heartybob

If I had bought a HBO ticket because I needed to get away quickly on arrival then I'd be pretty upset if I was forced to gate check my size and weight compliant hand baggage. ... are those Waterside MBA apprentices smoking?

Paralytic

So you're confirming most American's don't own a passport.

IAN-UK

always good to see someone with a firm grasp of statistics 😁

CloudGazer

Slightly off topic but how would you know that there were 40+ free seats free?

moral_low_ground

I went to Amsterdam this week and the baggage situation was truly awful. Started boarding on time but left 30 (yes 30) minutes late due to the immense time it took to board the passengers and try and sort out all the bl**dy hand luggage. Crew were clueles and spent as much time looking in the lockers/bins trying to figure out how to re-arrange. One guy had a suit carrier which took up loads of room but is long and flat so not efficient. A pax wanted to put his bag in the same space and the crew woman said "how would you like it if you put a bag on top of a suit carrier", he then explained he was going to put his bag in and put the suit carrier on top. Crew member then disappeared down the back. Another issue is that CE baggage was full but a there were still two large bags to go in for late boarders. This must have taken another 10 mins to sort out as they tried to figure out space down the back, other bags to be moved around. If CE baggage is full when they get on board then it should go in the hold, not aware of a rule that says CE bags have to go on board and cannot go in the hold just because they are CE.

So, we left 30 mins late, 20 mins of taxiing in massive queue and then land on runway 18 so 15 min taxi the other end. On time boarding start ends up with over a 1 hour delay to arrival.

kochleffel

I had the opposite experience recently on American Airlines at my local airport. I arrived at the counter just as boarding was starting. I wanted to check a bag that is within carry-on limits, but the agent said that it was too late for it to be loaded and told me to carry it aboard.

Often1

Please read what I wrote:

"[OP] had a factual dispute with the BA agent which the sizer is there to resolve. The bag either fits the sizer or it does not."

Apparently the GA thought otherwise. That is the essence of a factual dispute.

If you have a factual dispute, request a manager. There is not much more to be done.

Kumulani

Airline employees should not be handling people's phones in the first place, I've seen this in the UK and some other countries too. In the US, airport employees are not allowed to touch phones, the customer scans the mobile boarding pass themselves.

IAN-UK

I'm not sure why the employee shouldn't handle passengers' phones if the passengers are happy about it.

It's surprising how many passengers don't have the knack of correctly presenting the phone to the reader. The agent invariably has the knack. Ergo...

nallison

Or respect the sizer that is specifically put there to resolve these complaints, and not with any bias in favour of either the passenger or the gate agent. Especially if they have a BA approved bag. Or you are saying the Op is lying?

Flyingturkey

The size of the bag is irrelavant, the wording used was "We can only guarantee your yellow tagged bag will be allowed on". Meeting the sizing requirement was not the issue it was a proactive measure to show the bag fit. I was also carrying gifts for a wedding and did not want them in the hold.

Hold luggage and cabin bags are different kettles of fish and I pack accordingly.