mogski 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 I am goign to the US in about two weeks for a week of sliding in Tahoe. Anyways just called United(airline chosen for cheapest ticket) and they told me that the only bag that I will be taking, my ski bag (it is actually a K2 huge arse snowboard bag with wheels) will be charged at 7,500 yen one way cause it is over size!!! Excuse me!? My bag is 2m in length and as said is the only bag I intend to take so I am kind'a PO'd that I am goign to get charged and there is nothing I can do about it. Okay so to the point of this post. Anyone got any good ideas for putting up and arguement so as to avoid payment? Anyone with experience? Link to post Share on other sites
indosnm 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 Well the US airlines seem to be very anal regarding longer than usual baggage. Surfboards are charged at the same rate, and sometimes they open your bag and charge you US$50 -75 per board! (I usually travel with 3-5 boards) Thats why alot of crew sell their boards in Hawaii rather than bring them home! But if thats your only bag then it may be up to the check in chick wether she hits you for it or not! If you already told them ya name they might have put a note on the files and you are stuffed! Link to post Share on other sites
mogski 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Author Share Posted February 12, 2003 Thanks Indo. I am wise enough to not give my name for that obvious reason. It kind'a annoys me that airlines feel the need to charge you for long bags. Not like the plane is so small that your bag has to hang out the window during flight or anything! Christ they ship cars in the damn things! Link to post Share on other sites
indosnm 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 I know you are smarter than that! I love it when a bunch of J tourists get on with 1 tiny suitcase and about 10kg underweight and they still try to hit you for excess baggage! rather than slugging the poorer travellers (surfer,boarders etc) why don't they have a tour group excise? they could clean up! Link to post Share on other sites
badmigraine 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 Here in Detroit the average traveler is a shockingly obese waddler well in excess of 130 kg. So 67 kg me and my slighly-over-the-limit bag weigh much, much less than these staggering fatties, even if said fatties have zero luggage--not ****** likely. Yet I am the one that would have to pay a fine for "excess weight". And some poor sod sitting next to these giant bobbling-brisket tubs of lard would have a flabby gut spilling over the armrest into their seat. My stepsis once sat next to an elephantine monstrosity who put up the armrest and refused to put it back down. When the stewardess was called over to mediate, it was discovered that the armrest could not be put down...the uncontrollably sprawling guts of this fatty prohibited it. What a world. Link to post Share on other sites
Markie 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 I travelled on Northwest from Detroit last summer with my ski kit and they just checked everything in without any hint of trouble. My ski bag is also 2m but my skis are 170 so I folded my bag length down to 175 and taped it up for easy handling. I don't know whether the extra 25cm makes a different or if it's the different airline, anyway, I have never been hassled by any airline when checking in my ski bag. At least not yet. Link to post Share on other sites
sam_casper 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 hey mogs, when drew an i went to japan, we had our board bags and a backpack each, we were really worried bout being over weight cause the limit for our airline was 20kg each, we couldnt even combine that to 40kgs between the 2 of us had to be 20 each. At syd airport they didnt say anything at all, cause our board bags had to be checked in at the oversize lugguge counter. We were told on our way home from japan, that Tokyo airport they dont let you go you have to pay, it would have been 20$US, per kg we were over. we were stressing but they didnt make us pay... just tell them its fragile and they dont seem to care too much either that or we were just lucky! good luck! Link to post Share on other sites
snowboard_freak 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 Just to add to Sam's comments. We checked in very very early when we where leaving Tokyo and i am sure that this made a difference in the gentlemans mind who checked us in. He was a really nice chap though. So i reckon if you rock up early then you should be ok mogs. Link to post Share on other sites
Simon 0 Posted February 12, 2003 Share Posted February 12, 2003 Mog, I've travelled to the US (with United as well) and Japan with my board bag AND my backpack without paying ****. If they want me to pay when I'm checking in, I usually use the old "Whaaat? I've spoken with Jennifer Stewart (or Giovanna Rossi or Yuki Tanaka, depending on the airline I'm using) at your main office and she said it was ok" excuse. Showing your frequent flyer card also helps. I've done this a couple of times and it worked. But most of the time, they simply told me to drop my bag at the oversize luggage counter. Stress the fact that you have only one bag to check in. Link to post Share on other sites
mogski 0 Posted February 13, 2003 Author Share Posted February 13, 2003 Thanks all. I wouldn't normally worry it just that lately I have run into a lot of anal power hungry and that-time-of-the-month (down now ladies! ) check in counter women with something to prove. Generally what it is they are tyring to prove is any of the above, but first thing in the morning wihtout a coffee it is the last thing I am wanting. I would like to tell all those out there that I will be "foreigner" about if anything should be said so fo just one day let me be the minority that makes it hard for us to be here. THANKS! Link to post Share on other sites
scoobydoo 0 Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 I once tried to bring back baked beans, and was so overweight they said it would cost $400. The most expensive beans in the world. As you might expect, we binned the beans. Still officially $200 over, but they let us off! Link to post Share on other sites
