Carry On Baggage - Locker Space Rules

[fiscal]

Hi All,

Just had a run in with a very aggressive FA a PER-MEL flight.

It seems to be a continuing problem that if you are in the QC lounge, you get your boarding call, go to the aircraft, only to find that the over head locker is full and no space nearby.

In my case there was still room to place my bag (a laptop bag with extra compartments - but well withing domestic limits - and minus the notebook in this instance) on top of the bag taking my rows allocation. No squashing was needed.

Shortly after takeoff the FA presents my bag to me telling me to place it under the seat in front of me, and I ask why? Apparently, it nearly fell on top of a female passenger behind us. I explained that I am entitled to locker space and it fitted OK.

She retorted that it was full and I was to place it under my seat or she would place it at the back of the aircraft (well out of my protective eyesight) in a very aggressive - don't mess with me - attitude.

Trying to ask her to reorganize the locker fell on even deafer ears. So the end result was either an AFP officer waiting at the other end for a bad passenger, or an uncomfortable trip to Melbourne, as 767's are not renowned for lots of under seat space for a computer bag and feet as well.

Anyway we waited in our seats (J&K) to see who used our row's allocation of space. It was the woman who allegedly nearly got clogged by my bag. And yes you guessed it, two bags and none of them under her seat. She purposely slid the offending article along the bottom of the locker floor in an attempt to conceal her ownership. Whether she felt guilty over the issue, who knows, but eye contact was something she avoided at all costs.

So with a curt Good bye to the FA, I limped off the plane at Melbourne.

What is annoying, is that as part of the pre flight announcements (a constantly repeated message) "If you have 2 pieces of hand luggage please place the larger item in the overhead locker and the smaller item under the seat in front of you" was not heeded by the passenger behind us, and ignored by the FA having a bad hair day dealing with a passenger who just wanted a bit of leg room and did not want to become a cripple by the time he reached Melbourne.

I personally think the recorded message was fair - What do you think?

Tony

 

[turtlemichael]

Short of stricter controls on cabin baggage or someone in charge of organising locker space for the 150 passengers, not a lot can be done. Life is full of petty annoyances. You have experienced one. Time to move on.

 

[vet]

if she's right behind you, what happens if you just move your seat as the food tray is being passed to her.

 

[fiscal]

Short of stricter controls on cabin baggage or someone in charge of organising locker space for the 150 passengers, not a lot can be done. Life is full of petty annoyances. You have experienced one. Time to move on.

Absolutely, I have moved on - the FA attitude was a very isolated incident. The annoyance factor was greater for me, as I have a dodgy knee that seizes up if I do not stretch or move my leg every few minutes, so it was a painful experience to be unable to move my feet.

if she's right behind you, what happens if you just move your seat as the food tray is being passed to her.

Nice one, except I did not know it was her until the flight had landed.

 

[Lucky_man]

As some one who takes the effort to comply with the rules and only take a single compliant bag - yes it really peeves me to have locker space issues caused in part by others who do not follow the rules and airlines who don't enforce.

Then when people use there oversize wheely packs as battering rams to amke space I get doubley annoyed - my carry on has the valuables and fragiles in it.

But I was embarrassed by the treatment at Pudong International. Security were weighing carry on's - good. But when I went to put mine on the machine I was waived through - rules do not apply to people with round eyes.

Despite all the annoyance my reality has been good. Whenever my bag has not fitted near my seat I have handed it to the FA who has put it away and forward of me (I request this). I am sure one day my luck will run out but there is just not the space to get my two tree trunk like legs and a bag under the seat.

I read a discussion on Flyertalk about the god given right of OWE's to get on first and hog as much locker space as they wanted - a status based birth right. If QFF want to control the number of OWE's and Platinums they should devise an on line arrogance test to kull the numbers.

 

[medhead]

Personally, in the situation you describe, if I can see a better way to arrange the overhead locker to make my stuff fit, I just do it. My pet annoyance is people who just shove their stuff in and don't even consider anyone else using the overhead locker.

e.g. often there are laptop bags laying flat in the locker, so I stand that up and that makes heaps of room and also keeps the laptop bag protected.

 

[serfty]

Note that domestically on all QF jets, all PAX are permitted 2 x 7Kg bags ...

 

[cjg]

In defence of WPs and OWEs - I don't try to take up that much room in the overhead lockers, knowing that others are also going to have to use them.

And I don't normally board first and many times I've found the lockers to be quite full - one could argue with the luggage of non-WPs and OWEs???

 

[MelUser]

Isn't the moral of this story to do as is done in many parts of the world - to be at the gate ahead of boarding and (not quite push on) but get on early.

 

[NYCguy]

Aggressive employees have no place in front-line customer-service roles.

Write a calm, clinical letter to HQ. Did you make a note of the offender's name?

 

[Lucky_man]

It is nice to belive that if every one followed the rules there would be enough space in the overheads - I have not done the sums but I am not sure if it is true. I think it relies on some light travellers - and I often board with just a book on Domestic flights. I want every one here to understand how virtuous I really am

Certainly the oversized stuff greatly contibutes to the problem. I have not travelled on a 'no free checked luggage' flight but the idea scares me. Hopefully they will enforce the carry on baggage to maximise their checked luggage profits.

Any one know how the new A380's go for space?

