With higher load factors and fuller planes, airlines are focusing more attention on the number, size and shape of passengers’ carry-on bags, forcing more flyers to check their oversized or extra bags at the gates, and to pay checked-bag fees for the inconvenience.
Airlines say they simply want to make sure the carry-ons meet FAA regulations and that they are not looking at this as another revenue stream.
But analysts say the airlines have cash on their minds. Some experts predict the carriers will face challenges collecting fees at the gates and separating those who have to pay from those who don’t.
Airlines have been reporting higher load factors since mid-2009 as they have continued to cut capacity to deal with the demand dip caused by the recession.
In November, the latest month for which government data are available, the nation’s top airlines reported a domestic load factor of 79.2%, the best November on record.
"The higher load factors make it more important for everyone to follow the rules," American spokesman Tim Smith said.
The rules to which Smith was referring are FAA regulations that carry-on bags must be stowed in the overhead bins or under the seats, in effect limiting their size to about 22-by-14-by-9 inches.
As planes have started to fill up, Smith said that American has started to run out of overhead bin space, forcing the airline to require more passengers to check bags.
For those bags that meet FAA carry-on criteria, the airline charges no fee for a gate check.
But for those that do not, and any other "inappropriate" bags noted by American employees and checked at the gate, the carrier charges its usual $25 fee for a first checked bag.
Smith said the airline usually charges the fee on a credit card, the same way it handles itinerary or fare changes. The airline has had no problems collecting the fees, he said.
Airline employees are now watching carry-on bag sizes during every step of the check-in process, Smith said.
"If they see someone carrying a four-foot duffel bag and saying they don’t have any bags to check, they'll say, 'I think you need to check that.' "
Even Transportation Security Administration inspectors are keeping a closer eye on bigger carry-on bags and telling passengers to go back and check them, Smith said.
Delta said its scrutiny of carry-on bags is driven by a need to meet federal rules, not the desire for greater revenue.
"Enforcement of carry-on guidelines is driven by our need to comply with FAA regulations and not by bag fees," Delta spokeswoman Susan Elliott said.
But analysts say the airlines have been looking for months to target passengers who try to avoid checked-bag fees by carrying more bags or overstuffed bags onboard.
"They’ve been looking for a better process for charging for checked baggage at the gate," said flight attendant Gailen David, a longtime aviation consultant and founder of the online resource Sky Steward.
"The problem is that passengers get all the way to the gate with a bag that’s too big or they have too many carry-ons," he said. "Then they check at the gate and they don’t have to pay."
David said passengers will have to get used to using the bag bins airlines have at the gates to check the size of the carry-ons.
"People haven’t used them that much in past years," he said.
Airlines are going to run into trouble, he said, when they start making some passengers pay while letting others take their questionable bags aboard.
"They’ll have to separate their elites," he said.
Jay Sorensen, president of the IdeaWorks consultancy, which publishes the Ancillary Revenue Guide for airlines, agreed.
"Checking bags at the gate? Good luck," he said. "There’s going to be an issue of consistency."