beyond that, just speculation which don't mean squat.
I have very rarely been dinged for hand luggage. Even though I’ve had some pretty heavy stuff. I try to stay as close to the right size even if it’s heavy. Carrying your rolling carryon in your hand on the side away from the podium can allow you to get away with a lot.
Probably the most egregious was as a student in the 90s heading off to the Himalayas for a climbing trip and having close on 30kg of metal in my carryon backpack and wearing big plastic ice climbing boots.
Make it look light and you probably won’t get bothered about it.
Does BA still have 23kg hand luggage allowance?
I have never, ever had an issue anywhere in the world with hand luggage when flying in business or first class, regardless of bag size, and I started flying at the front of the cabin in the early 1980s. It’s one of the reasons I am happy to pay extra.
That's happened to me in Africa. The airport staff didn't care about cabin class or aircraft type - you just couldn't go airside with more than 7kg of stuff. This can also result in missing the flight as check in may have closed by the time you've argued with them and went back to the counter.
Exactly, it really is rather astonishing that people are prepared to go to quite some lengths in order to avoid rules that are designed to protect their own physical integrity.
In common with others who have commented herein, for more decades than I care to remember, I have never paid an extra penny for overweight carryon or checked luggage. No points, no status, just a regular F Cabin traveller.
Could it be something to do with my personable attitude towards those who are responsible for checking such things? …. 🙂
This is about risk management. Do you mind having the bag gate checked? Are you only connecting to business class on a THY A330 or expecting to fly on a Skane Aviation Saab turboprop to Bromma (spoiler alert: there's no business class!)?
The carry on weight restriction is a health and safety rule so this isn't just related to enforcement - it's also about the health and safety of everyone on board.
Exactly - there's a difference between 'you may well be able to get away with it' and 'rules are meant to be broken'. I have more than once been in a situation where the weight of my hand luggage wasn't a problem at the origin airport but became one when I was about to catch my connection (same airline, same aircraft type, same cabin) at the hub.
The fact that I have only had to check a bag once (at no cost) and have managed to get away with it another 3-4 times (whether it was due to travelling in a premium cabin, having elite status, carrying a CPAP machine or whatever) shouldn't be an incentive for pushing my luck until I end up missing a flight due to a heavy rollaboard.
I flew AA BOS-LAX last year in F on a 3 cabin A321. I had my roller board, a small backpack, and a tiny (tiny) travel guitar.
Gate agent wouldn’t have it.
I basically stuffed the contents of my backpack into the soft guitar case. This was kosher b
“if you’re flying in British Airways’ intra-Europe business class, I wouldn’t expect to get away with a whole lot”
BA has never challenged my carry-on stuff. (UK-based BA Gold/ OWE here, so I have a lot of experience with BA. More than I want, frankly).
The only airline I can remember challenging my bags is Virgin Atlantic at LHR, who were fastidious about weight limits rather than sizes. I simply removed the books from my luggage and stuffed them in my coat pockets for the bag weigh-in, then returned them to the bag after leaving the check-in area.
If I’m flying business class I’m pretty confident my carry-on will be fine.
Depend. United? Yes, strictly enforced (Polaris, GS, etc. doesn’t matter to their gate-agents). Qatar? No problem; bring +3 bags, if you wish.
Lufthansa has started putting new machines with scales at most of its gates at outstations. They are really strict about weighing your bag and it’s super easy to get caught out since the limit is so low (8kg)
You must be one of those people that thinks the way to score a upgrade is to dress nicely…
Size is one thing but weight is another. BA is the only airline I can think of with 23kg carry-on limit - this makes a huge difference vs all the airlines with 7/8/10kg limits.
KLM traveling within Europe it seems to be strictly enfourced, at least if you check in at baggage check in area.
Air France JFK. I went to the toilet and when I came back, husband said a GA approached him to say we needed to gate check. We each had a soft sided wheeled carry on and a backpack as personal item. My husband was already taking important items from the carry ons. I went to the GA and told her we’re in Business. She backed off.
I imagine you can get away with a lot on a wide body in business. There is more space than is needed.
