If there are 2 things I’m grateful for in the 2020s, it’s text messaging and larger overheads on planes. And guess what? United Airlines just combined the two.
Wait, let me explain…
Text messaging goes without saying. Thanks to the advent of smartphones and text messages, introverts like me rarely have to worry about talking on the phone anymore. And with push notifications, I don’t even have to check my emails – I get a text message (from the airline AND Tripit LOL) that says my Delta flight is delayed, my American flight moved gates, or my JetBlue flight has started preboarding. It’s awesome!
And those larger overheads? Yeah, they’re all kinds of great too. Not so much because I can carry more stuff onto the plane with me; I can’t (actually, on Southwest, you can now officially bring less onto the plane). But because they’re bigger, maybe the last few people boarding the plane can actually get their bags into the overheads, instead of having to gate-check them, because they’re made to hold more stuff.
Oh, but wait…they can only hold more stuff if bags are loaded correctly.
If your plane has one of those “newer” overhead bins and put your bag into it this way (on its side, laying on the longer side), you’ll maximize all of the available space:
PC: Boeing
But if the overhead looks like this, look at all that wasted space!:
PC: GAL Aerospace
Believe it or not, if the overhead bins on your plane are the newer larger ones, you can increase space in the overhead by upwards of about 30%, if you put your 14″ x 22″ x 9″ bag into the bin the “right” way.
Flight attendants do their best to tell people to put their bags in the overhead the “new” way. But some habits die hard, I guess. People have been putting their bags in “flat” for decades. I mean, getting them to put their bags in “wheels first” was enough of a struggle, right? But flight attendants keep trying, first with announcements over the PA system, and then sometimes physically moving bags so they’re in the “right” way.
But it looks like United Airlines is trying to go one step further. A friend of ours sent us this notification they got from United the other day, just as their plane was going to start boarding:
My friend thought it was passive-aggressive, but I thought it was brilliant! A clever, gentle reminder of how to put your bag in the plane, without knocking you over the head with it? Genius!
Unfortunately, my friend followed up with a text, once they were actually on the plane, that lots of people were still putting their bags into the overhead in the “flat” position. So although I’d hope the “gentle reminder” would help, it probably didn’t do nearly as much as United or the flight attendants…or the last ones on the plane, who probably wound up having to gate check their carry-ons…would have liked. I guess people still need to be knocked over the head with reminders.
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3 comments
You can lead a horse to water …
What’s passive aggressive in that? I don’t get your friend.
Yup – it’s amazing how inconsiderate people are – even before the new bins.
I’ve seen so many iterations of wasted bin space, it surprises me, who’s already pessimistic about the general populations ability to do things properly. I’ve seen people through their rollers in lengthwise when it clearly will fit in width-wise, even seen them put it in disgnolly, taking up even more space, seen people throw backpacks in the middle of an empty bin, and seen light jackets thrown in empty spaces, completely limiting someone else from putting any sort of bag in without moving it. Basically, like they are the only ones who are using the bins.
I’d like to think this kind of messaging will help, but I doubt it. Many passengers will throw in their bag the way it is easiest for them, damn the other 150 passengers on the plane. The only thing that will potentially stop it will be if FAs take the bags egregiously taking up way more space than they need to be checked. Of course, that ain’t happening, so….
Should point out that this is mostly an American problem. Those in EU and especially Asia don’t have this issue – partly because they more respectful to their fellow pax (and humans), and secondly because they don’t attempt to bring everything they own onto the plane.