Airline Becomes First To Charge Fees For Overhead Locker Use

But any item taken on board which is too big to be stored in this way during a flight would cost its owner up to US$45 to carry with them

. The price is discounted by a third, to US$30, for anyone who checks in their carry-on baggage in advance, while members of Spirit Airlines Fare Club, who pay $9 for their membership, benefit from a further reduction, to $20. The new charges are due to come into effect from August 1 2010. Spirit already makes a charge for passengers checked-in baggage.

News of the introduction of the charges provoked wry comments from some of Spirits competitors, including one of its keenest rivals, which said on its blog that it would continue to offer its passengers one checked-in bag for free, and would not be charging for use of its overhead storage bins.

And in a further dig at Spirit, the airline concerned produced a spoof photograph of a shirt designed with extra airline bag-style pockets which it jokingly claimed would hold all the necessities for an entire trip, as well as all the money any of its passengers would save by not having to check in or carry on their bag.

Of course, there are easier ways of getting around unforeseen baggage charges. Using a service which separately checks in, transports and delivers excess baggage to a destination does away with any uncertainty over baggage allowances, whether for items carried in a planes hold or taken on board as hand luggage.

With many airlines offering differing baggage allowances it can also get very confusing over who allows what on board their planes, especially when booking tickets at short notice online or by telephone.

And when passengers are taking advantage of exceptionally low fares, it quite often leaves more in the budget to send items through a luggage forwarding service, which can then be collected separately on arrival.

So there is no need to leave it to chance when it comes to baggage allowances, and sending items through a safe and experienced excess baggage forwarder means users can relax knowing that they wont face any nasty surprises at the airport.

by: Ryan Gills

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