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Five ways to beat the competition to the overhead bin
There's nothing so gauche as to stick your carry-on into an overhead bin far ahead of your seat, grab a book or magazine from it and walk 17 rows back to your seat. Because, whether you know it (or give a damn), one of the passengers sitting under your bag may not have a place to put his. Then, when the plane settles in at the gate, he'll try to shove his way to the back of the plane (where he was forced to stow his stuff) while everyone else is moving the other way. It's a recipe for disaster.
And, it's getting worse.
Airlines have had to cope with shrinking budgets, thanks to a dismal travel market, and that means making cuts. So, when there isn't another pill water, peanut or blanket to chop, the airlines have to take away the planes themselves. Airline capacity is falling almost across the board this year, making planes more crowded. That translates to fuller overhead bins. The other airline money-making scheme – charging fees for extra baggage – has also cramped the cabin. Passengers are hoping to dodge the extra cost, even though it is modest.
When there's an airline problem, of course, Congress rushes to devise some sort of solution – an obvious move given the track record legislators have had "fixing" the industry. The latest move appears to be an effort to limit and standardize carry-on sizes across airlines, with the TSA enforcing the rule at checkpoints. What will this accomplish? Well, your security wait just got longer. Not only will they have more work to do, but you'll have the joy of waiting behind 27 people who all need to argue with the TSA employee about how the new rule is bullshit.
Until Congress comes in and accomplishes nothing, what matters most are strategies for making sure you can get as much of your stuff as possible into the overhead bins, especially if you want to keep some foot space under the seat in front of you. Here are five ways to make the whole process easier.
1. Board early
Chance favors the prepared. Get onto the plane as soon as you can. If you have elite status, use it. Linger by the gate to wait for your zone to be called. Then, strike when the announcement is made.
2. Be honest
You could become a scumbag and toss your carry-ons into the first overhead bins you see ... or you could play it straight and put your bags in the appropriate bin. Become a part of the solution, not the problem.
3. Consolidate
Don't carry too many carry-ons, and if you do max out the gear you can tow, bite the bullet and stick some of it under the seat in front of you.
4. Gate-check
You'll have to wait a little longer for your bags, but it isn't nearly as bad as having to linger by the carousel. This is as close to a win-win as you'll find in the hell we call air travel.
5. Deal with checked luggage
Sometimes, you're going to have to suck it up and check your damned bags. Don't try to fight with the flight attendant or gate agent over size or amount. You'll only delay the process ... especially if the flight attendant has to announce that some of the bags in overhead bins will need to be checked. Don't push the envelope, and learn to live with the rules.
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Filed under: North America, United States, Airlines
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 2)
doesitmatter Oct 29th 2009 12:49PM
How can any of these be considered "modest" fees, when it can easily be an entire paycheck, if not more to some people? We pay for a ticket, and we're subjected to whatever treatment we get--good or bad--We're "lucky" if we make it to our destination, let alone any luggage we check or don't check--and there isn't any more of a gaurantee that paying to check my luggage will make it get to the same place at the same time I do, and that it's even the intended time or place. Meanwhile, they tell us we can't bring almost any food or drink (for safety reasons), and then gouge the hell out of us once we're past the screening posts. Are the air-lines really living paycheck to paycheck? Because I am, and I can afford a bag of peanuts (just not from them).
JC Oct 29th 2009 12:51PM
It's simple.. Overhead bins should correspond with the seats. If it was up to me, the bins would be divided equally into 3 and labeled.. A,B,C..to correspond with the seats. You pay for your seat, you pay for your bin.
