[PhilipHart]

A short while ago, I received this email from BA …

Dear Customer,

Flight BAxxxx on 14-Feb/LHR – Thank you for choosing to fly with British Airways today. Your flight is full and we would like to invite you to check-in your hand baggage free of charge at desks B15 and B16, prior to security. Thank you and we look forward to seeing you in Terminal 5.

Yours sincerely,
British Airways Customer Services

Answer – When you check it in, and have to wait for ages at baggage reclaim to retrieve it.

What genius at Waterworld came up with this?

[Flightlevel]

BA operates old A320s with smaller overhead bins than newer aircraft,some are ordered however may go to other IAG airlines.
With full pax and HBO fares overhead bins don’t have the capacity.
The advantage you do have with BA is virtually unlimited weight (maybe 23kgs?) ‘though you lift it yourself, so use a lockable hand baggage and keep documents and money in your laptop case or handbag.
You may thus avoid check in bags, atleast untill you get to the gate!

[canucklad]

quick question Phillip, were you flying on an HBO fare?

If so, I’d say that BA were being a bit pro-active, if not I’d say that they clearly have lost the plot!

[PhilipHart]

Hi @canucklad, I was actually travelling in domestic business class.

[canucklad]

Well Phillip, that makes the e-mail even more barking mad !!

And I actually think that on domestic routes, they’ve got this HBO model totally the wrong way round.
Having experienced and witnessed with regularity the boarding chaos at BA’s EDI domestic gate I’d opine that the correct way to go is ……

Pay less to wait longer, be separated from your cabin bag and enjoy your long stand at T5

[FDOS_UK]

[quote quote=851517]Well Phillip, that makes the e-mail even more barking mad !!
And I actually think that on domestic routes, they’ve got this HBO model totally the wrong way round. Having experienced and witnessed with regularity the boarding chaos at BA’s EDI domestic gate I’d opine that the correct way to go is ……
Pay less to wait longer, be separated from your cabin bag and enjoy your long stand at T5
[/quote]

Ah, but then you cannot pretend to be a LCC by shaving a tenner off your headline prices 🙂

[Cedric_Statherby]

I have said before, but I am happy to observe again, that if airlines actually stopped to think what their pricing policy does, they would realise that

> if you charge for hold luggage and leave hand luggage free, people will take more and more hand luggage, clog up the bins, slow down boarding, annoy other passengers and overload themselves by having to cart excessive “hand baggage” around the airports

> if you charged for cabin baggage and allow hold baggage to be free, people will use the holds more and free up the bins, speed up boarding, do a favour to their fellow passengers and relieve themselves of carting half their worldly goods with them into the cabin.

The first airline to be brave enough to change their policy and actually charge more for people who want to use the cabin bins for more than a handbag or coat, and explain why, would win my business almost over any other criteria!

[Author]

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