We were at the front of the business cabin on a KLM 787, so the center overheads are replaced by a crew rest and the side overheads are small due to the fuselage tapering toward the nose.
The attendants gave us a whole coat closet for our stuff. Backpack, baby bag, two full roller bags, coats. It was fantastic.
I see people trying to exceed baggage limits every minute of the day and I get it but from an agent's perspective if you do get caught please remember that:
1. You are breaking the rules and
2. The agents are just doing what they are mandated.
So please don't argue or create a scene because your bag is too big or you have too many items. You got caught so it's on you. If you have an issue take it up with the airline, not with the agents assigned to get the planes out safely on-time.
Last year at BER at the gate for the remote stands.
Travelling in Business, I arrived near the end of boarding.
Minimal queues in the two lanes, but in Business they were weighing the carry-ons.
I went down the Economy lane!
Easyjet used to be unlimited.
It's now 15kg for the overhead, but also 15kg for the small item (which everybody gets for free)
Ryanair: the large (overhead) bag is limited to 10kg, but there is no weight limit on the underseat bag.
So put one's metal things in the latter!
An excellent approach Mike, I’m with you on this …. only those who are intellectually challenged, believe that they can buy status or demand respect, will make fools of themselves in such circumstances.
I don't disagree in principle but it's not always as straightforward as that,
I have had gate staff refusing a request to gate check stuff (I had a heavy carry on bag and an underutilised allowance within the weight concept, they didn't weigh the bag but I approached them proactively as it'd be easier and safer to just retrieve it together with my main suitcase) and others who insisted that the weight of my CPAP machine must be counted towards the limit (I nearly missed my flight because of that and was only allowed to proceed beyond the checkpoint after threatening the check in supervisor with a discrimination lawsuit). I won't scream at people, but I will absolutely demand that they do their jobs properly.
Without the proletariat polluting cattle class, life for the paying passengers ‘upfront’ would be idyllic, yes, Alert?
Quite Throwaway, sadly the difference between an assertive stance and an aggressive attitude is lost on too many folks today.
Air Canada made me check a carry-on bag when flying business on a 787 flight. Every other airline has been fine with me taking it on board with me, even when flying economy.
So no more AC for me.
I've had the same experience with Air France. Seems to be an AF/KLM thing. They weigh all of your bags (checked and separately all carry-on items). They are pretty strict with it in my experience, both at CDG/AMS and at outstations.
I've only had trouble once while flying in premium cabins. It was with a business class ticket on Qantas. I believe they have a 10kg limit and my carry on was 12kg. They knew I was flying business class and wouldn't budge. I had to take some things out and put it in my personal bag and they reweighed it immediately.
which backpack is that from briggs ? i want the same one! i travel a lot for work now and i want to fit in and look corporate and have a traveler tested good use backpack.
I've never pushed the limit on quantity of carry-ons with United, but have had no issue with weight or size in Polaris or any other class. If you can carry it and it fits, they don't seem to care much.
Only time was Singapore in Seattle in C. I just stared at her and said nothing. She decided to let it pass which surprised me. Trust me, it was more being dumbfounded than any master strategy. I’m surprised she didn’t make me wear a helmet.
To weight, I've never had issues with US carriers or in Europe. I think if you travel with a backpack or small duffle, and regardless, make sure your bag doesn't look overstuffed, you draw less attention. The agents I see weighing bags often do it inconsistently.
The only place I've had issues was on a flight within Japan (economy), where they weighed everyone's bags and put approved tags on them.
Recently, flying business class in Australia, I saw them weighing carry-ons in the economy check-in line, but not in business/premium check-in.
Another factor I didn't see mentioned here is the ratio of seats to overhead bin space and the airline's practical concern with fitting all bags. I do a lot of flying on AC domestic, if you get a MAX 8 or a refurbished A321, generally the aircraft has enough space for pax in all classes to fit the typical modern "heavy" carry-on setup so you see agents being less stringent on identifying oversized bags. If it's an un-refurbished A320, there isn't, so they are more stringent with enforcement. Regardless, J has a much lower density of pax per unit of overhead bin space, so even on an old A320, I haven't observed any issues with gate checking or lacking space. In fact, often J bins are often used to store excess items from Y. And this effect is even more significant on a widebody where 4 pax in pod seats get the same allocated overhead bin space as 20 Y pax in 2 rows.
