OT - Airport Queues for Bag Drop Off

[DerbyBoy]

I returned yesterday from Furteventura. The queue to merely drop off luggage for the Ryanair Flight was really annoying. It took me 90 minutes to get the the front of the queue. We then had to run to the gate and had no time for a drink in the Departures area. The issue seemed to be that some passengers had baggage or documentation problems to argue about. My suggestion is simple - for all airlines / handling agents / airports. If the transaction cannot be completed within (say) one minute then the passenger is sent to the back of the queue. Baggage Drop Off should only take seconds. It is only a case of dropping bag onto conveyor - showing document and passport. 1minute is ample time. Anyone with an expected complication should first go to the appropriate airline enquiry desk. What do you think? It really is frustrating standing in the queue whilst people re-pack their luggage as they didn't comply with their contract conditions.

[Andy Burns]

As it was Ryanair, I'm surprised they don't already charge you £5/minute for luggage consultation.

[John]

You're obviously a seasoned flyer but some people aren't. If, like me, you've never flown anywhere in your life, it's not surprising that some people make mistakes in a first-time, never before been known, situation. I thought that you had to be at the airport at least two hours before departure? Did you not get there early enough? Your attitude smacks of being an arrogant scrote who has not time for others; my way or the highway sort.

[Paul - xxx]

What's really annoying is the wife and I take some pains to comply with regs, (to the extent of taking my penknife off my keyring!) then some pillock turns up, as you say, with the argument "but I thought ... " or "When I fly XYZ Airline it's OK...) when clearly they hadn't either thought or even read any directions/instructions!

So yes, if there's an issue they shouldn't necessarily be moved to the back, but should maybe have a separate bag check and moved over away from those who have proper documentation and bag sizes and can go through in the 'usual' time.

[fred]

In article , harry writes

I'm not surprised, you sound like a right dick, "my luggage locker" , do you expect the space on the road near your house to be left for 'your' parking too?

[Mike Tomlinson]

En el artículo , DerbyBoy escribió:

You cheaped out and went with Ryanair*. Stop whinging and deal with it.

• actually, I've flown with them a few times. By the time you factor in all the additional hidden charges, it's usually not far off the cost of a flight with a scheduled airline where you get an allocated seat, shorter queues, a more generous baggage allocation, decent food and don't get treated like shit.

[Nightjar]

I've not often come across problems at the drop-off point, but my recollection is that BA send anyone who can't simply drop and go to the normal check-in desk. Of course, for really easy travelling, get everything you need into a regulation size carry-on bag.

Colin Bignell

[Nightjar]

I would expect anyone flying for the first time to do a bit of research beforehand. It is not as if the information is not readily available. Mind you, a lot of the people taking a Ryanair flight from Furventura to the UK would probably be on at least their second flight.

He was returning to the UK. For many people, that means being at the mercy of a tour operator as to when they get to the airport.

Colin Bignell

[DerbyBoy]

You're obviously a seasoned flyer but some people aren't. If, like me, you've never flown anywhere in your life, it's not surprising that some people make mistakes in a first-time, never before been known, situation. I thought that you had to be at the airport at least two hours before departure? Did you not get there early enough? Your attitude smacks of being an arrogant scrote who has not time for others; my way or the highway sort.

Absolutely not the case - I check the weight of my luggage using my bathroom scales. I measure the size of my hand luggage to ensure it meets the requirements of the contract. I ensure my passport is valid. Hardly rocket science. As for being there 2 hours before - this is not always the case. Note that I said I was in the queue for 90 minutes.

My boarding pass with Ryanair states that the Bag Drop desk closes 40 minutes before the flight departure time and that passengers should be at the Departure Gate 30 minutes before the flight time.

I am not arrogant - I merely aim to comply and get annoyed when others assume that they should get way with things such as overweight and oversized luggage.

[Tim Streater]

Or, therefore, quite possibly other members of the tour party who were unable to get their arses into gear.

[Robin]

If only there were still "a regulation size carry-on bag"! I'm not a frequent flyer but while waiting in Hong Kong last year I counted 4 different sizes specified by different airlines; and 3 different weight limits too.

[Nightjar]

I usually only fly with BA, so that is not really a problem for me.

Colin Bignell

[DerbyBoy]

I would expect anyone flying for the first time to do a bit of research beforehand. It is not as if the information is not readily available. Mind you, a lot of the people taking a Ryanair flight from Furventura to the UK would probably be on at least their second flight.

He was returning to the UK. For many people, that means being at the mercy of a tour operator as to when they get to the airport.

Colin Bignell

I think that most Ryanair passengers are NOT with a tour operator. I have no real gripe about Ryanair and I use them quite a lot for business trip as they provide a service from my local airport to the European destination that I need to go to.

