Passengers traveling with Air Canada have complained that the airline is getting stricter than they have been in the past with the size of carry-on bags and personal items they allow at check-in points.
At different airports all over Canada, the airline is reportedly being more thorough in measuring and weighing carry-ons lately, in a bid to enforce stringent rules for cabin luggage.
Some passengers were not permitted to bring visibly oversized duffels and suitcases aboard with them, but instead had to pay to check them in.
Online backlash to the development is evenly divided between those complaining of the high cost of checking in their belongings — along with how commonly carriers tend to lose them in transit — and those who are pleased that the airline is finally taking this step. A number of passengers have reported their own experiences of trying to pack light only to find the overhead bin above their seat (and everywhere else on the plane) completely loaded with other people’s luggage.
“I travel really lightly and it’s such a pain, I usually end up having to gate check my bag because there’s no room in the overhead bins,” one passenger tweeted.
“My biggest pet peeve is when the overhead compartment above my seat is already filled because other people carry on way too much stuff. I side with AC on this,” wrote another passenger.”
This isn’t the first time this year that there has been a public reaction in Canada on the subject of carry-on luggage. In March, someone uploaded a TikTok video advising fellow passengers to make sure their bag was small enough to qualify as a carry-on before they departed for Toronto Pearson International Airport.
Meanwhile, Air Canada has said that there have not been any recent changes to their baggage regulations, and that ground staff are simply “reminding” customers of size limits as the busy summer travel season approaches, in order to “ensure an equitable distribution of available cabin storage space for fairness for all customers.”
Air Canada’s policies state that for an item to qualify as cabin luggage, it must be a maximum of 55 cm x 40 cm x 23 cm, including wheels and handles. You can also carry an additional personal item, such as a purse or backpack, so long as it is no more than 33 cm x 43 cm x 16 cm. Personal items must fit under the seat in front of you, while carry-on bags must be light enough that you can store them in the overhead bins without any help.