Paula Oct 29th 2009 1:12PM
My husband and I travel very light and always have suitcases that are carry-on size. We do check our luggage because of the hassle in the aisles. We carry on only my purse and a computer bag which do not go in the over head. Because we check our luggage and do not have to drag tons of crap out of the overheads, I think the airline should let all checked luggage passengers off the airplane first. And by the way who is enforcing the carry-on luggage size and amount of bags someone can carry on? The carry-on problem is getting worse and worse. Something has to stop it.
kelly Oct 29th 2009 1:36PM
Its simple folks..do what you're told to do.Put your carry-ons in the overheat compartment above YOUR seat, that you also share with the people in your row.If you can't fit your belongings underneath the seat in front of you or in the overhead bin...guess what ..you should have checked something.You don't just get to use someone elses space.
steve326m Oct 29th 2009 1:28PM
Here in The Philippines, we are allowed 1, repeat 1 carry on and it must weigh less than 7 kg (15.4 lbs) and be under the template size. If not, it will either get checked or left behind. No ifs, ands, or buts or discussion. If you try to argue and cause a problem there are security guards armed with shot guns to put an end to the argument. Checked baggage must weigh 15kg or less for small planes and 20 kg for larger planes. Above that and you will pay but it is modest compared to the US. If the US followed and enforced the same rules as they do here I can guarantee you the overhead bin problem would be eliminated.....God Bless...
Mark Oct 29th 2009 1:55PM
I have a small carry-on that fits in all overheads easily (except RJ's). I've seen people with large "carry-on's" that should be checked. Part of the problem is that some people cannot travel for a few days or a weekend without packing like they're going away for a year. Also, some people have an "entitlement" mentality, meaning that because they paid $79 to cross the country, they're entitled to be treated as though they paid $1,000. Paying $15 or even $25 to check a bag is not unreasonable considering the fares most people are paying to get a seat are unrealistcally low and unprofitable for the airlines.
Rae D Oct 29th 2009 4:27PM
Why does getting an overhead bin need to be a competition. You have an overhead bin over your seat that is for your appropriately sized carry on. If you arrive at your seat only to discovery some selfish f#^^k is using your bin instead of their own, ascertain that what is up there belongs to your seatmates, if they have arrived, then remove the item(s) that belong elsewhere. Once your stuff is stored, advise the flight attendant that someone left something in the aisle and you are done. Funny how people suddenly decide the bin over their own seat is sufficient when they see their baggage being removed or sitting in the aisle.
Scottilla Oct 29th 2009 2:29PM
If I pay $20 to check a bag, I have just as much right to my overhead space as someone who drags a bag onto the plane that they can't even lift.
Sadie Oct 29th 2009 4:59PM
I think the airlines should divide the overhead bins into compartments with dividers. Each one would have a seat number assigned to it. When you get on board, the compartment with your seat number is yours and only yours and you are not entitled to use anyone else's and vice versa. Of course, the compartments would be small but large enough to put things like purses, wallets, a small backpack or briefcase with a lap top etc. Anything larger, has to be checked, like it or leave it.
cashoe Oct 30th 2009 2:54AM
The sad truth is that the aholes aren't reading any of this. We're all just venting to each other.
pfriedr Oct 30th 2009 3:23PM
I've been traveling with my job for almost 20 years. I always check my bag and only carry on my laptop bag with work-related papers, a bottle of water, and 2 or 3 newspapers. I've never lost a bag, though a few have been delayed. Don't have the time or energy to drag a bag through concourses and in and out of restrooms and restaurants. I just shake my head at inexperienced travelers desperate to keep their bags with them, straining to get in them in an overhead bin. To paraphrase Miss Piggy from the Muppets, never carry on any more than you can comfortably lift.
Mica Oct 31st 2009 12:37AM
Im SOOOO sick of these people that believe that their .."60by40by40in.." piece
of luggage" is, in their eyes.. "so called carry on luggage!"
Do us all a favor.. stop trying to everything into one bag, and
check the danm thing !!! The over-head bin was created for coats, purses and
smaller necessaries.... not your 10day vacation clothes/24outfits w/ matching hadbags..... start getting real people...
up up and away Oct 31st 2009 4:25AM
Th flying public is no longer the first concern of any airline I have flown on for the past 10 yrs. or longer. It is all about the airlines problems and wows. We are now the problem, we meaning the passenger. There is absolutely no concern for the passengers well being while on board. No concern for the passeger before one boards. We are like cattle to them. The friendly skies are a thing of the past. The ground crews are always in a bad mood and the cabin crews are even in a worse mood. Flying has gone from bad to worse to miserable. One of my bigest reliefs for me now is the sheer pleasure of knowing that I do not have to fly nearly as often as I had to a year ago. The stress getting up in the A.M. and heading for the airport and knowing that the day was going to be a day of misery. Going from point A to point B, regardless if it was a 2 hour flight or a 13 hr. flight didn't matter. I just knew the day was going to be very stressfull. Can't tell you how many times I yearned for the good ole days of walking out on the tarmac climbing the stairs to board and as soon as one reached the top and was greeted by a smileing crew member and from that point on the entire flight was a pleasure. The crew actually gave a damn about me the passenger.