My real point is that a minute per passenger group should be adequate. It is the passengers that cause it to become a problem by either being ignorant or selfish (stuff the rules - I want to take more luggage). Due to the time I needed to get my car back to the rental company I was at the airport 2 hours before the flight and hoped to spend most of that time on the terrace enjoying a drink in the sun - not in a queue watching people cause delays for other people. Non-compliant people should be sent to the back of the queue and not be allowed to shuffle their overweight baggage at the desk.

Ryanair should be complimented in that they send you an e-mail reminding you of the essential facts - they can also send you a text message.

[Lobster]

We (family of five) almost always fly with the bucket-shop flights; to be honest we just treat it as a game to avoid paying all the surcharges they dream up. Normally it's perfectly possible to avoid the vast majority of the charges if you do your research properly and read all the small print. We have a little set of electronic scales (£3 off ebay) which travels with us; we always check the baggage size and allocation rigourously. With Easyjet (no numbered seats) we refuse to pay for "priority boarding" but by getting near the front of the boarding queue we never have a problem getting seats together. I certainly share the OP's frustration with the muppets who insist on arguing with the check-in staff and repacking their bags at the counter.

Last trip, for once we cocked up and miscounted the baggage allowance and got stung with a £50 surcharge at the counter - ouch: a lot more than the airline ticket and probably more than the bag and contents were even worth. No point arguing; we just paid up.

We regard the trip as a means to an end to get somewhere nice; two or three hours after leaving home we're at our destination, many hundreds of pounds better off than if we'd travelled by a more up-market airline. Except that the reality is that without the availability of such cheap tickets, we probably wouldn't have travelled at all.

David

[Mike Tomlinson]

En el artículo , Lobster escribió:

A good way to approach it :o)

indeed.

I use my bathroom scales before going out and take my chances coming back. Usually I leave some clothes and books behind.

I have a story though: a friend came to stay with me over Christmas. When it was time for him to go home, we weighed his case on my bathroom scales at 14.7kg. At check-in the scales claimed 16.8kg and we settled in for an argument (futile, I know). As it happened, the belt next to the one we were at was vacant and I put his bag on it: 14.5kg. But the dweeb behind the counter wouldn't back down. Either we paid up or he didn't fly.

I won't go so far as to accuse Ryanair of putting a thumb on the scales but that was too much of a coincidence for my liking.

Never had a problem with Easy, I quite like them. I think their market positioning is more or less "at least we're not Ryanair".

Last time I flew Ryan (last month), coming back I was 1kg over the limit and they stung me with a 20 euro surcharge. Like you, I just shrugged and paid up. They make the Ts & Cs perfectly clear. If you don't like it, don't fly with them.

I think, being a family, you can save more. Usually travelling single, I find that if I compare the total cost of a Ryan booking to another airline I can come pretty close, especially if I use sites like skyscanner.net.

I wish this so-called global warming would start doing its thing in the UK, then we wouldn't have to travel at all :o)

[Ron Lowe]

On the contrary: I'd have to travel *more*, to find ski-able conditions :-)

OTOH, some predictions for 'climate change' include more severe winters, so throw another tyre on the fire for me.

[Ron Lowe]

My problem with BA is this:

Every easter, we fly to Denver with BA. It's the only direct flight in to Denver, the other options all stop in Chicago.

ABZ -> LHR -> DEN.

Now the baggage allowance on the transatlantic is 2 hold bags per person. But on the connecting domestic flight, it's only 1 bag.

With a family of 4 with ski kit, that's quite restrictive!

[Robin]

I may well be wrong but I think I read that from February this year BA increased the baggage allowance for "World Traveller" to 2 bags even in Europe. And I've found something on their site about it. But I am not

*sure* how it works.

[fred]

In article , Arfa Daily writes

Oh dear, the numbers you refer to are the seat idents, not indicators for personally reserved luggage space. Next time ask the cabin crew where you can find your individually reserved hand luggage space and watch for their polite amusement.

If the airline permit it on-board as hand luggage then they do not view it as excessive. If they provide insufficient space for all passengers to carry compliant hand luggage then your complaint is with the airline They wont however as they know that some fliers will carry less than others so, in most instances, the space they provide is sufficient. It is all part of their cost balancing exercise.

[fred]

In article , harry writes

As pointed out to Arfa, next time you fly, ask the cabin crew where your personally reserved space can be found and see if the airline agrees with your position.

You can usually find space in nearby lockers and I've always found cabin crew to be helpful in finding space where I have not. I've not had any difficulty in finding space for my hand luggage on even the busiest flights but I don't expect to be able to board last and still find a space in the bin above my head.