Hand Baggage Policy: There are many news regarding handbag policy on many platforms including social media. It has been reported in these reports that a meeting was held recently between the Bureau of Civil Aviation Securities (BSAS) and the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), in which a decision was taken regarding the weight, number and size of handbags. Besides, in these news it has also been said that the new baggage policy will be implemented soon.
At the same time, after these news, confusion among passengers regarding the new hand baggage policy has reached its peak. The situation is such that the call centers of airlines, airports and CISF are flooded with calls regarding the clarity of the handbag policy. In such a situation, it is important to understand what is the rule regarding handbag policy? Has there really been any change regarding the number, weight and size of hand luggage or not? So let us first understand what BCAS and airlines’ hand baggage policy says…
What do BCAS rules say about handbags?
BCAS has addressed hand baggage as carry-on baggage in its rules. As per BCAS rules, passengers are allowed to carry one carry-on baggage in addition to personal items such as a laptop computer, purse, small backpack, briefcase or camera case. In this regard, Circular 6/2000 issued by BCAS states that any passenger can take the following items with him along with his hand bag. In these…
• Ladies purse
• overcoat
• Rag or blanket
• Camera or binoculars
• Books or magazines
• Umbrella or stick
• Newborn food
• Newborn basket
• Folding wheel chair
• Gifts purchased from duty free shops
After some time, new circular 11/2000 of BCAS came. In this circular, passengers were allowed to carry laptop bags along with their hand bags. The third circular related to hand baggage was 34/2000, which was related to carrying files and readable materials in flight. To know all the rules of BCAS related to hand bags, you can also read by visiting the official website of BCAS.
Also read: The chain of the passenger’s bag was opened for search at the airport, hands and legs started trembling after seeing the inside, it turned out to be a crocodile and… With the help of intelligence profiling at the airport, the Customs team has arrested two passengers. During the search, as soon as both the bags were opened, crocodiles and…. And what happened next, to know Click Do it.
What do Air India’s rules say about hand bags?
Quoting BCAS Circular 6/2000, Air India has said that a passenger will be allowed to carry only one bag as handbag. Air India has clarified here that this rule will be applicable on both international and domestic flights as well as passengers with Maharaja Club or Star Alliance frequent flyer status. If the weight of the baggage exceeds the free baggage allowance, you may have to pay additional baggage fees.
Let us tell you here that Air India has remembered the BCAS circular 6/2000 here, but it has forgotten to mention the next circular 11/2000 regarding hand baggage. BCAS Circular 11/2000 allows you to carry one laptop bag with you as hand baggage. Apart from this, the airlines have not even mentioned in their website the ten things which are allowed to be carried in the aircraft along with the handbag.
What is the confusion regarding the date of May 2, 2024?
According to sources, there is a lot of confusion regarding the date of May 2, 2024. Due to this confusion, passengers are continuously calling the call centers and asking. Here let us tell you that May 2, 2024 is related only to the passengers of Air India. According to Air India, the maximum weight for tickets issued before May 2, 2024 will be as per the previous cabin baggage policy. This reason is 8 kg for economy class, 10 kg for premium economy and 12 kg for first/business class.
Under the hand baggage policy of Air India, currently you are allowed to carry only hand bag up to seven kg. Know what the current rules of Air India say…
| Economy / Premium Economy | First/Business Class | |
| Max weight | 7 kg | 10 kg |
| bag size | Height: 55 cm (21.6 inches) Length: 40 cm (15.7 inches) Width: 20 cm (7.8 inches) | Height: 55 cm (21.6 inches) Length: 40 cm (15.7 inches) Width: 20 cm (7.8 inches) |
bag dimensions | 115 cm | 115 cm |
To know in detail about the hand baggage policy of Air India, you can also click on the official website of the airline.
What do Indigo’s rules say about hand bags?
Hand bag rules in Indigo Airlines are as per domestic and international passengers. If you are traveling in a domestic flight, then the passenger can take one handbag up to 7 kg of length + width + height of 115 cm with him in the aircraft. Apart from this, passengers can also carry personal belongings up to 3 kg along with their handbag, which also includes ladies purse and laptop bag.
If you are traveling with your newborn child then the infant baggage allowance will be 7 kg. At the same time, if you are an international traveller, then according to codeshare, the weight of your hand bag will be between seven kg to eight kg. To understand the baggage policy of IndiGo in detail, you can also visit the official website of IndiGo.
What do Spice Jet’s rules say about hand bags?
According to Spice Jet, each passenger is allowed to carry one hand baggage with a maximum weight of 7 kg. At the same time, if the passenger is flying by Boeing aircraft, then its dimension should be 115 cm (length: 55 cm + width: 35 cm + height: 25 cm). Whereas if the passenger is traveling by Q400 aircraft, then the total dimension of his bag should be 108 cm (Length: 50 cm + Width: 35 cm + Height: 23 cm).
Along with one hand bag, passengers can also carry laptop bag, ladies purse, duty free shopping bag on board the aircraft, provided the total weight of cabin baggage does not exceed 7 kg. If the weight is more than seven kg, you will have to pay Rs 650 per kg for the extra weight. At the same time, passengers with infants are allowed to carry one additional hand luggage weighing maximum 7 kg. To know the details of Spice Jet’s baggage policy, you can click on the official website of the airline.
Then where did the talk of 7Kg weight and a handbag come from?
In fact, due to passengers arriving at the airport with two or more hand luggage, CISF was taking a lot of time to clear the passenger queue at the pre-embarkation security check point. Also, because of these passengers, unnecessarily long queues were forming at the airport. For the convenience of passengers, CISF had asked airlines to strictly enforce the hand baggage policy.
After which, airlines are allowing their passengers to carry only one hand bag along with personal bag. Apart from this, some airlines have installed their weighing machines near the boarding gate, where the weight of the passengers entering the aircraft is being given. If the weight of hand luggage is more than seven kg, then passengers’ extra baggage fee is being collected on the spot. After these two exercises, the discussion regarding baggage policy has suddenly increased.
Tag: Airport Diaries, aviation news
first published : December 30, 2024, 11:16 IST
