Air travel should not be such a pain
IAM lucky enough to remember a time when flying in a commercial aircraft felt like a luxury, instead of a chore.
As long as you remembered your passport, some form of a ticket, and turned up early enough, you were directed into the check-in queue and you could relax from there on in.
Unless your bag was excessively overweight, you had no concern over being charged more, and did not need to know the exact dimensions of any carry-on luggage.
You were permitted to carry an umbrella and a book separately to your carry-on bag, too, so, together with any duty-free, many people would end up boarding the aircraft laden with extras, not to mention the free newspapers which could be picked up as you strolled through the cabin door.
Seats felt roomy and were made of soft leather or something of that texture, and most flights had some kind of screen so you could watch movies even on short flights. And the drinks, which were brought round regularly and, often, were free. Those were, as they say, the days.
I’ve taken possibly more flights on what are known as ‘budget’ airlines in my adult life, so could perhaps be to blame for my own unwillingness to pay for the same luxury.
But I have seen first hand how operators have slowly removed all the extras, made the seats smaller and less comfortable, and added extra charges for almost everything.
The charges on these airlines have become something of a cliche, from paying for your seat to being allowed to carry on any form of hand luggage whatsoever – the dimensions of which you should know as well as if they were your children’s birthdays.
Forget to print out your boarding pass before you arrive at the airport and, oh boy, are you in for a nasty surprise.
So it was with some delight that I read about the Spanish government’s decision to fine airlines, including Ryanair, easyjet and Vueling, for charging consumers for the temerity of having cabin luggage.
The Spanish authorities carried out an investigation last summer, and said charging passengers for cabin luggage, as well as reserving seats for children and other dependants, was an ‘abusive practice.’
Ryanair was also censured for the policy of charging passengers €20 to print off paper tickets.
Representatives of the airlines called the fines ‘disproportionate’ and said they would appeal.
Yet one of the consumer groups which brought the case said it had been campaigning for six years to get the government to intervene, and welcomed the move.
The question that we, as British consumers, should be asking is why it has taken the Spanish government to challenge this sort of corporate behaviour.
Why should we have to worry that, if we forget to print off our boarding passes, we will be charged a hefty sum for the airline to do the same?
Why should we have to pay to take on cabin luggage, or pay to sit next to our own children?
When most families should be excited about starting their holidays, most people are far more worried about the potential financial pitfall of boarding passes or whether their luggage is the right size.
For far too long, governments have allowed companies to make up these rules as they have gone along, instead of actually representing the ordinary consumer.
In being ‘pro-business’, our own authorities have allowed firms such as airlines (but also plenty of others in different industries) to take the customer for granted, and milk them for everything they’ve got.
But could things finally change? Well, pigs might fly before then...
‘Why should we have to pay to take on cabin luggage, or pay to sit next to our children?’