TSA,,No sense of humor

[10ovr]

How far do you think I well get into the airport with my new luggage before I get stopped ???? http://i650.photobucket.com/albums/uu227/10ovr/gas-can-luggage-500x500.jpg[/img]]

[Glenn Reed]

[DiggerJim]

Love 'em. Too big & heavy for me though (BTW, the airlines are talking about adding a carry-on surcharge for anything that doesn't fit under the seat in front of you).

 

TSA is fun to make sport of though - with the nudeoscans if you decline and ask for a pat down (& you're a guy) then when they start groping toward your crotch start giggling & saying things like "ummm", wiggle your hips a little, push your butt back when they slide their hands down there...it appears to give them the creeps (homophobia maybe?) and they back off. It's funny how uncomfortable they get when you consider they're in the business of making travelers uncomfortable on a daily basis. Only gotta hope terrorists aren't gay huh?

[upflying]

Interesting issues about carry-on. Seems as if the airline surcharge for checked baggage caused another problem of passengers bringing on overstuffed and multiple carry on bags to avoid the fees. Overhead bins no longer close on what has routinely become full planes.

With seats inches apart, I use the under seat storage area to the fullest with my long legs. I sure as hell ain't putting carry-on under the seat in front of me.

Combine crowded planes with crying kids, seat back kicks, coughing passengers with the croop, runny noses and you have a microbiology lab experiment at 32,000 feet.

I used to look forward to air travel, now it's just inconvenient mass transit in the air. I'm driving/riding if the destination is anywhere on the west coast.

[Bob Palin]

I hate flying these days, I'm driving anywhere there's a bridge to, and trying not to go beyond that. (Actually of course I'm trying not to leave this and the surrounding counties, and succeeding quite nicely)

[BerndM]

How far do you think I well get into the airport with my new luggage before I get stopped ???? http://i650.photobucket.com/albums/uu227/10ovr/gas-can-luggage-500x500.jpg[/img]]

 

WOW

Those would make GREAT panniers, especially on a KLR or GS!!

Where did you find these?

Do you have a linky to the vendor?

 

[Glenn Reed]

Here's a link.

 

They have two versions, gas and diesel. The gas version opens more like a zippo lighter, and the diesel more like a standard suitcase.

[Lynn]

Interesting issues about carry-on. Seems as if the airline surcharge for checked baggage caused another problem of passengers bringing on overstuffed and multiple carry on bags to avoid the fees. Overhead bins no longer close on what has routinely become full planes.

With seats inches apart, I use the under seat storage area to the fullest with my long legs. I sure as hell ain't putting carry-on under the seat in front of me.

Combine crowded planes with crying kids, seat back kicks, coughing passengers with the croop, runny noses and you have a microbiology lab experiment at 32,000 feet.

I used to look forward to air travel, now it's just inconvenient mass transit in the air. I'm driving/riding if the destination is anywhere on the west coast.

 

You forgot about the lap-baby next to you that climbs the back of the seat and kicks you in the head while the parent obliviously sleeps on (last week on a flight from Orlando to Denver). I really dislike flying out of Orlando-and I will be doing so every week until the end of August. I keep reminding myself that I am getting a paycheck again for a while and it is a good thing.

 

Air travel lost any allure it might have had left on about my second Orlando-Denver flight. Disney-central is not a fun place to fly to/from. I am not that tall, but as closely as they stuff the seats together, removing my option to stick my feet under the seat in front of me would really make me upset and angry.

[DaveC]

That ranks right up there with a case of dynomite disguised as a suit case.

[Skywagon]

Funny on the website, not so funny at the airport. I fly someplace almost every week. You can't imagine how, I will call it untrained, the average passenger is. Ever see a mom with 5 kids in a mini-van headed to a soccer game...that's what it looks like in the security line. I have decided the average passenger can't read. Time and time again they go to security with food, drinks, makeup, perfume, big bottles of things, etc...In the dumpster they go. They are always late. They feel a need to ask for cuts to the front because they got a late start. Yesterday in Orlando a person in front of me was furious as she was asked to end her phone call before she went into the scanner. She made such a stink ( and lost when more security showed up ) it delayed everyone as they had to stop the line to deal with this idiot.

 

Pretty simple. Get your lazy but up on time, get there early, follow the rules, read the signs, put your cell phone away, the airplane is not your playroom or mini-van, and getting through security is a piece of cake.

