Originally Posted by
AW Matti
One of my bags was a holding a bicycle, which I placed in a B+W International bicycle hard case and added some clothes. The total weight of this piece of luggage was 43.5 kg. The dimensions and weight were within the baggage allowance of the United Airlines.
FYI, as soon as you added clothes, it no longer would have been considered a checked bicycle. How many clothes did you add? Were you trying to take the bike case in lieu of an extra suitcase? Even with a 16 kg case, unless your bike is electric -- which UA doesn't allow -- I'm surprised at how heavy it is.
Originally Posted by
AW Matti
"We can’t accept bags weighing more than 100 pounds (45 kilograms). However, musical instruments and assistive devices are exceptions." - meaning they can and should accept up to 45 kg.
No, it means that they can't accept bags weighing more than 45 kg. It doesn't say that they must always accept bags weighing less than 45 kg.
Originally Posted by
AW Matti
I was informed this was true, but it was a general statement and does not apply to them.
Correct. The ability to accept luggage between 32 and 45 kg can sometimes be limited. In fact, they will sometimes refuse to accept anything over 23 kg. You can see more about the policies here:
https://www.united.com/ual/en/US/fly...e/embargo.html
Did you happen to be traveling to/from one of the embargoed destinations? Or, as
WineCountryUA asked, did your journey perhaps start on a very small plane? Those are often weight-limited and unable to accept heavy bags even when there's no official embargo.