sweeper20

Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe you said earlier that you put your violin in the overhead bin and you put your other bag with clothing in the overhead bin - thats two bags in the overhead bin. As the other poster mentioned, with your two bags in the overhead bin, that might mean that another passenger might not be able to fit even one of their bags in the bin. Looking at it this way - you are traveling for work with two bag - one with clothing and one with your instrument for work. I am also traveling with two bags for work - one with clothing and one with my instrument (my laptop) for work. We both have important engagements the next day - you have a concert and I have meetings. You need your clothes and your instrument for your concert as I need both of my bags as well. You have now put two pieces in the overhead bin - I board and I have room under the seat for one of mine but not the other. Now I have to check my work clothes and hope they get there. How is it that your work commitments are more important - important enough to take two spaces - than my work commitments?

exerda

I check a bag with clothes, because I have a good bit of pricey camera gear in my carry-on. I don't try to bring a garment bag or a bigger rollaboard to hold those clothes and deal with the crappy UA baggage handling instead.

halls120

Why all the hostility? I've been civil throughout this discussion.

I never said you were breaking a rule, did I? It's just common courtesy that when a flight is going to be full that passengers ought to consider one up top and one below.

I've never been on a mainline flight where there wasn't enough room in the overhead when passengers limit themselves to one item up top, and one under the seat.

Again, I really don't understand your hostility.

I agree that those passengers aren't very considerate.

weero

Isn't this the very essence of priority boarding? Your work is more important than the work of a non-elite who boards later.

It sure sounds rude but that's the entire gist of it ....

teeceedee

Had a refreshing flight today where the FA patrolled the lanes and asked people with multiple bags whether they'd stored one under their seats. There were a couple laptop bags where the person had to show they had something else under their seats.

I didn't stay awake long enough to see if it made boarding faster, unfortunately

emcampbe

I disagree with this completely. I'm an elite and being in a higher boarding group doesn't mean my work or travel is more important than a once a year flyer. It simply means that I have given more business to the airline, and in exchange, they give me a few extras (and even with that, aside from getting first chance at the bin overtop of my seat, which is the big deal these days, why does having the opportunity to sit in a metal tube for several extra minutes become an advantage?).

That doesn't mean my work is more important than anyone else's. Why is someone's travel for work more important than another who is going to visit their family. I'm sure there are cases where this is actually true (I.e. A surgeon traveling to do life-saving surgery for a patient), but I don't think we're talking about those kind of extreme cases here. As an elite - my carry-on allowance is the same as anyone else's - me being able to skip a few spots on the security line or board a few minutes earlier doesn't mean that my bags, work, etc. is more important than the folks in boarding group 5.

davidviolin

I don't see whats the issue with first come first served when not in violations of any rules and you're courteous and pleasant.

JBord

Well said. In fact, if I fly Delta (on which I have no status) for work once, the importance of my work hasn't changed at all!

I would add to this that my legroom is no more important than anyone else's either. Just because I'm first on the plane doesn't mean I should put 2 items in the overhead so I can stretch my legs, while others end up gate-checking a bag.

All of this just points to common courtesy and respect for your fellow travelers, which are unfortunately traits that aren't common any more.

Tchiowa

Absolutely true.

Nothing wrong with it. Problem is that the airlines "rules" are such that they invite conflicts. If everyone carried the max allowed under the rules there would no way be enough room on the plane for all the storage. IMO, the airline needs to review their rules.

How about 1 small bag (not a rollaboard or a violin) plus a purse or laptop. Anything more carried on (like a rollaboard or a violin) you have to pay for? People like you with expensive instruments would usually be willing to pay, say $50 to have it where you know it is safe. People with cameras or other expensive items also could pay. Regular leisure travellers would have less carry on and not pay.

(Of course those of us in the front of the plane are allowed to carry small cars on with no extra charge.)

davidviolin

I think that if everyone just had one rollerboard and carried it onboard, there still would not be enough space. Then what?

The airlines did not anticipate what would happen when they started seeing dollar signs when they started charging for checked bags. They should have made sure the bins were big enough to accommodate the carry ons. Since they are not, first come, first served. Thats the only reason to board early. Who wants to sit halfhour extra in their seat if they don't have to?

ike7101

If the airlines would simply state that anything with wheels will NOT be considered carry on then that will take care of "most" offenders. People are lazy and do not want to carry a bag. They want to roll it. If they have to carry that bad down the aisle to find a bin many will check the bag. I think that would be a good start.

Loren Pechtel

There's a reason the bags that go in the bin are called rollaboards!

Furthermore, I've got a laptop bag with wheels. (It fits fine under the seat so long as the legs are where they are supposed to be and there aren't electronics boxes in the way. It's ridden in the bins a few times lately because of crazy underseat configurations.)

zombietooth

You are absolutely correct. Even if everybody complied perfectly with the "personal item must go under the seat" rule, there is room in the overheads for only 2/3 of the pax to have a rollaboard, of an average size equal to the dimensions of the official sizer, onboard.

The airlines count on a minimum of 1/3 of the pax not bringing a rollaboard on a flight.

By the way, I support your position.

LaserSailor

Yeah, why abort a perfectly good takeoff due to an engine failure? If the probability of one engine failing is x which is minuscule, the probability of the second engine failing is e^xy- illegal lottery (xy) which is even smaller. Don't these airlines know who I am?

..as long as they don't mess with the important stuff, like the order of food order taking in J....

weero

I do realise that this is 2015 and saying nice things is almost mandatory. But the entire philosophy of priority boarding is to bereave those with higher boarding group numbers of their overhead space.

If space was guaranteed and people were as courteous as they paint them here, I'd never board before 5 minutes past the last call. People are bin hogs. All of them, most of the time. And I enjoy being the victorious boar.
You know the game. You are neither fooling yourself nor me. You know why boarding early is a privilege.
Your work is always more important to you than other peoples' work. No matter what status and experience you or them hold. It's a resource limited game, you have to take it from the others.