 

Yep the airlines have shrunk the space, charge for meals, baggage etc unless you are Platinum or First Class ( which I am ). Have you checked their financials? Most are barely hanging on so they need revenue somehow. I would rather pay more for the ticket and do away with the surcharges, but the other side argument is surcharges at least give you a choice.

[Deadboy]

I fly almost every week and it never bothers me in the least....I long ago decided to start showing up a bit earlier than suggested, and frankly it is a very rare flight that I have any issues with, and no, I am not in first class.

 

Frankly I find the constant complaints and the "I am so much better at this than my fellow travelers" stories amusing. Flying is a near perfect experience 99% of the time (on time, luggage arrives etc)....I will take it over a traffic jam any day.

 

This sums it up for me pretty well: http://videosift.com/video/Louie-CK-on-Conan-Oct-1st-2008

[russell_bynum]

I flew from Orange County to SFO last week for a conference.

 

The lady two people ahead of me in line for boarding turned out to be at the wrong flight number, wrong airline, and wrong airport.

 

We all stood there for 10 minutes while she argued about it. (Never mind the question of how she got by our crack team of govt security experts without a boarding pass.)

 

When we got to SFO it took nearly 15 minutes after the door opened before I could get off the plane. I was in row 10. So...9 rows of people took 15 minutes to stand up, pick up their shit, and get off the damn plane.

 

Sorry deadboy, but I don't have any problem saying that I'm better at this than those people. Much better, in fact.

 

 

As for the folks who like to use the area under the seat ahead of them for their feet...put your carry-on there during takeoff. As soon as you're up, move your bag back against the front of your seat and put your feet under the seat ahead of you. Technically you have to stow it back under the seat before landing, I've never been asked to do that....I think my legs are blocking their view of the bag so they can't see it when they walk by doing their check.

[John Ranalletta]

Flew home from TPA last night. TSA wasn't an issue as there was very light traffic for a Friday night transiting thru ATL; however, this guy graced the forward compartment.

 

I was early for my flight and tried to enter A-term at TPA to grab a flight on another airline, but TSA officials denied entrance because my boarding pass had C-term printed on it.

 

Oh, did I mention the young lady who barely fit in the aisle; or the lady next to me who ate a 3-course meal as soon as she sat down, shedding debris on the tray and floor...for a one hour flight!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[John Ranalletta]

Good for you. Guess AA didn't strand you at JFK after cancelling your 8p flight and didn't offer meal warrant, hotel or transportation to EWR for the next flight scheduled 12 hours later!!!!!!! after having paid $4k for two biz class tix to/fro Europe.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

I have been a road rat for over 50 years. Average about 30 weeks on the road per year with, at minimum, a flight at the beginning and end of the week. More legs lately to get to the same old destinations. Air travel hasn't improved over that time frame. It is now to the point where I actively hate it. Rude people abound, stupid people abound, I am fortunate in that all that travel gets me a few perks that make things bearable such as upgrades to first class and the clubs at the hubs.

 

My strategy, I'm at the ticket counter 2 hrs before the flight. Have a meal after getting ticketed, head to the terminal and find the club. Catch up on my e-mail and have a coffee and a little snack, about 5 mins before boarding, head to the gate and zip onto the plane. Pray to the boarding gods that I don't get any seriously repugnant seat mate. I'm asleep within 10 minutes of wheels up.

[Deadboy]

Lol..so you were delayed a total of 25 minutes.....damn, how could you stand it? Did the surgical team you were leading go ahead with the transplant or did the patient die?

 

 

[DiggerJim]

Flying is a near perfect experience 99% of the time (on time, luggage arrives etc)....I will take it over a traffic jam any day.

Not sure what planet you're flying on but it ain't here. The latest Airline On-Time Performance report doesn't show a single airline with better than 90% on-time stats & that includes Hawaiian Air which is near 90%. The average is 80%ish...which means 1 out of 5 flights is late. Some airports (Boston, Atlanta) it's 1 out of 4 flights. Not terribly efficient.

 

At least with a traffic jam I have options - I can stop & grab a meal, I can try a different route...on the plane I'm stuck even if they've kidnapped me & left me on the tarmac for 3 hours - I can't get off. They're also not the most honest people in the world - can't count the number of times where I'll check on the incoming flight & see that it's delayed but they pretend that my outgoing flight with that aircraft is going to be on-time...

 

I used to do a lot of day trips to Chicago or Atlanta for business (from CT) but can't do that & be sure I'll get there on time for meetings so I have to go down the night before adding cost for meals & hotel. Costs I have to pass on to my clients.

