Excess luggage allowance withdrawn

[Kirstie]

When I weighed our hard-shell suitcase and realised it weighed a quarter of one person's luggage allowance for Singapore Airlines, we took two soft-sided cases that didn't even register on the scales.

The kit's perfectly safe provided you pack sensibly. Fins on the bottom (mask tucked inside), then wetsuit, then regs, then backplate and wing over the top. This way, the regs are protected by the wetsuit and the backplate. Clothes on top of that.

[Allan Carr]

We had a Samsonite case broken on our travels. Unfortunately, we didn't spot it until we opened it at the hotel and saw that it was cracked right across the bottom so we couldn't report it to the airline and couldn't claim on our travel insurance (we tried). It was well packed so it must have had a hell of a bang to break it. No matter how strong a case you use, there is always a risk.

At Cairo airport, because my wife was in a wheelchair, we came in via the luggage unloading area. The baggage handlers were literally throwing cases about 6 feet down onto hard ground for someone else to pick them up and put them on the conveyor. The problem was, some cases were landing on top of another so soft cases need to be packed to allow the contents to survive 20KG being thrown from a height on top of them.

[samui13]

i have one of those flimsy weightless hand held bags that i fit my housing and macro port & dome port in. that weighs in at 7kilos. i also wear a photographers vest which contains 3 lenses, hard drives, batteries, a charger or two, filters, and a video camera. i then have 2 dslr's over my shoulders. i also wear combat trousers which i have the pockets stuffed with whatever else i can fit in. my wife has a similar holdall with video housing, strobes and ultralight arms and brackets and a tiny laptop.

i usually get pulled over when going through the security checks, but i dont mind that if i can get all my gear on without extra charges.

once i am through the security checks i just re pack our bags and hope we dont get re weighed at the boarding gate.

what we have decided to do next week is to check in online 24 hours prior to departure so we will have our seats already. my wife will go and queue up whilst i am outside sucking on my last benson and hedges. once she has checked in, we will then re sort our hand luggage so that when i go to the check in desk mine is also under the limit.

i am prepared to wear whatever it takes from my luggage to get on the plane without paying the money grabbing to$$ers anything.

i know i will look like a complete idiot, but whats new.

[Ant P]

Originally Posted by liberatortoo

I've just booked to go on holiday using Emirates and found out too late that they no longer allow an extra 10kg for divers (last year they did). I was told this has only been introduced this week and that other airlines are doing the same.

That is shocking. I flew with them in February to the Maldives and it was fine. I had a quick squizz at their online FAQ and it confirms it there as well. I see that they haven't done the same for golf clubs though. Back to square one it seems

Cheers, ant

[samui13]

we are flying with emirates to the maldives in january and were a little concerned to read the earlier posting. we contacted emirates yesterday and they said that they would honour the 10 kilos for dive gear because we had booked prior to them changing their policy.

seems all long haul flights are going this way.

[Midnight]

I do hope those poor golfers don't get treated this way, the poor darlings have such a hard time of it....... having to walk around looking like badly dressed pimps and having to cope with those cronically absurd club rules about the colour for you shoe laces and the sharpness of your collar points.

Rant mode on.

What am I talking about of-course they won't....... Untill the boardrooms of the world resound to the chatter of directors actually doing work rather than them in absentia, poncing around a green wearing a pringle sweater, nothing will change.

Rant mode off.
Midnight (hater of all things golf)

[David Wallace]

I flew to Florida this month with Us Airlines and was allowed 2 bags each of 23 kg plus hand baggage. From 1 st may this will be reduced to 1 bag of 23kg for both their transatlantic and domestic flights.
the staff said all US airlines were going down this route.
Future trips could start to get problematic unless you buy a golf bag and stuff it full of dive gear

[JasonP]

Originally Posted by David Wallace

I flew to Florida this month with Us Airlines and was allowed 2 bags each of 23 kg plus hand baggage. From 1 st may this will be reduced to 1 bag of 23kg for both their transatlantic and domestic flights.
the staff said all US airlines were going down this route.
Future trips could start to get problematic unless you buy a golf bag and stuff it full of dive gear

They're only charging $25 for a second bag of 23kgs.

Jason

[David Wallace]

Originally Posted by JasonP

They're only charging $25 for a second bag of 23kgs.

Jason

thats cool - they told us it was $5 per kilo each way!

[York_Tyke]

Originally Posted by samui13

i think we are going to start seeing a lot of passengers wearing bcd's on planes. thats what i will be doing next week, when i get on a singapore flight to sulawesi. i dont know what they will think of it, i have not read in any information that you cannot wear bcd's. airlines are all adopting the no allowance for sporting goods, so they can charge extreme prices. i wouldnt mind if it was only a few £ per kilo, but singapore are £48 per kilo, and thats each way.
what annoys me is that they do not charge sverely overweight ( obese ) passengers for being too heavy. i know some airlines were in discussions regarding a total weight per passenger, which would mean passengers weight + luggage, but the PC brigade caught wind of it and they stopped their discussions.
another thing that isnt taken into account is the weight of your cases/holdalls. they have to be strong enough to withstand the abuse that they are given by the baggage handlers in airports, so a good bag will weigh anything from 3.5 - 5 k empty.

carry on luggage is another joke. you can only take 5k on most planes but when you get to duty free you can buy bottles of spirits which must weigh a couple of kilos. i know that singapore allow 7k for hand luggage, and i have been told that they are starting to weigh it at check in and at the boardibng gate.

i have had many telephone conversations with singapore and they are adamant that i will be charged if i am 1 kilo over. for my trip next week to lembeh i could end up with a £800 excess luggage cost. bearing in mind my flight only cost me £700 and for the £700 i have my own body weight 12 stone, plus 20 kilos hold luggage and 7 kilos for hand luggage. for the £800 i can only take 8 kilos

Hi,

Can you let me know how you got along with Singapore Airlines, I'm doing same
flight at end of the month.

Cheers.