Ryanair has been in the spotlight recently, facing accusations from disgruntled passengers who allege that the airline has been sneakily reducing the size of its carry-on baggage allowance. The UK’s most infamous budget carrier is rolling out a series of new rules and procedures in the coming months, including price hikes for larger cabin bags.
Some former customers have voiced their suspicions, claiming that Ryanair managed to implement these changes under the radar by shrinking the metal frames used to measure hand luggage at boarding gates. With the airline’s strict baggage fees, any bag deemed too large at the gate could incur a steep penalty of up to £60.
However, these claims of a covert reduction in baggage dimensions have been firmly denied by Ryanair’s head of marketing, Jade Kirwan, in a statement to Cork Beo. She clarified: “It hasn’t happened, I’ve just checked into this again because we have seen all the chat on social media. The rules have not changed in ten years. What may be happening, is that people that have gotten through a few times before because they were not closely checked have finally gotten that check.”
Jade pointed out that next time passengers board a plane, they should take a gander at the luggage sizers: “Just look at them the next time you fly, they usually look like they’ve gotten a fair bit of use over a long time! ” Ryanair’s each passenger to take a free cabin bag as long as it’s no bigger than 40x20x25cm and can slide under the seat in front. It costs £30 to bring a bigger cabin bag or £25 for checking in a 10kg suitcase. And wait, there’s more: Ryanair’s got some fresh tweaks, like a new fee chart for if your cabin bag’s a bit too beefy at the gates.
Choosing Priority when booking, which comes with a 10kg case, could cost anywhere from £6 to £36 more, but leave it for the gate and your wallet’s in for pain with a leap from £20-£38 up to a stinging £20-£60, Birmingham Live highlighted. If the bag drop desk is more your scene, it’s £35.99 to check-in that 10kg companion.
Ryanair’s boss Michael O’Leary has announced a significant digital shift for the airline, as they plan to transition entirely to electronic processes. Speaking at a Dublin press event, O’Leary revealed that by next spring, all boarding would be done online or via an app, with ticket desks becoming a thing of the past. He emphatically stated: “Nothing will be done on paper anymore.”