In this summer of record crowds on planes, it can be tough to snare a seat.
It can be even tougher to find overhead space for your carry-on bag.
The fight for space in the overhead bin is leading to a rash of bad behavior and angry standoffs between travelers and rules-enforcing flight attendants – and between fellow travelers.
With planes flying at record capacities, even if travelers kept to the standard one-bag- plus-one-personal-item limit, they would still find trouble storing things.
But the space crunch is being exacerbated by fliers worried that summer travel delays and snafus will lead to lost checked bags.
Now they are trying to sneak more stuff on board with them. And some travelers are causing near-brawls by defying the generally accepted rule that you should put your bag in the spot above your seat.
Airlines are beginning to crack down. In July, British Airways began firmly enforcing its carry-on policy. AMR Corp.’s American Airlines says it is enforcing its carry-on rule – one bag plus one extra item, like a purse or a laptop – more closely than in years past.
Indeed, both American and United Airlines have recently sent directives to their gate agents and flight attendants telling them to be stricter about carry-ons on full flights.
Still, fliers are finding that their fellow travelers are cramming more stuff – and more bizarre stuff – into the bins.
Richard Ginkowski, who flies frequently as part of his hobby photographing wildlife, recently saw a passenger trying to shove a 5-foot stuffed giraffe into a bin.
Alin Boswell, a flight attendant for US Airways based in the Washington, D.C., area, says he is seeing “just enormous quantities of large rolling bags that have no business being on the aircraft.”
“They’re stretched to the nth degree with the sides just bulging out,” he said. Travelers “just don’t want to make one more stop at baggage claim.”