I generally dislike piss-take type carryon setups and try to avoid that myself but trying to force gate checking for a J passenger with a duffle and a carry-on seems like blind rule enforcement over pragmatism to me and I would view it negatively as a customer.
Can we also talk about airport security that is just a glorified usher before TSA lines.
They don't work for the airline.
It's not their job to police carry on but they seem to love to go on power trips.
Like I keep trying to warn people.
Singapore is wayyyyyyy overrated.
They just have among the best propaganda.
That's the reason why tax the rich more doesn't work.
If you're smart enough to be rich, you're smart enough to not to pay tax.
If you travel frequently enough you realize you forgot number three.
3. The power trip agent doesn't actually know the rules and wrongfully enforce bogus made up rule and not accountable for any mistakes they make.
I've had a weight check once or twice in my frequent flying life, excluding prop planes with low tolerances.
BA at CDG, flying biz, the only time in hundreds if not thousands of flights that forced me to check a small backpack that fits easily both under the seat and in the overhead. BA all around doesn't give a shit about their premium passengers and are happy to treat their captives however they want. I think they hired a penitentiary firm to design and run their LHR lounges.
Check in desk for BA at CDG, business class in biz class line, loyalty status, etc... told to check a backpack that fits perfectly well under the seat and in the overhead of every plane I've ever flown. First time ever. Some flex is owed to loyal business class customers... or, they will not be loyal for long. You can argue all you want but enforcing a rule in situations where it hurts no one, from your highest margin and most loyal customers, is a stupid business move, especially when all your competition realize it's not necessary and allow reason to prevail.
I only ever had issues with Austrian Airlines. They have a habit of weighing carry ons at check in and 10 kilo is 10 kilo in Austria, even in business. Other than that, happy with my indestructible and super light Travelpro Maxlite 5 - the lighter the bag the more I can bring.
Agree that avoiding counter baggage check-ins( where check-in machines are available) will eliminate most stinky eyes at the gate. My only time where I used check-in counter, the LH agent, was a POS about it. But domestically in Europe, I am entitled to two checked bags. Austrian and LH is not an oddity, is it?
Mainline vs LCC is a big factor. Just look at Ryanair stories, but that because it's how it makes money.
Generally on mainline, I've not had an issue with regards to size/weight in any class, but can't comment on quantity. Not taking the piss definitely helps - if you're unable to control/handle your own bags, expect to be scrutinised. This helps cover the safety bit too - if you're struggling to put your overweight bag in locker and gonna hit someone, shouldn't be that heavy.
I think once at check-in they might have weighed my checked and cabin bags together - knowing full well that if they challenge you on checked, you'll just move it to cabin bag. As long as it's not over max handling weight.
Remember that Hong Kong Airlines crazy US>FarEast business class fare glitch that many scooped up in 2018? We went to check in at LAX>HKG with our smaller “international” carryons roller bags plus 1 checked bag between the 2 of us. One of the carryons was overweight by 1lb (can’t recall if the limit was 15 or 20 lbs) and the check-in agent made a big deal about it. Like a really big deal. It wasn’t an issue to shift the pound to my partners only carryon, but I’ve always wondered if it was because of the mistake fare they honored, of if that is just how they are. Seemed really odd as we were, overall, only bringing about 1/2 the # of bags that we were allowed. I think the agent said it was a safety issue.
My strategy is to use a RedOxx duffle as my carry on and a packable backpack as my personal item. In addition, I always wear a ScotteVest with a ton of pockets. The RedOxx is light and soft and fits anywhere, even the overheads on regional jets and turbo props. The backpack folds into its own pocket but is rated to carry 17 kilos. If I am on a flight with a stingy weight, I get all my heaviest items and put them into the vest. The vest even has a pocket that fits my full size iPad. Many heavy items are actually small (eg. Chargers, power banks, etc.), so I can do this without looking bulky. Then, I move anything else (including my laptop) into the backpack to the point where the RedOxx meets the required weight. I always check a bag, and to weigh the RedOxx I carry a digital luggage scale in there. Nobody has ever checked the weight of my personal item at check in, even on RyanAir (where I pay for all the extra luggage add-ons). I only fly business for long haul but this has also worked for me on low cost carriers. I have never seen a rule that says you cannot wear your luggage.
