New flight Regulations about carry-on

[mempilot]

Karen and I flew Delta from FLL to ATL to Bonaire and back in September. No only did they weigh our checked bag (duh), they also measured it at the ticket counter. Oversized carry-on bags (if obvious), will get examined, and now you are at the eyeball of the gate agent. This is what we did, and I suggest it to anyone traveling.

First, know the size and weight limitations of both carry-on and checked bags for your airline. Prepack your stuff in advance and measure (soft bags can bulge) and weigh (use an accurate large enough scale for your bag) your now packed baggage. I recommend the following go into your carry-on (we use high quality backpacks):

1. Regulators
2. Dive Computer
3. Dive Lights
4. Mask (if room)
5. Any high dollar small items that would otherwise be easy for someone to conceal and steal

Pack any soft clothes in and around these items, such as: underwear (go commando, you're on vacation!), tee shirts, swim suits, flip flops. This gives you basic essentials for diving and change of clothes should your main checked bag get lost or delayed.

In the checked bag, place your fins, exposure protection, bcd, snorkel (giggle), and rent this if it doesn't show up on day one. Rental regulators and masks are usually low quality. You want your mask that you know doesn't leak with you. Who cares about the snorkel? You can buy one if needed. For recreational purposes, rental fins are fine until yours show up. I know the bcd is the hot topic, but you have to make a choice. Pay extra for the oversize overweight bag, or put up with a rental for a few days if your bag is diverted to Tibet. For most tropical destinations, you won't miss that 3mm if you have to do without it for a few days. I will not rent a thouroughly 'marked' wetsuit (read into that).

Karen and I were able to pack a soft athletic rolling duffel that just met the size requirements for Delta's checked baggage. We shared it. Read: two of us shared a single checked gear bag. Our fins, wings/backplates, wetsuits, boots, lotions, gels, etc... all went in this big bag. Then we each packed a seperate 22" roller with our normal clothes that went on the airplane with us. Our backpacks were considered our personal item, and were carried on as well. This means we could have still checked another bag (actually 3 more; total of 2 allowed per person for international). I find that people take way too much stuff with them on dive vacations. Keep the number of checked bags to one maximum sized one, like we did, and the possibility of loosing it are small.

BTW, we lived in t-shirts and swim gear, but were able to pack 2 nice outfits each for dinner out. If we can do it, you can too! Put the bcd's in checked luggage. They'll be fine. Gomer will get questioned by someone if he rips it out of the bag and wears it through the employee area to get to the employee bus.

 

[Louma]

I check the BC, and I use my mesh dive bag as a carry on for mask, fins, regulator. Let them try to measure a flexable bag Make sure you don't forget to do something with your dive knife. They don't like seeing them on the X-ray.

 

[ScubaSarus]

I know when I travel the airline sometimes has a plexiglass window with a cutout in it. If your bag can pass thru the cutout, then its acceptable, For this reason I like using soft flexible baggage to squeeze it thru.

Now theft is an issue and my assumption is it would be odd for an airline employee to be seen carrying around a BC and would be very suspicious and hard to conceal. I would not be too concerned with putting the BC in the suit case but as always, it would be a bit on my mind but not overly so.

 

[spectrum]

Checked bags for your BCs. Carry on your Computer & regs.
I have seen people be required to put their bags into the little "carry on sizer" thing at the gate. IF it doesn't fit, the bag is checked. I have seen this happen with most airlines, too. Don't try to take on a carryon that is too big..... it isn't fair to the other travelers who are abiding by the rules!

Agreed


With every passing day the airlines are tightening the noose in search of revenue. What did work is not indicative of tomorrow.

BTW we always pack the mask in the carry on. It is the ONE thing that is personal fit specific. Especially tue for me since mine has my Rx.

Pete

 

[NudeDiver]

You think you have it bad.....I've traveled in Russia extensively and they are not only quite strict about issues involving bags, but the weight limits are much lower too. Relative to being in the U.S., you can carry almost nothing on the plane. So - when traveling there, we have developed this strategy - which works just as well in the U.S.:

a). Weigh/measure carry on bags at home and get the facts about what you have.

b). Add a couple of pounds because many scales in Russia are "off" by just a pound or two.

c). Now, move enough stuff into an "extra" bag to make your carry-ons within specs.

d). Bring someone who is not traveling to the airport with you.

e). When you check in, have your extra person and extra bag no where near you.

f). When you check in, claim only your "in spec" carry ons.

g). Get your boarding passes.

h). Hook up with your friend and either re-shuffle your bags, so you still have only the correct #of bags, although they may be heavier and/or larger than what you showed when you checked in - OR - if you're feeling special, just use the bag your friend was carrying as an extra bag. Voila! You have just stuck it to the airlines.

Some caveats:
a). In Russia, and I assume other places might too, they put an "approved cabin bag" sticker on the carry-ons you show and that are weighed at check-in. It typically is looped through the handles of the bag, much like a checked-bag sticker. So, this may restrict your ability to move contents to a bigger bag. So, what you can do is use a bag bigger than necessary to hold the "light" contents - so you have room to move more contents into it later. Depending on your bag choice, you can use an "unexpanded" bag that fits size dimensions, and then expand it to a larger size when needed. Also, sometimes, if you're really careful, you can get that sticker off and move it to another bag.

b). If you don't have an extra friend with you at the airport - you can do the same thing I describe above, except have your travel companion sit off to the side somewhere with the extra bag, and you check in both people, using both IDs. Shuffle the bags later. I've never had this fail.

c). If you can't do that - because of how the check-in counters are typically designed, you can often hide your extra bag out of sight - or, just leave it in sight on the ground and do not indicate you are carrying that on. They don't know it is your bag - it could be the bag of the guy behind you or something. Then, when you leave the counter, just pick it up and walk away - and do your bag shuffling maneuver out of sight of the ticket counter.

d). In the U.S., I have seen "size wise" measuring devices at the gate, but I have never, ever seen a scale. So, you're safer going over weight than over size. In Russia, I've never seen either at the gate. They assume you've been tagged when you check in.