 

Like someone said, it's mass transit in the sky with everything good & bad about that...except I don't pay mass transit prices.

[russell_bynum]

Lol..so you were delayed a total of 25 minutes.....damn, how could you stand it? Did the surgical team you were leading go ahead with the transplant or did the patient die?

 

 

WTF????

[Deadboy]

Wow, lots of complaints....I should have said my experience is 99% perfect, apparently I have just been lucky. Then again I don't blaim the airlines for weather and other issues out of their control.

 

Interesting stuff here: http://www.transtats.bts.gov/OT_Delay/OT_DelayCause1.asp

 

As for the story another poster had about the flight being cancelled etc, with no compensation, I can only guess it was due to a factor that was out of the airlines control, otherwise I believe they are required by law to cover the cost of a hotel etc.

 

Then again I don't consider a 15 or 20 minute delay something worth worrying about, apparently others do.

[russell_bynum]

Wow, lots of complaints....I should have said my experience is 99% perfect, apparently I have just been lucky. Then again I don't blaim the airlines for weather and other issues out of their control.

 

Interesting stuff here: http://www.transtats.bts.gov/OT_Delay/OT_DelayCause1.asp

 

As for the story another poster had about the flight being cancelled etc, with no compensation, I can only guess it was due to a factor that was out of the airlines control, otherwise I believe they are required by law to cover the cost of a hotel etc.

 

Then again I don't consider a 15 or 20 minute delay something worth worrying about, apparently others do.

 

Weather and equipment delays are annoying, but stuff happens. The weather in particular is well outside of the airline's realm of control.

 

And no...a 20 minute delay is generally not the end of the world. I never said it was the end of the world. You poopooed those of us who think we can do it better than some of our fellow travelers. I can say with 100% authority that I have never attempted to board the wrong flight number at the wrong airline at the wrong f***ing airport. So yeah...I can do it better than that lady. And I can damn well stand up, grab my bag, and walk 30 feet in less than 15 minutes....so yup...I can do it better than those douchnozzles in the 9 rows ahead of me, too.

[John Ranalletta]

If more people like you accept mediocre to poor performance for your money, service will get worse than it is. Further, perhaps I put a higher value on my time, but that's my business. Moving through life like a slug may appeal to some, but not me; so, passengers who finish their in-flight chats while diddling with their luggage, collect their crap from the seat pocket in front of them and generally lolligag around, preventing me from getting about my business should buy seats in the back of the plane.

 

 

[Glenn Reed]

My solution is to get my seat in the back of the plane, and continue my reading, or get on the phone (now that we're at the gate) or whatever. Then when things clear out, I grab my carry on and head out. I am at the rental car counter before the vast majority of thw others on the flight, because they continue to lollygag leaving the terminal, and have probably checked some luggage, which I avoid.

 

 

[Bronx Cheer]

I fly just about every week. I have become accustomed to security and try and just go with the flow. It is a PITA, but I just view it as part of my job. Everybody has something in the job that they don't like. The one thing that has saved me from going insane is noise canceling headphones. I try and tune out all the jive and occupy my self with a book or magazine.

[Tank]

I haven't been inside a aircraft in over twenty two years...

Seems that IF I fly again I'll notice changes. And probably clueless

 

Seriously, is there some kind of manual that comes with a ticket . Not everyone fly's , and I am not scared to, just haven't needed to.

[MarkyP]

.so yup...I can do it better than those douchnozzles in the 9 rows ahead of me, too.

 

Did you just say douchnozzles? I just spit up a little coffee with that one. Well done making me giggle like an idiot.

[Ken H.]

Lol..so you were delayed a total of 25 minutes.....damn, how could you stand it? Did the surgical team you were leading go ahead with the transplant or did the patient die?

WTF????

I think the point is how incredibly impatient and incredibly intolerant we as a society have become. We expect instant everything and perfect everything all the time. Oh, and it should cost less than it did yesterday too.

 

The whole damn world needs to take a chill pill IMHO.

 

[MT Wallet]

I've tried to avoid flying for the past couple of years. I used to have to fly Northworst(now Delta). They could never seem to hold the connecting flight for me and I got tired of staying in Minneapolis hotels for the night. Either the main flight arrived late or if I got there with a narrow window of time I couldn't get from one end of the airport to the other.

