Originally Posted by pbr6891
......Let's face it moving lbs from checked luggage to carryon does nothing to help recover the extra fuel cost of carrying heavy luggage (it's still flying on the plane with you !), which I believe was the motivation behind the 25$ fee !
If the airlines start making their argument based on this, I think they better start assessing surcharges on people that are grossly overweight (I apologize if this offends anyone that has a few extra pounds--I have no intention of any kind to single out this group of travelers--I am just trying to make a case of how unfair it is to be charged a fee if my luggage is 10 pounds over the "limit" while a fellow passenger who is 200 pounds over [my weight] and not have to pay a fee). Besides, not everyone will carry luggages at the maximum allowed weight, so, on average, everyone's luggage on the same flight will balance out. I think the airlines (not just UA) are just trying to maximize their revenue with this.
I also agree with
pbr6891 that it's not a good idea to shift weight from checked luggage to carry-on. I thought the airlines have always encourage people to carry less onboard to speed up the boarding process. Can you imagine a planeful of passengers struggling to stuff their heavy carry-on in the overhead bins while blocking aisles/seats? In addition, they might end up gate-checking some of those luggage that should have been checked at the counter in the first place when they run out of overhead/underneath seat space. Just my opinion.
LAX