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Thread: Cabin Luggage, Cathay Pacific

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    Default Cabin Luggage, Cathay Pacific

    Have you recently flown with loads of equipment? How did you do it?


    This coming November 2012, I have a pretty big trip coming up with Cathay Pacific. Their cabin baggage allowance says dimensions no more than 22x14x9 inches - no problems there! I think I can fit most everything of worth in a Pelican Case sized perfectly for that. Two bodies, 3 fixed aperture zoom lenses and a laptop ought to all fit inside with loads of padding.


    The problem however is weight. The case alone weighs just 1kg shy of the limit!! I will be going to ask Cathay what I should do, but I do wonder if anyone has had experience in this regard.

    Thanks!

    Randy




    PS.

    Just as an aside, I've often wondered why we weigh carry luggage and not people...

    I once had a short tropical inter-island hop of a flight and they have a good system going on: They weigh you with everything you'll bring with the cabin (obviously, checked baggage is weighed as is)

    As potentially mean as that sounds, I think it's just fair if we're talking about how much I'm going to cost the Airline in terms of fuel. I should not have to pay extra if someone can tip the scales 300lbs naked, whilst me at 180lb +gear is probably still less than that.

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    You can load as much as you wish into your clothing/jacket pockets. Many freelance photographers do this, so my buddy in Singapore tells me. He shoots war zones and earthquakes, etc, when the call comes in he loads up a carry-on bag and one in the baggage compartment. Along with his jacket loaded (lenses and heavier items) to the gills and knapsack (stuff he really needs):

    http://www.techradar.com/news/photog...tested-1061917

    If you can wear it, it is not luggage and as they say (military) "why carry what you can wear". Also, you are allowed a carry-on bag and another small bag to fit under the seat in front of you. Think of it in terms of what ladies do with a purse. Your "purse" is a knapsack with the laptop, heavier items, etc in it. I fly (Calgary to London, Tokyo, etc) with a carry-on (clothing) and a knapsack, I check nothing in for baggage ever. I did this for six months on the road, went light and smart after "losing" my checked in bag on a flight to Delhi. I should pay less as I am not using the services of checked in baggage, being of normal weight, seldom eat the airline food, I should fly for 25% less... good luck getting it from an airline.
    Last edited by CanmoreOrLess; 02-28-2012 at 12:28 PM.

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    Hey Randy, Lloyd here.


    Are you traveling with someone? If you are, then have them hold your heavier-than-allowed carry-on baggage as you check your bags in. The only times I've been asked to weigh my carry-on bag is when I was talking with a clerk and they see my carry-on and tell me to put it on the scale. I had to check a bag full of cameras and lenses, which really worried me. Thankfully, it was ok, but it easily could have gone bad.

    Once I'm in the security line, nobody has ever asked to weigh my bags. My camera bag for overseas travel is a Thinktank Airport International 2. It was DOUBLE the allowed carry-on weight. Just don't let a check-in clerk see your carry-on.

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    .
    Last edited by kaput; 03-12-2019 at 08:16 PM.

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    I literally have a lower style suit case that I use. I've never weighed how much it weighs when I'm doing travel work.

    HOWEVER, inform the airline carrier they do not have the necessary insurance requirements for the value of the contents and that you would happily check your bag only if they agree to insure the full contents all full replacement value.

    They will very quickly ask you to board the plane with no questions asked. I only got stopped once and it was for an American Airlines flight.

    They wanted me to check it and I said I certainly would if they would be willing to reimburse me the $20,000+ it would cost to replace anything if something got damaged or stolen.

    You make such a valid point on the weight restrictions yet more and more we see people travelling taking up two seats and when they aren't given the two seats they sue somebody.

    I simply chalk it up to the airline wanting to force you to check the bag to incur more fees.

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    On a side note and not a racist one at all. Where the hell do Indian passengers get the fridge/desk sized suitcases I so often see when boarding a flight to or from India? Are they slowly bringing over a car?

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    Originally posted by kaput
    The worst case scenario I ever saw was at the gate some people who went way over the size limit got stopped by the ticket checker, and by then all they had time to do is have a ramp guy meet them at the end of the bridge and put it underneath. They always brought those bags out first and handed them back on the bridge at the destination so they didn't go through the conveyors. This is just my experience.
    Earlier this month I flew to San Diego and what you've described is precisely how oversize carry-on was handled on the connecting flight from LAX. It was a commuter jet so obviously it had a much smaller cabin and tighter restrictions. I think they called it "valet luggage service" or something to that effect, and anyone using it picked up their bags on the tarmac.

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    Originally posted by gogreen
    I think they called it "valet luggage service" or something to that effect, and anyone using it picked up their bags on the tarmac.
    Yeah except they treat your fucking bag like a real valet would treat your car: like shit. They dented/pushed in the volume buttons on my laptop because they just throw/drop the bags like they would any other piece of luggage. Unless they insist, do not give them your bag. And even if they do, remove all fragile contents beforehand.
    You have a couple of photos that are great... you must be very good at photoshop!