Now add in an obtrusive TSA patdown and it just isn't tolerable to fly. I recently drove 1000 miles (rather than fly) to just to preserve my right not to have unreasonable searches. Yeah,I know it's hard headed and irrational in some folks minds but that's just me.

Now throw in passenger behavior like the the deplane crush of everyone from aisle 1-39 all jumping up as if they are going to make it out in 1 or 2 minutes. It just takes the convenience out of it.

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

Lol..so you were delayed a total of 25 minutes.....damn, how could you stand it? Did the surgical team you were leading go ahead with the transplant or did the patient die?

 

 

Stand-up comic Louis C.K. had a great bit about how these days "everything is amazing and nobody is happy." I remember he spent a fair bit discussing cell phones and air travel. He talks about someone complaining about how they had to sit on the taxiway for 40 minutes before takeoff, to which he responds:

 

"And then what? Did you participate in the miracle of human flight?"

 

More complaints about how their seatback doesn't recline enough, or the air is too dry, or the food costs too much and isn't that good:

 

"Fergodsake, you're sitting in a chair IN THE SKY!!!"

[russell_bynum]

Lol..so you were delayed a total of 25 minutes.....damn, how could you stand it? Did the surgical team you were leading go ahead with the transplant or did the patient die?

WTF????

I think the point is how incredibly impatient and incredibly intolerant we as a society have become. We expect instant everything and perfect everything all the time. Oh, and it should cost less than it did yesterday too.

 

The whole damn world needs to take a chill pill IMHO.

 

I'm actually pretty tolerant when people are doing their best and it just isn't living up to my expectations for whatever reason. And with commercial air travel my expectations are pretty damn low.

 

What I don't like is having my time wasted because people have their heads up their asses.

 

Take my example of taking 15 minutes to get less than 40 people off an airplane...

 

Now...for me...I don't like sitting in the airplane. I'd like to get out and get on with my day as quickly as is reasonably possible. So...when we get to the gate, I've already stowed any items I took out of my carry-on and I've got everything gathered up and ready to go. As soon as I can, I'm standing, have my bag in hand, and I'm ready to get up the isle quickly. And when I get to the top of the jetway, I don't stop there in the doorway and take that opportunity to dial my phone, dig in my bag, or just stand there generally pondering life.

 

But that's pretty much the opposite of what I see from MOST of the people ahead of me. We get to the gate and it's like they're surprised. So...they have to dig into the seat back pocket and get their magazines out. And then they get their carry-on down and re-organize everything. And of course they do this while standing so that they're blocking the isle. Sometimes they're on the phone, too, which adds to their obliviosity. Oh...and many of them brought carry-on bags that were too big for the airplane (despite the convenient measuring templates that show you how big your bags are allowed to be) so they had to be checked at the gate...and for some reason that doesn't mean the same thing as when you check a bag normally...where you go to the baggage claim to get your stuff after you're off the plane. In this case, anyway, it meant that some poor schmuck has to unload them and pile them on the floor in the jetway. So...even after these lollygaggers finally manage to get off the plane, they have to stand there for 10 minutes rummaging through a pile of bags because they don't remember what theirs looks like.

 

So...it's the completely unnecessary nature of the delay that bothered me. Flight delayed 20 minutes because the weather? No problem. Flight delayed 20 minutes while they replace the kanuter valve? Please...take your time. Flight delayed 20 minutes because a bunch of buffoons can't figure out how to stand up and walk 30 feet in less than 15 minutes? Some people need to be kicked real hard in the groin.

 

And here's another one....I can't remember the last time I was on a flight and the flight attendants didn't have to argue with at least one person who was sitting in the wrong seat. The whole plane is delayed while the flight attendants convince these brain-donors that they're in the wrong seat and then escorts them to the correct seat. How hard is it to look at the seat number on your ticket, find that seat, and sit in the correct seat?

 

The lady who spent 10 minutes arguing because she was in line for the wrong flight number at the wrong airline at the wrong airport was definitely the worst case of cranial-rectumitis I've ever seen, but it's certainly not that far out of the ordinary.

 

Give me a delay with a reasonable explanation and I'm a reasonable guy. Give me a delay because my fellow travelers are morons and I'm not nearly as relaxed about it.

 

Here's an unrelated but sorta related question...

 

When you go through the Security Theater, the first TSA flunky you meet takes your boarding pass, looks at your photo ID, and makes some seemingly random markings on the boarding pass with a highlighter.

 

If, instead of a printed boarding pass, you have an electronic boarding pass on your phone, they obviously can't mark it up with their highlighter...so they don't.

