If you’ve ever had your checked luggage stolen, damaged, lost or otherwise mishandled while flying, you probably know you’re not alone. But what you might not know is how often the Transportation Security Administration actually admits wrongdoing and compensates unhappy travelers in those cases. Enlightenment is here: A new report says the TSA has forked over about $3 million in the last five years for such claims. [More]
baggage
Oakland Airport Baggage Handlers Accused Of Participating In Marijuana Smuggling Ring
By 5.19.15
Federal officials say they’ve uncovered an alleged marijuana smuggling ring that involved three baggage handlers working at Oakland International Airport. Because airport workers can go behind the scenes where others can’t, investigators say the baggage handlers used their security badges to access off-limits areas and get pot from one point to another. [More]
Alaska Airlines Flight Forced To Make Emergency Landing After Employee Fell Asleep In Cargo Hold
By 4.14.15
In the last year, a number of people have attempted – sometimes successfully – to stow away in different areas of airplanes to catch a free ride. On Monday, a ramp agent for Alaska Airlines inadvertently became a stowaway when he fell asleep in the plane’s cargo hold, causing the plane to initiate an emergency landing after just 14 minutes in the air. [More]
Passenger Sues Southwest Airlines For $49,000 After Oversized Bag Falls On Him
By 1.22.15
Most of us have been there at one time or another: rushing to stuff our suitcase or backpack into the overhead space on a flight so other passengers can get by. But what happens when that bag falls and hits someone else? If you’re an Oregon man on the receiving end of the falling suitcase, you apparently file a lawsuit against the airline. [More]
Traveler Gets Luggage Back From Airport’s Lost & Found 20 Years After Plane Trip
By 12.18.14
We’ve all been there — the airline has lost your luggage and it’s probably never going to show up again. But maybe if you wait 20 years, your missing property will find its way back to you. [More]
Pack For Holiday Travel Like A Boss
By 11.22.13
If you’re planning to fly during next week’s holiday travel frenzy, don’t risk overpacking or a baggage disaster. Even if you’re just taking a short car ride, these tips on suitcase packing and organization from Consumer Reports will come in handy. Always key: bring as few items as possible, color-coordinate them, and don’t bring any toiletries you don’t have to. [Consumer Reports] [More]
Forget To Join Your 30 Cocaine-Filled Suitcases On A Flight To Paris? Police Would Like A Word
By 9.23.13
Usually the problem is your bags get lost between here and there, but in the case of 30 suitcases filled with cocaine, the bags made it just fine — it was the fact that they weren’t assigned to any passengers on an Air France flight that tipped authorities off. There’s just something fishy about ownerless bags, you see. [More]
U.S. Airways May Make You Check Your Bag Even If The Plane Isn't Full
By 4.4.12
Consumerist reader Andrew was recently boarding a U.S. Airways flight out of Newark when he noticed that airline staffers were forcing people to gate-check their bags even though fewer than 1/3 of the passengers had actually gotten on the plane. [More]
Pack A Suit Coat Without Wrinkles
By 1.3.11
Here’s how to perform that heretofore impossible trick of packing a suit coat without a garment bag or putting up with wrinkles. This soundless video shows how you turn the coat inside out and perform the necessary suit origami so you can pack light and not look like a schlump. Just pay more attention to the moves than to the actor’s shirt. [More]
Delta Fined $100,000 For Lying To Passengers About Lost Luggage Liability
By 11.1.10
According to federal regulations, airlines “shall not limit its liability for provable direct or consequential damages” to less than $3,300 per passenger. Someone should have told that to Delta, which was recently slapped with a $100,000 fine by the Dept. of Transportation for distributing pamphlets telling customers something very different. [More]
Southwest Damages Suitcase, Not As Awesome As Everyone Claims
By 10.14.10
Sure, you don’t have to pay to check your luggage on Southwest. Tara tells Consumerist that after her new suitcase was stained and broken while in Southwest’s hands, and she’d rather pay to check a bag that survives the trip intact. The airline says it’s their policy not to repair or replace suitcases damaged in transit. They’ve offered her a $100 voucher for future flights. Tara, who tried Southwest based on positive comments from Consumerist readers, isn’t interested in flying with them again. [More]
How Do Airlines Compare On Fees?
By 9.27.10
It’s hard to keep track of all the extra fees airlines have invented to pad a ticket purchase, especially since they keep introducing new ones; USA TODAY says revenue from added fees have jumped nearly 16% from a year ago. The newspaper reviewed fees from 13 airlines in the U.S. and compiled this handy reference chart of current fee schedules, to make comparison shopping a little bit easier. As expected, Southwest continues to be one of the best values. [More]
An Insider's Look At A Four Hour United Express Delay
By 9.22.10
If there was something that could delay United Airlines flight 1488 from Washington to Philadelphia, then it happened, writes our tipster dev. Although originally meant to be a short one hour flight, the delays stretched to over three hours. Dev writes that most of the delays were caused by the pre-flight crew: “Those of us in the front of the aircraft could hear the Trans States Airlines crew griping over the fact that the ground crew, another contract outfit (this group from Air Wisconsin Airlines Corporation), did not do their pre-flight prep work on the plane properly.” [More]
Know How Much Your Bag Weighs Before Flying
By 8.9.10
Delta tried to charge “Frustrated Traveler” an illegitimate bag fee yesterday by claiming it was over the weight limit. He knew, however, that unless the bag had been eating tubs of frosting throughout the flight, it was still the same 47 pounds it was when he weighed it himself before boarding. [More]
Spirit Starts Charging Up To $45 For Carry-On Bags
By 8.1.10
Prepare to shift that carry-on bag to your other hand as you reach for your wallet because today is the day Spirit rolls out their new fee for carry-on bags. Billed as an ostensible solution to gate delays, the worst problem you never experienced, the fee ranges from $20 to $45. [More]
I'm Watching Continental Let My Bags Get Soaked, Will I Be Compensated?
By 7.19.10
Reader Ken is sitting on a plane right now watching his bags get soaked. He’s wondering if he’ll be able to get compensation for the water damage. [More]
United Gate Bag Template 1" Shorter Than Check-In's, Makes You Gate Check Bag
By 7.13.10
He thought he was golden but radio host Todd Schnitt had to check his carry-on unexpectedly because the baggage check template at the gate was one inch shorter than the one at check-in. [More]
VIDEO: How To Pack For A Weekend Beach Getaway
By 6.11.10
In case you hadn’t notice, the summer vacation season is upon us. And even if people don’t have the cash to rent a beach house for a full week, plenty of folks are still going off for weekends on the water. And in the interest of keeping your luggage to a minimum, the editors at Lucky Magazine had put together a handy, perhaps even dandy, guide for how to get everything you need in one bag. [More]