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    Originally posted by CanmoreOrLess
    On a side note and not a racist one at all. Where the hell do Indian passengers get the fridge/desk sized suitcases I so often see when boarding a flight to or from India? Are they slowly bringing over a car?
    No offense taken international flights used to allow 70lbs max per bag. Most Indian ex pats are normally travelling for a month or longer plus taking loads of stuff back home. Likely a bunch don't care to buy new suitcases to replace the behemoths they already own.

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    Originally posted by clem24


    Yeah except they treat your fucking bag like a real valet would treat your car: like shit. They dented/pushed in the volume buttons on my laptop because they just throw/drop the bags like they would any other piece of luggage. Unless they insist, do not give them your bag. And even if they do, remove all fragile contents beforehand.
    Good advice, I don't fly extensively so I'd never seen it before. I certainly wouldn't want to risk it. As it was my checked luggage got left behind at LAX.

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    http://photography-on-the.net/forum/....php?t=1091369

    THanks for the replies everyone! Found the above link and it too shed some light to the issue.

    I guess my options are:

    -Take a risk with a Pelican 1510 and stuff everything in there as weight doesn't seem to be a sticky issue.

    -Distribute the weight to a backpack (this to me seems the ridiculous part since, having done more reading, a backpack has no specified weight... and I hate carrying backpacks in (transcontinental... edit) INTERcontinental flights. Always have carried all documentation, some valuables, and a point and shoot in one satchel - the rest is checked in.

    At least i have 9 months to think about it. The thing is it's either a really long trip or a semi permanent relocation. Hence why I'm bringing everything that matters. If it were a short vacation then I'd just pack super light and be done with it...
    Last edited by randedge; 02-29-2012 at 11:21 AM.

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    And Lloyd, I'm all by my lonesome.

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    Flight to Mexico a couple weeks back (through Sunwing) and they were randomly weighing peoples carry on luggage so it does happen.

    Like other suggested take a carry on bag and a murse or something stupid and 'wear' whatever you can.

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    Again as I said, bring up the issue with the lack of insurable coverage the airline has on high value items. They won't even bother with it once they realize the contents of what you are bringing on are fragile and with a high value replacement fee.

    The think tank and lower pro luggage are pretty good with how you can pack things in but I still wouldn't trust it. I mean $20,000+ worth of cameras, lenses, laptops, etc sitting in the cargo area or left for even a couple seconds in the luggage pickup area. It's a bit of a nightmare waiting to happen.

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    I'm still trying to work on a solution to get my 400mm 2.8 to vegas when I travel next month. I believe my lowepro bag is just barely within the carry on limit, the problem is that the 400 makes it significantly thicker.

    When I travelled to Fort Worth I had a slightly smaller bag and it was loaded to the hilt...weighed about 42 lbs. No problems at check in (american airlines flight), but when I got to the gate the agent suggested that I would have to put it under the seat in front of me (despite me paying extra for "priority boarding") I told her that I had paid the extra money to board early specifically so that I could get a spot in the overheads, and that's where my bag would be going. That was the end of the debate.

    I definitely wouldn't trust my camera gear in the hands of the average ramp agent.
    Originally posted by HeavyD
    you know you are making the right decision if Toma opposes it.

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    I often think the airline employees simply don't get it. I recall one trip where they moved my camera bag from the front of the plane to the very back of the plane as one of the flight attendants was travelling to Maui with her daughter. Rather than checking their bag they took up several overhead containers to put all of their baggage as carry on and then moved several passengers carry on items. Needless to say I was extremely annoyed with this alone let alone being forced to check a bag worth thousands of dollars just so somebody can put their bathing suite on the plane.

    If you haven't noticed most people always try to carry on all their clothing to avoid checking a bag. It's something they should put an end to as carry on should only be valuables.

    I'd also agree with those carry-on bags the size of a mini fridge that barely fit in the overhead. It's the size of a medium sized suit case...

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    I've never had loads of equipment, but when I get on a plane I probably have in my Tenba messenger bag: 1 body, 2 zooms (28mm-400mm EFL coverage), 1 flash, 2 filters, misc. accessories like lens pen along with a 10.1" Netbook. Then in my jacket pocket is an E-PL1 w/ 14-42 kit lens. A sling bag for use upon arrival is checked inside my bigger clothing luggage with a gorillapod w/ ballhead. The messenger bag usually fits nicely under the seat in front of me so that I can keep an eye on it the whole time.

    Some of you guys are WAY more dedicated than I am when it comes to hauling gear around haha. I wouldn't even consider taking a 1kg+ lens. Seriously, if your gear is so huge that the case alone won't meet cabin requirements, then it needs to be checked along with other people's expensive items like rifles, snow boards, golf clubs, etc. That's what the giant pelican cases are for right? To be tossed around while protecting your gear inside.