 

So....If it isn't necessary for them to take time marking up your boarding pass with a highlighter (which it obviously is not since they don't do it when you have an e-boarding pass), then why do they waste time doing it?

[bakerzdosen]

 

Stand-up comic Louis C.K. had a great bit about how these days "everything is amazing and nobody is happy."

Funny thing is that there's a link to that bit earlier in the thread...

[DiggerJim]

What I don't like is having my time wasted because people have their heads up their asses.

 

 

Give me a delay with a reasonable explanation and I'm a reasonable guy. Give me a delay because my fellow travelers are morons and I'm not nearly as relaxed about it.

That pretty much sums it up for me too. But I'd add that it really frosts me when they deadface lie to me about delays. They know they're lying & I know they're lying & I gotta figure that they think I possibly know that they're lying but they do it anyway. Like when the flight shows as on-time departure but you check the arrival board & the plane that's supposed to be coming in to that gate to take you away is listed as being delayed...and when you check FlightStats you see that they're still on the ground 800 miles away! Or when you enter that time distortion that appears to occur at airlines - if it's your responsibility to be there, say 15 minutes before takeoff, that really means 20 minutes or you'll be shut out....but if they're going to be "10 minutes while the flight crew checks in" you gotta believe it will be 30 minutes...you have to be early to be on time, they just have to show up.

 

Don't lie to me & just say "got no idea when we're gonna get this puppy off the ground" and I can decide if I want to make arrangements to stay over, rent a car & drive, hang around & wait or find another airline. By pretending it's "just a few minutes" that turn out to be 30 a few times until it's been 3 hours - then my options are way more limited and for no other reason than they don't want to peeve the people off, or they want to keep them captive so they don't go to another airline.

 

Here's an unrelated but sorta related question...

 

When you go through the Security Theater, the first TSA flunky you meet takes your boarding pass, looks at your photo ID, and makes some seemingly random markings on the boarding pass with a highlighter.

 

If, instead of a printed boarding pass, you have an electronic boarding pass on your phone, they obviously can't mark it up with their highlighter...so they don't.

 

So....If it isn't necessary for them to take time marking up your boarding pass with a highlighter (which it obviously is not since they don't do it when you have an e-boarding pass), then why do they waste time doing it?

 

You said it - it's Security Theater. Surveys have shown that despite provable failings to seriously impair determined (aka non-nut job whackadoodles who think stuffing their underwear with something is going to make it) methods of taking a jet down, the general public feels safer having the intrusive TSA "security" methods. It doesn't matter that there are at least a dozen ways to take one down without ever violating any of the current security protocols*, we "feel safer". Illusion is reality.

 

(*For example, there is nothing stopping anyone from replacing the contents of their shampoo, mouthwash, and soap bottles with binary explosives...and even carry a couple of quarts thru despite the 3-1-1 limit because that quart of saline solution for your contact lenses is exempt from the limit...as is the quart of contact lens cleaner...as is the bottle of whatever liquid medicine you want to slap an official looking prescription label on...)

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

 

Stand-up comic Louis C.K. had a great bit about how these days "everything is amazing and nobody is happy."

Funny thing is that there's a link to that bit earlier in the thread...

 

Crap, I missed that. However, the Conan piece was actually a truncated version of what he did on a half-hour standup show for Comedy Central; if you see it coming on the TV schedule, make time for it.

[Albert]

I travel a lot and I have to admit it's lost a lot of its luster for me too. I plan ahead and am always early for my flights, so the delays caused by infrequent travelers don't affect me much. I find some of the inane regulations and general lack of professionalism among TSA reps to be a bother but it's not a huge deal. Two things really do piss me off when I travel.

 

First are the people who are so oblivious to the general regulations of air travel they appear to have just stepped off a flight from Jupiter that took off in 1963. These people must think that all the instructions posted throughout the airport are there to educate the vacationing terrorist and therefore don't apply to them!

 

The second is luggage. I check my luggage 99.9% of the time and am routinely charged $50 more per ticket than my fellow carry-on travelers. This perplexes me. Is their luggage somehow more fuel efficient for having been dragged through the airport? Are the bags easier for baggage handlers to carry down (then up) the steps from the jetway to the baggage compartment? Am I being charged an entertainment fee for being allowed to watch oversized bags lifted by undersized arms into overstuffed overhead compartments (am I over on "overs"?)? When I'm finally deplaning (after paying extra), I get to wade through a gaggle of fellow travelers who are milling around waiting for their free luggage to be hand delivered to them by the same guys that will unload my bag when they get to it.

