Ryanair doing away with checked baggage service

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Ryanair, the Ireland-based budget airline, has said that it is planning on abolishing its checked bag service, making it necessary for passengers to travel with hand luggage only.

The carrier is planning to offer customers an “unlimited” carry-on allowance, within government size limit specifications, from the spring of next year. According to the airline’s chief executive, it will save Ryanair 20 million euros annually in operating costs.

“We’re going to move away from check-in luggage to more carry-on luggage,” chief executive Michael O’Leary said during a London press conference. He added: “This isn’t the end of civilization as we know it, it only sounds revolutionary. I can assure you it’s not.”

The no-frills airline has already announced that it is eliminating airport check-in desks from 1 October, and is forcing passengers to check-in on its website. According to the new baggage rule, passengers would have to carry all their belongings onto the plane – and when the overhead lockers were full, excess items would be stowed in the hold.

Andrew Lobbenberg, a London-based Royal Bank of Scotland analyst, said: “It does place significant stress on an airport’s security infrastructure, but it’s another option to negotiate on costs with airports and baggage handlers.”

Thanks to www.bloomberg.com for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

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