New Carry On Limitations: The Good, The Bad and The #CarryOnShame

American, Delta and United airlines are all enforcing stricter carry on limitations. As of March 2, 2014, your carry on bag must be approximately 22″ x 14″ x 9″ or smaller.

The Good: Southwest and JetBlue both have a 10″ x 16″ x 24” carry-on limit. They also have offer at least one bag checked free.

The Bad: You average rolling bag is 15″ wide. Those flying with their bags that have glided effortlessly onto planes in the past will now have to check it. For those who travel often, carry on shopping will be in your future.

According to Airfarewatchdog, the FAA was blamed for the “new regulation.” The Federal Aviation Administration’s website is somewhat vague and states:

The maximum size carry-on bag for most airlines is 45 linear inches (the total of the height, width, and depth of the bag). Anything larger should be checked.

The “total“ height, width and depth are sourced here. So, if you bag is over the 14 inch width, but shorter in any other measurement – it should pass as a carry on…right?

Not necessarily. Some airlines are enforcing the rule that if the carry on violates any of the preset measurements – it must be checked.

The #CarryOnShame: Ok, so passengers need to take some of the “ugly” here too. Often, people will take a soft, pliable bag that meets the required dimensions, then cram it full of their belongings to the point it is exploding and becoming irate when they are stopped and forced to check their clearly too-big bag. Spud Hilton, a travel writer for the San Francisco Chronicle, has created a social media campaign that calls out passengers and their #CarryOnShame. Hilton explained…

“If it were just passengers rationalizing their behavior as trying to cheat the airline out of checked baggage fees (or fliers just trying to save money), we wouldn’t care. But the increasingly aggressive disregard for the size standards — which has led to flight delays, a much longer boarding process, abusive passengers, and increased theft from gate-checked bags — also is disregard for everyone else on the plane.“

What do you think of the good, the bad and the #CarryOnshame?