 

[Danger]

. . . My pet annoyance is people who just shove their stuff in and don't even consider anyone else using the overhead locker.

I agree. The complete ignorance of some people never fails to amaze me. Like those who put a carry-on bag or laptop bag on top of a neatly laid jacket or, worse still, a whole garment bag.

 

[oz_mark]

I agree. The complete ignorance of some people never fails to amaze me. Like those who put a carry-on bag or laptop bag on top of a neatly laid jacket or, worse still, a whole garment bag.

I have often seen the neatly laid of jacket on the bottom of a luggage compartment. If you ask me, that is just asking for trouble.

 

[medhead]

I have often seen the neatly laid of jacket on the bottom of a luggage compartment. If you ask me, that is just asking for trouble.

True, but people could also use their brain and insert their bag under the jacket.

 

[Alanslegal]

Imagine if the airlines started charging money to carry bags on board? Say $20 per carry on and people may stop bringing non essential things on board.

Assuming the amount of carry on reduced by 50%, there could be alot of benefits to various aspects of travel. Such aspects could included through security as they deal with less bags, boarding also could be faster with bagless passengers go straight to their seat and plonk down, rather than standing in aisle trying to make room in the already full overhead lockers.

Of course, my suggestion is purely just for fun

 

[fiscal]

Aggressive employees have no place in front-line customer-service roles.

Write a calm, clinical letter to HQ. Did you make a note of the offender's name?

No, her name was hidden behind her black pinny until just before landing (if that's what they are called these days<g>), and she was in a dark area when I exited the plane.

 

[Therma]

Personally, I have gone from being ultra polite and compliant passenger to someone who is not afraid to snap at a dumbass who intrudes on my personal space. As far as I am concerned, I make an effor to make sure my bag is airline approved size and weight, and all I want in return is to have my computer and passport within my reach. I resent having to store the bag behind me and then having to fight the deplaning hordes to get it. The most blatant intrusion was on a flight from India when I was removing my headphones from my bag before putting it up ( I was D seat) and this arrogant ******** from across the isle (C seat) reached over me and put his suitcase in a locker clearly marked DEF. We were some of the first to get on so there was plenty of space, including EMPTY bin over his seat.
I gave him my "look of death" and said "Are you sitting in this seat? Then kindly put the bag over yours". He innocently asked, " Do you mind?". Red flag to a bull who just got through Delhi security and immigration. "Would you like to sit on my lap too?" He meekly removed the offending item

I also got mildly upset on a flight to Taipei when someone decided to put a cake in my overhead bin and got upset when I tried to move it to fit my bag - I am sorry but a cake in a 40 cm cardboard box does not deserve full overhead bin. A woman two rows back (!) complained that I may crash the box. I said "Well, put it above your own seat or hold on to the bloody thing for the next 4 hours, I am certainly not holding on to my luggage for that long". She chose to hold on to it!!!!

Am I becoming one of those easily irritable grumpy frequent travellers with short fuse and noise reduction headphones who I have promised to myself never to emulate? Do I expect too much from the people who have never been on the plane? Is it my place to educate them? Or does flying 300K a year turn you into an intolerant w****r?

 

[munitalP]

I agree. The complete ignorance of some people never fails to amaze me. Like those who put a carry-on bag or laptop bag on top of a neatly laid jacket or, worse still, a whole garment bag.

I carry a suit bag most times now unless having to take site visit clothing (safety clothing) with me.

I check it in.

Lets face it, if your garment bag (I am assuming a suit bag) gets squashed - its your own fault. It should be checked luggage - if it wont fit in the gauge it shouldn't be in the cabin, it should be checked. The allowance for oversized luggage and the blatent disregard for fellow PAX by people carting "cabin bags" and "suit bags" that way exceed dimension just pi$%*s me off... :evil:

Then have the audacity to complain because I wont let people move my laptop wheely bag to let them store their bag..... grrrrrrrrr :evil::evil::evil::!: or because it gets squashed.

Zero tollerance for oversized luggage I say!

Mr!

:evil:

 

[simongr]

Zero tollerance for oversized luggage I say!

Mr!

:evil:

The problem is that it's not just oversize - people can carry on the allowed amount and still be rude (i.e. bags on top of jackets etc.).

Mind you I think putting a jacket down flat in the overhead is pretty rude as well - it takes up the whole space unless you are expecting someone to neatly take care of your jacket...

I read a discussion on Flyertalk about the god given right of OWE's to get on first and hog as much locker space as they wanted - a status based birth right. If QFF want to control the number of OWE's and Platinums they should devise an on line arrogance test to kull the numbers.

One of the benefits of status within the program is "priority boarding" - why should they not board first and use their allotted space. It is no different to their "god given right" to access the QP...

On my recent status run (8 flights in two days all in whY and a lot of Dash-8) my laptop bag went under the seat in front of me with no problems whatsoever...

 

[pblackm]

I can get very worked up over the baggage thing, for example, when people in the centre seats with the large lockers use the (smaller) side bins above my seat, as well as the people down the back who use the lockers at the front. I try to avoid the problems by using my right to board early, so that I can put my clunky Travelpro computer rollybag above my seat. This means leaving the Qantas Club before the boarding call, and sitting through the process of an entire plane boarding - which is less painful to me. It is endlessly amusing to watch the last people to board who always seem to be SOO surprised that the overhead lockers are full - Duh!