On a related note - when I print my boarding passes from on-line check in, I always print two copies. That way, if when i check in my bags, I get the dreaded "SSSS" stamp on my boarding pass (which subjects you to extra security when you show it in the security line), I just use the OTHER boarding pass I printed - allowing me to skip the extra BS. This has worked a few times for me too.

Hope some of this helps you!
nd

 

[don Francisco]

In my experience, they don't tend to check that carefully, but it's important that the bag is thin enough to slide easily (or with a shove) into the overhead bins.

You'll probably get past security and the gate but if the bag doesn't fit, they'll take if form you and stow it. That isn't a total loss since most airlines give these bags back to you at the arrival gate, rather than mixing it with the regular luggage.

It might also depend on the airline. Some have become very sticky over inches or ounces, probably looking to enhance revenue through petty fees. Others are far more accomodating.

On a recent NYC-Cancun flight on Jet Blue, my checked bag weighed 51-1/2 #s, I smiled at the ticket agent and asked if she was going to charge me, (in which I would have transfered something to carry-on) and she smiled right back and told me to stop leaning on the scale (I wasn't, but thanked her anyway).

I suggest you do as you usually do, but have a plan B, such as another empty bag to split the load once you're past all the checkpoints or on the plane.

 

[bottomfeeder22]

You think you have it bad.....I've traveled in Russia extensively and they are not only quite strict about issues involving bags, but the weight limits are much lower too. Relative to being in the U.S., you can carry almost nothing on the plane. So - when traveling there, we have developed this strategy - which works just as well in the U.S.:

a). Weigh/measure carry on bags at home and get the facts about what you have.

b). Add a couple of pounds because many scales in Russia are "off" by just a pound or two.

c). Now, move enough stuff into an "extra" bag to make your carry-ons within specs.

d). Bring someone who is not traveling to the airport with you.

e). When you check in, have your extra person and extra bag no where near you.

f). When you check in, claim only your "in spec" carry ons.

g). Get your boarding passes.

h). Hook up with your friend and either re-shuffle your bags, so you still have only the correct #of bags, although they may be heavier and/or larger than what you showed when you checked in - OR - if you're feeling special, just use the bag your friend was carrying as an extra bag. Voila! You have just stuck it to the airlines.

Some caveats:
a). In Russia, and I assume other places might too, they put an "approved cabin bag" sticker on the carry-ons you show and that are weighed at check-in. It typically is looped through the handles of the bag, much like a checked-bag sticker. So, this may restrict your ability to move contents to a bigger bag. So, what you can do is use a bag bigger than necessary to hold the "light" contents - so you have room to move more contents into it later. Depending on your bag choice, you can use an "unexpanded" bag that fits size dimensions, and then expand it to a larger size when needed. Also, sometimes, if you're really careful, you can get that sticker off and move it to another bag.

b). If you don't have an extra friend with you at the airport - you can do the same thing I describe above, except have your travel companion sit off to the side somewhere with the extra bag, and you check in both people, using both IDs. Shuffle the bags later. I've never had this fail.

c). If you can't do that - because of how the check-in counters are typically designed, you can often hide your extra bag out of sight - or, just leave it in sight on the ground and do not indicate you are carrying that on. They don't know it is your bag - it could be the bag of the guy behind you or something. Then, when you leave the counter, just pick it up and walk away - and do your bag shuffling maneuver out of sight of the ticket counter.

d). In the U.S., I have seen "size wise" measuring devices at the gate, but I have never, ever seen a scale. So, you're safer going over weight than over size. In Russia, I've never seen either at the gate. They assume you've been tagged when you check in.

On a related note - when I print my boarding passes from on-line check in, I always print two copies. That way, if when i check in my bags, I get the dreaded "SSSS" stamp on my boarding pass (which subjects you to extra security when you show it in the security line), I just use the OTHER boarding pass I printed - allowing me to skip the extra BS. This has worked a few times for me too.

Hope some of this helps you!
nd

Thanks for the ideas - I start traveling to and from Russia 6x a year in a couple of weeks.

 

[bottomfeeder22]

This may not be new news to many people, but I haven't flown on my own dime since January. gotta love this. I also heard (don't hold me to this) that carry ons are now $10.

Airline will hike luggage cost in June - Peoria, IL - pjstar.com

 

[la_diver]

Our backpacks were considered our personal item, and were carried on as well. This means we could have still checked another bag (actually 3 more; total of 2 allowed per person for international). I find that people take way too much stuff with them on dive vacations. Keep the number of checked bags to one maximum sized one, like we did, and the possibility of loosing it are small.

Mempilot good info but was wondering about your backpacks as to the size. I know your not talking about an army size pack. To bring on a carry on plus a backpack would solve several issues. My airline experiences are very limited. Thanks for the help.

 

[dazle]

on a recent flight out of manchester, uk, I had my bag carry on bag thoroughly checked

good idea on wearing the bcd on the plane! might do that if they try to charge me excess! would have to have a few pints 1st though to look like a dick

it might be an idea to remember to remove your knife off your bcd if taking it on with you!