Darlink Esk, compared to the U.S. propaganda machine, Singapore is definitely in the slow lane don’t you know. “I keep trying to warn people” but are you listening?
If you are on the smaller planes like the connection flights then it is more enforced because of the limits of the plane.
Very few airlines “give a shit” about what they contemptuously think of as self-loading cargo. In my experience BA is not brilliant, but nor is it as bad as you seem to have experienced.
BA’s systems clearly identify who are business class passengers, but sometimes staff will make a mistake. I was on a totally full domestic flight at LHR when almost everyone was being made to gate-check hand baggage; the gate agent told me to give up my bag, only to be sharply told by her colleague that I was business class and should be let through with it. Maybe you weren’t so lucky — especially with only a small personal item.
I’m sympathetic to both BA and you about the state of their LHR lounges. The price we all pay for their near-monopoly is the vast volumes that need to be accommodated. The lounges are like cattle sheds, focussed on processing volumes. But what else could they be? I usually use the satellite lounge at B gates, if I’m not flying out of A. It’s “only” a business lounge rather than 1st but, ironically, because it’s so much quieter it feels much more relaxed to me. And that’s what I value most, rather than some brand of champagne.
Blimey. I’m Flying Blue Platinum and use KLM a lot (though almost never AF), at least once a month, and about half long-haul and half within Europe. I have never had my bag weighed. Never…
Maybe I've just been fortunate - I can only think of one case where I had to gate-check a carry-on for a mainline aircraft. Naturally that was BA and I ended up with a Zone 9 boarding group (was still the second person on the flight so the gate checking felt extra punitive). That includes JAL, Austrian, Swiss, Virgin Atlantic, all of the US majors, BA, KLM/AF, Air China, Southwest, and Singapore.
Nothing special about my bags to manage that track record. I used to use a Travelpro Crew 9 and a small Briggs & Riley briefcase. Switched to a Waterfield Designs Air Porter for my personal item on international flights since it holds more and has a different look than the standard business bag. Also switched to an Away larger carry-on recently. No problem taking that on any of my intra-EU flights so far either.
I'll give another vote for RedOxx. When I was younger I used their Air Boss as my main carry-on. It holds a ton of clothes and is super easy for getting around on rough ground. Have several other RedOxx bags that I use for non-travel and they are indestructible. Great warranty too - my dog chewed through a zipper on one and they even took care of that for me. As my back got older I switched to a roller bag but I still look at the RedOxx every time I start to pack and give it a chance to convince me to use it again.
Are Carry-On Rules Always Enforced For First & Business Class Passengers?
No.
And for that matter... No rule is "always" enforced.
I almost always bring an Away hard-sided carry on with a 50L duffel bag, foreign and domestic, and have never had any issues. I put them both overheard as neither fit underneath the seat. If it's a short, domestic weekend trip, I'll bring the Away carry on with a backpack that fits under the seat.
In my many hundreds of flights (if not 1000+) I have only once been forced to check my carry-on due to size or weight and that was on Swiss in ZRH connecting from Dulles to Hamburg. Star Gold and Business class didn't matter, my bag was too heavy and needed to go under.
AF has twice made us check at gate our rollerbags and we were in Biz class...nuts... DL scolded me when I had a newspaper in my hand along with a purse and roller bag-told 3 items boarding in FC...Then I see peeps getting on with 3 or 4 items...not problem.. AA made me check at plane door my new roller bag. I was in FC with a whole empty overhead bin.. told no roller bags on board.. On return of my bag it was soaking wet and the wheel broken off.. told not AA problem.. last time flying them..
Starlux once weighed both my personal item and my carry-on suitcase. The junior gate agent found it was too heavy and was exasperated at just how much it exceeded their limits. But then, a more senior gate agent said in Chinese, “he’s business class, it’s fine”, and I boarded without incident.