nzlegend 1 Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 Quote: Originally posted by mogski: Thanks all. I wouldn't normally worry it just that lately I have run into a lot of anal power hungry and that-time-of-the-month (down now ladies! ) check in counter women with something to prove. THANKS! two years ago I arrived at Christchurch airport with a set of Skis and snowboard and all the associated boots, A huge team sports bag with 37 kg in it and a carry on pack with 30 kg of heavy stuff (books and 5kg of peanut butter) A friendly jovial Indian New Zealand dude was at the counter and he was a genuine nice guy, he was like, its sweet my man, but you gotta distribute the weight around to get under 32kg in the big bag . so I jammed stuff in the snowboard bag and cool as you like I was done. A total of 85 kg and not one cent paid in excess, mostly in part to having a top dude at checkin counter not one of 'them' that you mentioned Mogski Link to post Share on other sites
badmigraine 0 Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 I posted this on a different BBS a couple of days ago. I and my wheelie board bag had a spot of trouble checking into NorthWorst last October (Tokyo to Detroit). "What's in the bag?" they asked me. "A lot of stuff...clothes, books, personal items, shoes, a snowboard..." "SNOWBOARDS ARE 15,000 YEN EXTRA" "Uh...so if there were no board in this bag, then no fine? The bag itself is OK?" "SNOWBOARDS ARE 15,000 YEN EXTRA SIR" "So if I take out the board, the bag is OK, no fine?" "SIR BOARDS REQUIRE SPECIAL CARE SO WE HAVE TO CHARGE EXTRA..." Twenty minutes and two tantrums later, they dropped the fine and we moved on to the next gambit. "PLEASE SIGN THIS SIR." The paper said: I have received my luggage in damaged/partially missing condition because I failed to properly pack and/or mark fragile items. I hereby waive any and all claims against NW Airlines and release NW Airlines from any liabilty under contract, treaty or otherwise. "Uh...excuse me...this says I've already received my luggage from you in damaged condition, but I haven't even checked in yet...are you planning to damage it?" "SIR EVERYONE HAS TO SIGN THAT BEFORE GETTING ON THE PLANE. IT'S UP TO YOU. YOU CAN'T GET ON IF YOU DON'T SIGN IT." I thought about throwing another tantrum, but I really needed that first bloody mary. So I signed the paper "Ronald Reagan" and sailed through directly to the bar. Link to post Share on other sites
Markie 0 Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 At first I thought you made a typo in the name of the airline. After reading the whole post I realized that you had made no mistake and that the airline is appropriately named. Link to post Share on other sites
mogski 0 Posted February 13, 2003 Author Share Posted February 13, 2003 Quote: Originally posted by scoobydoo: I once tried to bring back baked beans, and was so overweight they said it would cost $400. The most expensive beans in the world. As you might expect, we binned the beans. Still officially $200 over, but they let us off! Another one with the baked beans scenario. There has got to be a market phenomenom happening here somewhere. Link to post Share on other sites
mogski 0 Posted February 13, 2003 Author Share Posted February 13, 2003 Quote: Originally posted by kamoshika: Originally posted by mogski: [qb]two years ago I arrived at Christchurch airport with a set of Skis and snowboard and all the associated boots, A huge team sports bag with 37 kg in it and a carry on pack with 30 kg of heavy stuff (books and 5kg of peanut butter) A friendly jovial Indian New Zealand dude was at the counter and he was a genuine nice guy, he was like, its sweet my man, but you gotta distribute the weight around to get under 32kg in the big bag . so I jammed stuff in the snowboard bag and cool as you like I was done. A total of 85 kg and not one cent paid in excess, mostly in part to having a top dude at checkin counter not one of 'them' that you mentioned Mogski Try this now! ANZ in it's small imppresionable capacity understands the Concorde went down because it was over weight. Therefore ANZ beleives that they must be strick on luggage weight even when the 747 you are flying on has all of 50 people on it! I had 37kg coming home from NZ at Xmas time split in two bags. Not a single one was over 20kg. Perfectly split the weights in consideration of the bag handlers. Power hungry woman at the counter charged me NZ$250 for excess! I wouldn't be so angry if the plane was full, but I have pictures showing that there was more crew than passangers! Never before have I seen such an empty 747!!! Link to post Share on other sites
badmigraine 0 Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 Keep those pics, Mogs! Build up that documentary evidence. One of these days we are going to get our revenge and stick it to them! It's a conspiracy!! Link to post Share on other sites
indosnm 0 Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 It really depends on the person checking you in. If you are travelling with others good thing is that you can spread your weight around or have it checked in as a total weight. My board bag (surf) often weighs about 30kg (and thats with foot assistance trying to take a bit of weight off!) if you fly OZ - asia you get 20kg's Oz - Europe/us/sth america you grt 32ks??? whats with that? most routes I fly uses 747's?? Link to post Share on other sites
enderzero 0 Posted February 13, 2003 Share Posted February 13, 2003 I agree on it really being up to the mood of the person at the counter. It is almost not worth your time to argue with anyone that works for an American airline these days. I flew to Japan via Air Canada and had no problems with extra charges. One large, extemely heavy bag, and an even larger board bag full to the point of ripping. [added] One thing I thought of. If you are going to Taho you may have to take a domestic flight which could be where the fee really kicks in. I know they are much stricter on domestics. What is your route? Link to post Share on other sites
JohnUK 0 Posted February 15, 2003 Share Posted February 15, 2003 I live in the UK and have never had much of a problem with my board getting on board. Haven't tried this year yet, but I wonder how much things have changed. Link to post Share on other sites
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