    So... if you've got a high end case with padding that you trust, I'd check that in and just keep a body w/ lens on you just in case the luggage gets lost.

    EDIT: them pelican cases are pretty awesome and tough. They're used to ship rentals, demos, etc of mucho $$$, fairly fragile thermal cameras around on UPS, Fedex, ex. They're all cheapo plastic (non-metal) bodies with much more fragile germanium lenses. Your DSLR will be fine.
    Last edited by ga16i; 02-29-2012 at 12:23 PM.
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    I don't doubt the durability of a pelican case.

    The bigger question.

    You do know that millions of pieces of luggage are lost and unclaimed every single year?

    Most airlines will only offer you $300 for any lost luggage.

    In Steve's case he could buy a factory in India for what some of his gear is worth...

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    Originally posted by ga16i

    Some of you guys are WAY more dedicated than I am when it comes to hauling gear around haha. I wouldn't even consider taking a 1kg+ lens. Seriously, if your gear is so huge that the case alone won't meet cabin requirements, then it needs to be checked along with other people's expensive items like rifles, snow boards, golf clubs, etc. That's what the giant pelican cases are for right? To be tossed around while protecting your gear inside.

    So... if you've got a high end case with padding that you trust, I'd check that in and just keep a body w/ lens on you just in case the luggage gets lost.

    EDIT: them pelican cases are pretty awesome and tough. They're used to ship rentals, demos, etc of mucho $$$, fairly fragile thermal cameras around on UPS, Fedex, ex. They're all cheapo plastic (non-metal) bodies with much more fragile germanium lenses. Your DSLR will be fine.
    Mine won't be huge, it'll just be heavy. 15lbs is ridiculously low for a limit. As such, I find we passengers are being fed contradicting advice. Every Airline says, "Bring valuables onboard, but you only have a weight limit that translates to clothing only."

    And if it were a hard limit, I wouldn't be asking for tips on how to play/circumvent this rule. As i said, I'm a light traveller, and have been all this time. Yet I've often witnessed people bring big heavy bulky things onboard that could only have been over in both volume and mass. But that's ok, since I, along with my other fellow light packers, have made up for their excess with my shortfall.

    However, this is either a super long stay with a goal of semi permanence (ie. I am moving there, though I don't want to put it that way just in case). Ethically, I justify all this because I just want to balance out the universe and get away with having cabin luggage that's overweight just thiiis one time. After that, I'll be back to being Mr. Lightweight.

    In the end, I'm more Video than Photo. Though I'm picking up the subtle nuances of photo taking, my video background is more for run and gun gonzo shit. So yeah, my loadout is always light. I just need to get everything that matters to me across the Pacific.

    I'm exploring ideas of shipping as well, since they would insure you for as much as you are willing to buy. But I need a reliable destination address, which I don't necessarily have. As i said, Ican fit it all inside luggage that conforms to the volume limits, it's just the weight that is easily doubled as AccentAE86 said. Again, at least I have 9 months to plan things out. Plus, if I spend money on shipping, I'd be very flabbergasted if I saw anyone hauling something far heavier and bulkier into the cabin with me.

    All in all, I'm happy for all the tips and tricks. Keep 'em coming! The anecdotes are nice too! Shows how they don't stick to their own rules. (Edit) That's the thing about all this discretionary flexibility is the uncertainty is more unnerving. It's even affecting what luggage to buy: Do I go for the tanklike Pelican? Or do I go for the stealthy backpack? If it were a hard rule applied to everyone, then I'd pursue alternatives.

    As I said, the most practical thing I've witnessed is a turboprop flight where they weighed each passenger with their luggage. This is a flight where a lot of scuba divers bring their own equipment (no tanks but a lot of fins, suits, masks, and specialized stuff depending on whether they're researchers, photographers, whatever...). Their limit is actually high, it would only be unreasonable to the morbidly obese. Perhaps mean, but it sure is practical and fair to everyone - how much weight you contribute to the plane is the weight you'll be measured by.
    Last edited by randedge; 02-29-2012 at 02:50 PM.

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    Hahaha...not quite that much. I've thought of the pelican option with some secure locks, the problem being that the pelican that would hold the 400 plus the other gear is a small fortune on it's own, and would cost a slightly larger fortune every time I went anywhere with it in oversize baggage fees.

    When I was shopping around for insurance policies the guy told me that "this" was the insurance policy that all the photographers were buying, it included $5000 of onsite coverage, plus $25'000 in total coverage. The policy was pretty affordable, but I told him what the gear I travel with alone goes for more than the total coverage and he had no good answer for that :-P
    Originally posted by HeavyD
    you know you are making the right decision if Toma opposes it.

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