A few words from the horse's mouth at BA...

[lhbrown]

Hi jashermed,
I too have stopped flying BA, primarily because flying to Paris through London on BA is so much more expensive even when using FF miles. AA and United charge about $64.50 in taxes and fees, BA charged us a whopping $145.00 in taxes and fees acouple of years ago and the layover in London was quite long. The only nice thing BA has is the fact that family members can combine miles, no other airline allows that, as far as I know.
On the baggage issue, I just read today that BA is sticking to the 1 bag rule, but they increased the baggage allowance to 32kg (I believe it was down to 50 lbs), and other carriers are expected to follow.

[jashermd]

Hello,

I've read that the increase is only temporary, until they reduce the amount of checked luggage allowed permanently at the end of September.

http://www.britishairways.com/travel...k/public/en_gb

Personally I don't know why anyone needs 23kg, much less 32kg, of checked luggage, but this is yet another sign of the airlines trying to balance their bottom line at the expense of their passengers. Given the amount of financial support BA has gotten from the government over here (in other words, our taxes) it's particularly galling. They are supposed to be a private enterprise but still behave like a state-owned monopoly...

Cheers,
Julian

[funtimes]

hello Thank you for the info since we will be flying BA this summer. One bag is no problem - a carry on in addition to a checked bag is certainly allowed No??? Please assist with the kg My understanding is that bags may only weigh 44 pounds Is this correct? My husband will be having some difficulty with this since he is definitely a "big and tall" 6 ft 5 - but the real problem is size 15 or 16 shoes - his shoes can take up an entire duffle bag YIKES! Thanks again for any info on lbs baggage amounts - carry on restrictions etc appreciate the help! ...Funtimes

[jashermd]

Hello,

You're allowed one checked bag and on carry-on bag. For carry-ons this means that purses and laptops have to go inside your one bag. They're very serious about this (to the point of being ridiculous and making a mockery of the justification that this is all about speeding up the screening process -- I took my laptop out of the bag a bit before the part where you put it in a plastic bin to save some time because there is always a queue there with people pulling their laptops out of their bags, and was told to put it back in because I couldn't have two items).

If you're flying this summer (before September) you will be able to have 32kgs (70lbs) of checked luggage so you should be fine.

In terms of the shoes, I have figured out a way to get by with one pair of shoes (the ones I'm wearing) when I travel to avoid this problem. A nice pair of business casual type shoes are fine for most situations except athletic events and black or white tie dinners. Ecco makes some great ones -- your husband may want to check them out. They're classically styled and very comfortable (they are a favourite among my colleagues -- I'm a doctor and we all spend huge amounts of time on our feet).

Cheers,
Julian

[funtimes]

Again Thank you for the info - We will be traveling this summer - but not coming home until the month of September You mentioned that 70lbs is in effect now Do you know what the limits are after Sept? We will try to keep each bag under 50 lbs since that is the US requirement and honestly how much more do you need? I plan on taking small packets of laundry detergent with us for wash & wear items Thanks very much for your posts and the shoe reccomendation You are one savy traveler - as are many on LL Take Care ...Funtimes

[jashermd]

Hello,

The new limit will be 23kg (51 lbs). The change happens on September 30, so you may be all right -- though there are plenty of other reasons to avoid having 32kg of luggage!

I always carry some concentrated travel detergent when I travel -- if you are in the US, REI and Container Store have little Woolite packets which work well (unfortunately these are not available in the UK).

Hope your husband can find some shoes that suit him!

Cheers,
Julian

[funtimes]

Thanks Julian - BA is kind of nutty - I just phoned for seat assignments and was told that I could only get them the day of departure - since we will be unavailable to go online 24 hrs ahead - we will be on the first leg of our flight then I was told to log on and put in passport info under manage booking - There is no place to enter passport info What a goofy operation I've email customer service wonder if I'll get a resonse???