jeff king Oct 31st 2009 10:08AM
Victor:
I do have elite status on a few airlines. I forgot my biggest pet peeve...airline attendents who don't like their job so take it out on their customers with condescending attitudes. I know there are a lot of pain in the butt flyers (I've never complained to a flight attendent in my life), but in my businesses we get to fire employees with those attitudes to give raises to the others who deserve them.
I have retail stores in high traffic tourist areas and we see thousands of not always nice customers each day. But we grin and treat each one nicely. Try it. There are a lot of fine flight attendents, but unions rules protecting the rest hurt the whole industry.
george Nov 4th 2009 9:48PM
"The flying public is no longer the first concern of any airline for the past 10 yrs. or longer. It is all about the airlines. There is absolutely no concern for the passengers well-being. We are like cattle to them. We are now the problem. The friendly skies are a thing of the past."
This disgruntled passenger is so right! He hits the nail exactly on the head. I can see the airlines now going the same way as the railroads before them. Once upon a time, the railroads had classy streamliners and excellent service; then they gave up and decided that passengers were a nuisance. They got surly and indifferent and cut service. So people switched to planes. Now the airlines are doing the same thing. Where will we switch now?
bluebird Nov 1st 2009 11:05PM
I work for a major airline and must say that while this is a persistent problem amongst passengers, I am more annoyed when I see fellow colleagues from other airlines doing the old stuff and shuffle back to their seats.
Just last night an NRSA FA from AA insisted on placing her bags over row 2 and then proceeded back to her seat in row 20. Little did she know the flight was on the lighter side that evening and there was plenty of space for her back there.
My jaw hit the floor when I saw this but I suppose not all FA's get nearly as annoyed as we do when we see someone hogging overhead bin space nowhere need their seat! But surely of all people onboard the aircraft she should have known better!
WanderingAramean Nov 2nd 2009 12:40PM
You know that "gate checked" bags on regular flights come out at the baggage carousel, right? It is only on "Express" flights where they come back plane-side.
The comment about being part of the solution rather than the problem is certainly spot-on. Otherwise not so much particularly useful information here.
george Nov 4th 2009 9:50PM
What does he mean the extra cost of checking is "only modest"? I think it's outrageous, and it's even worse if you have several bags. Plus, it's going up AGAIN! I have some things: liquids, scissors, that' CAN'T be taken aboard; they HAVE to be checked. I refuse to fly an airline that charges me for checking. I won't pay it. There are several ways around this problem. At least one airline (SW) doesn't charge. And you don't have to pay if you're elite, or First Class, or international. So use those options if you can. If you really HAVE to fly an airline that charges, then only take the absolute minimum of what you need and carry it aboard with you.
The article is also silly in suggesting that you ... "Don't carry too many carry-ons". As if you have that many options! Nonsense. You're only allowed two pieces! And one of them is probably a purse or computer, leaving you with just one item of luggage. How can you cut it back further?
The article omitted one important point: that you should put your suitcase in the bin lengthwise, not sideways. That saves a lot of space. I have seen many people putting them in the wrong way, which is both stupid and inconsiderate (and even when the crew are giving instructions otherwise).
Another idiotic suggestion is that you should crowd close to the gate in order to get on sooner. That's one of the WORST problems about boarding. Sometimes, when flying 1st Cl. or elite, I haven't been able to get to the gate because there's a mob blocking the way. It's maddening to have a 1st Cl. ticket and not be able to get to the gate because of a mob milling about, trying to get on ahead of you. Sometimes, the personnel will ask the crowd to step back (which rarely does much good), but more often they don't even bother.