 

Oh for the days of the DC-3 with smiling, nubile hostesses delivering hot meals and free cigarettes; ready to refill your Mamosa before the glass hit the tray. Sigh . . . .

 

Did I mention I drive a lot now?

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

I check my luggage 99.9% of the time and am routinely charged $50 more per ticket than my fellow carry-on travelers. This perplexes me. Is their luggage somehow more fuel efficient for having been dragged through the airport?

 

Two things:

-if you carry your own bag onto the plane, you aren't using the massive and expensive luggage-handling system at the airport. There are maintenance costs associated with that, as well as labor costs associated the gorillas who manually loading/unload your checked bags into the cargo hold. Fewer checked bags will, in the long run, lead to lower airport fees for the airline, and lower labor fees (since fewer gorillas must be hired to handle everyone's checked bags).

 

-since checked bags can weigh up to 50 pounds (even more if you're willing to pay an additional fee), people with only carry-on luggage are contributing less to the plane's takeoff weight, meaning less fuel and less wear and tear on the plane (unless they're carrying a bag full of lead wheel-balancing weights ). The checked-bag fee is an incentive that rewards flyers for packing light.

 

Having said all that, it sure would be nice if the airlines were more rigorous about enforcing the size limits for carryon luggage.

 

Are the bags easier for baggage handlers to carry down (then up) the steps from the jetway to the baggage compartment?

...

When I'm finally deplaning (after paying extra), I get to wade through a gaggle of fellow travelers who are milling around waiting for their free luggage to be hand delivered to them by the same guys that will unload my bag when they get to it.

 

"Free luggage?" Are you saying the twits who carry too-large suitcases onto the plane don't have to pay the checked-bag fee when the gorilla takes it down to the cargo hold? And that those bags get hand delivered back to the passenger at the destination gate?

 

I've never seen that before, but if that really happens? Wow.

[ltljohn]

"Free luggage?" Are you saying the twits who carry too-large suitcases onto the plane don't have to pay the checked-bag fee when the gorilla takes it down to the cargo hold? And that those bags get hand delivered back to the passenger at the destination gate?

 

I've never seen that before, but if that really happens? Wow.

 

Lots of times if you are near the last to board they run out of overhead space and even thought you bag would easily fit in the overhead you are forced to check it at the gate, the gorillas carry it down to the baggage compartment. You have to claim it at baggage claim. From what I have seen if your bag is too big they still charge you to check it at the gate and you have to claim it at the carousel..

[Mike]

I have four rules for flying:

 

1. Don't do it if driving or riding is anywhere close to a viable option.

 

2. Always take the smallest carry-on you can and don't check anything.

 

3. Think seriously about taking along a sandwich and a bottle of water.

 

4. (Optional and the result of personal bias) If possible, buy your ticket from a travel agent, who, as opposed to airline counter agents, may actually be willing and able to help you out if the airline screws you.

 

I find flying on airlines to be pretty miserable. You really need to get into the mindset of fending for yourself.

 

[bakerzdosen]

When I'm finally deplaning (after paying extra), I get to wade through a gaggle of fellow travelers who are milling around waiting for their free luggage to be hand delivered to them by the same guys that will unload my bag when they get to it.

 

"Free luggage?" Are you saying the twits who carry too-large suitcases onto the plane don't have to pay the checked-bag fee when the gorilla takes it down to the cargo hold? And that those bags get hand delivered back to the passenger at the destination gate?

 

I've never seen that before, but if that really happens? Wow.

It also happens on flights on "commuter jets." I gate checked my bag twice yesterday because both of my flights were on commuter jets - meaning, they don't have much overhead cargo space.

 

However, with that said, I've never paid a checked bag fee. I fly enough that those fees are always waved. Nonetheless, I try to never check baggage. It's just too much of a hassle unless I'm on a 2 week (or longer) trip. Once you've had the airline "misplace" your baggage, you learn.

 

Besides, had I checked my baggage yesterday, I wouldn't have been able to take the earlier flight that I just made - which saved me a few hours.

[russell_bynum]

I never used to check bags until they started all of this security theater crap.

 

It was just easier to check my bag than to deal with the silly rules. Plus, I could still bring my pocket knife, multi-tool, etc with me...which I can't do if I put them in my carry-on.

 

Of course...now that they charge a million dollars an ounce for checked bags, I'm starting to re-think that policy.