Carry on luggage problem/question

Why don't you call the airline?

Your ticket is your "contract". If you're all under a United ticket, those rules are the ones that apply. Read the language regarding luggage carefully. It may also refer to different sizes for the other carriers. If you need to argue with Lufthanse or Swissair, and I think you might unless you pack really light, the right answer is found in your ticket.

Make sure you fit within size and weight limits as stated in your ticket.

Thank you. I certainly plan to call the airline. Was wondering if anyone with experience might be able to give advice.

Two years ago when my mother and I were flying out of SFO on Lufthansa, the airline staff were walking down the line of passengers. If they believed a bag was too large, they took it, placed it in the size rack, if it did not fit, they handed the passenger a check in tag. A lot of upset folks that had their luggage checked in. Hopefully it works out for you.

As someone who flies frequently including yearly to Europe, I certainly wish that all of the airlines had those devices that you can stick your carry-on into to see if it is the right size to go onboard. I rarely see those any more and have not seen them used by anyone in years. Consequently, I see folks bringing items onto the plane on every flight that are oversized. I fly with a RS roller bag that I do check since it contains stuff that is not permitted onboard and take a small to medium sized gym type bag onboard that contains things I do not want to lose. I have only had my check-in luggage delayed once and that was 30 years ago coming home and it was delivered two days later. Lucky? I hope so.

My understanding is that on your outbound flight, United rules apply but coming back it's the rules of the first carrier, Swiss.

That said, we routinely check a roller bag each and have had no problems except for one bag which spent an extra night in Paris on the way home (Swiss). United to Lufthansa baggage transfer at Frankfurt went smoothly.

Any wisdom from this group?

Yes, make sure your rolling carry-on meets the airline with the strictest requirement. Done. If you don't & if you are forced to gate check, you may be charged a steep penalty per bag for not paying to check the bag(s) initially. Be relieved you found this out in advance as opposed to at the gate!

The rule is very simple......whosever name is on the plane is whose rules you follow. The operator of the flight gets to determine the baggage allowance.

A United codeshare with Lufthansa is not a United flight. It's a Lufthansa flight. The codeshare is nothing more than a marketing tool.

Arguing rules and policies with a gate agent is not a winning strategy. Heck, regardless of the allowance, there's never a guarantee that there will be any room for your bags anyway, with the preponderance of bin hogs allowed on board.

I have seen Lufthansa weigh bags, one flight out of three.

8kg=17.8lbs. I travel within these limits for month long trips, and have some items which for one reason or another are never worn. Aspire to pack smart and light!

Give us a general idea of what you are proposing to bring with you. Well tell you what can be omitted.

Edit, I'm a slightly overweight grandmother, who tries to look together at all times.

Pack for the strictest airline requirement and you will not have any problem. Do look at the "personal item" for each airline and don't go crazy over trying to make it the same size as your carry-on luggage. As you are on 2 week trip, plan on some laundry half way through your trip, that way you can pack less.

I fly United extensively from SFO to Europe and often get a code share on Lufthansa and occasionally on Swiss Air. I have had Lufthansa twice in the past 3 years weigh my bag at SFO at the gate and they made me check. Swiss Air has never weighed my bag.

Make sure that the carry-on is as light as possible. Now, I will weigh before I go to the airport. If I am slightly over, then I have have a couple of strategies:

• I pair down my suitcase and shift out items based on weight
• I pick what I am going to wear instead of pack, you will be surprised at how much clothing you can layer. For example, wear my heaviest shoes, etc.
• I also have items that I can quickly shift out of my roll-on into my backpack to lower weight (again it is typically the shoes)
• Just wing it and check if requested

You can call the airline, but they will just tell you their policy.

Problem with luggage size is complicated by code share flights. United's Contract of Carriage: https://www.united.com/web/en-us/content/contract.aspx?POS=US

Codeshare services

The rules contained in United's Contract of Carriage with respect to
ticketing will apply to United's Codeshare services on flights
operated by another carrier. However, each Codeshare partner has terms
and conditions with respect to the operation of its own flights and
may differ from those set forth in United's Contract of Carriage with
respect to flights operated by United.... Terms and conditions that
may differ between United and the partner include, but are not limited
to:

baggage acceptance, allowance and liability;

And the bottom line is, do you want to argue with the code share personnel is a foreign airport?

I looked on the Virgin Atlantic website, checked the specs, and then went to Target with a tape measure to ensure the luggage was of the right size.

Update:
I called United and Lufthansa.
United States that since the ticket is under their “code share” that their baggage rules apply across the ticket.

Lufthansa gave me their blanket policy until I asked them to look up my specific reservation at which point they changed the answer to be consistent with United’s answer.

I plan to travel light- 4 shirts, 1 pant, 1 skirt, 1 pair shorts, wear one pair shoes and pack sandals. Then toiletries etc. my bag starts off weighing 5-6 lbs empty so reaching 18 lb doesn’t seem that difficult.

I have as yet to call Swiss Air but I’m less worried about checking bags on the way home.

Thanks for the advice. Lots of differing replies to this question! I now need to find this in writing to print and carry with me in case of the disagreeable gate agent.

Thanks for the advice. Lots of differing replies to this question! I
now need to find this in writing to print and carry with me in case of
the disagreeable gate agent.

If you ask 10 different gate agents, you'll get 10 different answers. It all depends on that gate agent on that particular day. You will not get a real answer and having some written statement from a customer service agent won't work if the gate agent doesn't want it to.

If your bags are going to be overweight, just check them. There is no prize for going carry-on bags only. Or bring them with you and if they do challenge you, you'll have to gate check them.