Now airlines charge us for hand luggage

AIRLINES are charging passengers to ensure they keep hand luggage with them in the cabin.

Jet2 has brought in a fee to ‘guarantee’ that cabin baggage does not get put in the hold.

Prices start at £2.59 per person per bag each way, meaning a couple going away for the weekend would add at least another £10 to their fare.

And, though Ryanair does not have a fee for hand baggage, only the first 90 passengers on the plane are guaranteed to keep their bags with them – and the airline charges extra to board first.

This effectively means those with ‘priority boarding’ are much more likely to be able to hang on to their bags.

As families jet off for their summer holidays this weekend, the fees are likely to infuriate passengers already frustrated by having to pay for add- ons such as choosing their seats.

Wizz Air, another low- cost airline, was this week forced to scrap a £9 fee for larger cabin bags following a backlash from ‘confused’ customers. Guy Anker, from finance website Moneysavingexpert. com, said: ‘Gone are the days when passengers pay the headline price for a flight. I think people will be quite rightly annoyed by this.

‘Especially because you are doing it yourself, you are carrying the bag on to the plane yourself. I can understand the size restrictions so they can all fit, but people will be angry at having to pay extra for the privilege.’

Passengers are increasingly being told at the boarding gate that carry- on bags – often containing medication or expensive items such as cameras – must be kept in the hold as the cabin is full.

Jet2’ s ‘guaranteed cabin baggage’ option is offered when booking online.

It states: ‘On busy flights, we may need to ask you to put your 10kg hand luggage in the hold if we’ve run out of space in the cabin.

‘If you want to be certain of keeping your hand baggage with you, simply add guaranteed cabin luggage now.’

It comes at a time when airlines are making more than ever from add- ons, such as baggage fees and charges for paying by credit card. A study by travel firm CarTrawler of ‘ancillary’ revenue, covering all income beyond the air fare, found the top ten carriers – including Ryanair and Easyjet – made £21.5billion in extras last year, up from £1.6billion in 2007.

Ryanair’s priority boarding starts at £5 per person. The airline said: ‘Ryanair customers enjoy one of the most generous cabin bag rules in Europe and may bring one free 10kg cabin bag and one free smaller bag on board.

‘Due to overhead locker cabin space limitations, only 90 normal cabin bags can be carried in the cabin and any remaining normal cabin bags can be carried free of charge in the aircraft hold.’ Jet2 said: ‘With Jet2.com customers can take an industry-leading 10kg of hand luggage on board with them, free of charge. On busier flights, it can occasionally be necessary for some hand luggage to be placed in the aircraft hold, however customers that wish to guarantee their baggage on board can pay a small fee to do so.’

Families face crowded airports and gridlocked roads this weekend in the biggest summer getaway ever.

Air-traffic controllers said yesterday was the busiest day in UK aviation history, with 8,800 flights. And a record 2.4million Britons are due to fly overseas this weekend after schools closed for summer.

The RAC warned 8.7million households would head off on the roads over the weekend.