A British expat has slammed Jetstar’s carry-on baggage policy after she was forced to remove 3kgs from her luggage prior to takeoff – only to then carry the items on board by hand.
The traveller was flying from Brisbane to Melbourne when she was asked to weigh her bags on Wednesday.
Jetstar staff told her she was going to be charged $70 since her bags exceeded the 7kg carry-on limit but instead of paying she discovered the ‘ridiculous’ way travellers can get around the fine.
As staffers looked on the woman emptied her bags until they were within the weight limit and once they verified her bags were light enough she was able to board.
What she found unbelievable, however, was the fact that she was still able to carry her extra items on her person in order to keep her bags under 7kgs.
‘Have you ever heard anything so ridiculous,’ she said in a TikTok after the fact.
‘Tell me how that makes any sense whatsoever.’
When reached for comment Jetstar said its carry-on baggage policies were designed to ensure a ‘smooth boarding process’ that allowed bags to be stowed safely.
A British expat has expressed her frustration with Jetstar’s carry-on policy after she exceeded her 7kg limit and was simply allowed to carry her extra items on her person
The woman was flying from Brisbane to Melbourne when staff asked her to remove 3kg from her luggage in order to get it within the airline’s weight limit
The expat commended Jetstar’s staff for not raising a fuss despite the airline’s at-odds rules.
‘They let you remove everything from your bag so all of my water, my snacks, my book. I can hold [it], and then they weigh the bag again,’ she said.
‘They were going to charge me $70.’
A spokesperson for the airline explained its baggage policies and said nothing was out-of-order with the women’s experience.
‘Being a proudly low-cost airline, we offer customers incredibly low fares which all include carry-on baggage allowance of 7kg across two items,’ they told Yahoo News.
‘Our carry-on baggage restrictions are designed to ensure a smooth boarding process, enough room to stow safely and comfortably all carry-on items and the correct weight and balance for take-off.’
Travellers can pre-purchase excess baggage at a reduced rate but those who show up to the terminal with more weight than they are allowed are charged excess fees.
She called the episode ‘ridiculous’ as she was still able to take the extra items on the flight which defeated the purpose of her taking them out of her bags in the first place
Jetstar said these hiked fees are because any unexpected extra weight brought on by passengers could potentially cause disruption to its operations.
Social media users who commented on the video equally praised the airline’s staff for not making a big deal out of the situation.
‘They are being kind and saving you $70,’ one user wrote.
‘This is the perfect example of amazing staff trying to protect you from corporate greed,’ another added.
‘I had to put all my work clothes/shoes on from the day before to ‘make weight’…. Saved me the same $70 though… apparently the ground staff are on commission if they catch such cheaters,’ a third claimed.
A fourth commenter however, was a little more confused about how simply carrying on the extra weight makes any difference at all.
‘It makes no difference to the weight going on the plane! You are right, it makes no sense,’ they wrote.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Jetstar for comment.
