If you fly with any sort of regularity, you’ve probably experienced it. You board the plane, only to find the bin above your seat is full. If you’re seated near the front, you’re forced to carry it to the back rows and fight a throng of incoming passengers to return to your seat. That’s not even the worst part. After you land, the bag is almost impossible to retrieve unless you wait for the other passengers to deboard first. Sometimes it means the difference between making or not making a tight connection. Sound familiar?
Recently, a traveler experienced this scenario and took to the American Airlines subreddit to vent. The post hit a hot spot and has already racked up almost 200 comments.
The traveler said they boarded “fairly early’ only to watch “passenger after passenger toss their roller bag in the bins above rows 11,12, 13, then walk back 10-15 rows”. The poster noted that, as a result, passengers assigned to those seats had to carry their own bags to the back of the plane.
It was a frustrating sight. So frustrating that the traveler wrote, “because no one in these rows will need to stow their bags.”
A flight attendant chimed in
A flight attendant checks the overhead bin
(M Stock via Getty Images)
The comment was overheard by a flight attendant, who responded, “I just pick my battles.”
The flight attendant’s answer upset the traveler even more. The traveler ended the post saying, “It should be common courtesy to put your bag in the vicinity of your seat. But when common courtesy fails some people, asking them to be courteous to other passengers should also be something your FAs are expected to do.”
As someone who has been impacted by the thoughtlessness of other passengers, I get it. It’s frustrating to board a plane, only to find someone else has helped themselves to your bin space. It’s doubly so if you’ve only got a few minutes to hustle to your next flight. But should the flight attendants actively police who puts their bags in specific bins? Here’s what the good people of Reddit had to say.
The post resonated with other travelers
Other travelers reported similar experiences
(Thitaporn Yaroteak via Getty Images)
It turned out the traveler was far from alone. The comments quickly filled with reports of similar stories.
“First row definitely gives me anxiety. I hate having my bags further behind me than they need to be”
“I boarded with Group 3, sitting in the 4th row of a Southwest flight recently, and I was so shocked that every space was filled back for several more rows, even. Rude.”
A crew member commented
Travelers keep putting their suitcases in the wrong bin
(Cindhy Ade Hapsari via Getty Images)
A flight crew member commented that policing the luggage compartments could lead to delays.
“Speaking as crew. I could stop each passenger and visually show them which bin to put their bag in, and they’ll still find a way to put it somewhere else. Now imagine we have to take the time to correct bag placement for even half of the passengers. Hello delay city.”
The bottom line
Unless the airlines increase the number of crew onboard, flight attendants can’t help each and every passenger stow their bags correctly without slowing down departure. Although it would be nice if they would call out obvious infractions, it’s up to us to do the right thing as travelers. That includes storing your suitcase in the closest bin to your seat.