An Australian airline has just done something flyers everywhere have been asking for, that they say solves everything that’s wrong with air travel. And it’s low cost carrier Jetstar.
There’s never enough overhead bin space for passengers. Carry-on bags slow down boarding. People bonk each other on the heads with their bags. Wouldn’t travel be so much more efficient if airlines charged passengers for carry-on bags, and carried their checked bags for free?
That would incentivize getting the bags out of the cabin, make boarding and deplaning so much faster, and help airlines keep an on-time operation. They could schedule less time on the ground, when hundred million dollar planes are only making money while they’re in the air.
I still think a “ we board in 15 mins because carry on bags are $100 and checked bags are free” airline would do well https://t.co/moTHgKNh2J
— Tom Goodwin (@tomfgoodwin) July 25, 2026
Easy solution that aligns better with the value and economics:
Charge for carry-ons. Checked bags fly free.
— Stephen Kneubuehl (@kneubuehl) February 12, 2026
Checked bags for free and then charge these selfish travelers for their “carry-ons”. https://t.co/DABjnz2CuQ
— Wes Reynolds (@WesReynolds1) December 27, 2024
The truth is that ‘checked bags free’ may not be the best answer, and you don’t even need it to get the incentives right. Checked bags would only need to be cheaper than carry-ons, so that letting someone else carry your bag for you becomes the money saving default – at least for people who don’t value their time.
Jetstar is about to test part of the idea. They’ll charge passengers for access to overhead bins.
Jetstar Will Sell Access To Its Overhead Bins
For Jetstar Airways flights departing February 2, 2027 onward, the airline’s basic Economy fare will include only one bag that fits under the seat. It can measure no more than 40 x 30 x 20 centimeters. A standard roller bag in the overhead bin will require purchasing “Priority Carry-on.”
That includes:
- One underseat item.
- One overhead bag measuring up to 56 x 36 x 23 centimeters.
- Priority boarding after Business Class passengers but before travelers with underseat bags only.
Priority Carry-on will be capacity-controlled. Jetstar will sell only as many as it believes the aircraft can accommodate, and it may sell out. The airline’s initial examples, in Australian dollars but pricing will be dynamic, and buying at the airport or gate will cost more.
- Launceston–Sydney: $25.
- Adelaide–Brisbane: $26.
- Sydney–Melbourne: $33.
- Perth–Bali: $39.
- Cairns–Tokyo Narita: $52.
The 7kg Limit Is Going Away
Australian airlines and many European airlines are draconian when it comes to carry-on bag weight limits. In the U.S. we’re used to carrying on anything that fits. In much of the world you can’t take on more than 15 pounds. On some trips my laptop bag can weigh that much.
Currently Jetstar currently lets economy passengers bring a main carry-on and a small personal item weighing no more than 7 kilograms combined. Customers can pay for another 7 kilograms on top. Under the new system, Jetstar will stop routinely weighing bags at the gate. Like in the U.S., they’ll focus on bag size – and, like United, whether the passenger has purchased overhead bin access (not purchased basic economy).
There’s still a weight limit, up to 10 kg, but no combined weight limit for two bags for someone that’s purchased ‘Priority Carry-on’. And they may not weigh bags at all.
There’s no guarantee of overhead space, it’s still a license to hunt, but it’s capacity controlled so there should be space and that also makes things more civilized. You don’t have to rush to board early to gain access.
Things get more complicated with bunlding. They’re offering a new Flex bundle that’s closest to the passenger ideal of ‘bags fly free, charge for carry-ons.’ It let the passenger choose:
- Priority Carry-on, including the overhead bag, or
- A 20-kilogram checked bag.
The passenger is buying transportation for one bag and they choose where the airline carries it.
We Already Have This In The U.S. and Europe
Frontier, Allegiant, Avelo, Breeze and Sun Country sell carry-on bags separately on their least expensive fares.
United does essentially the same thing through fare segmentation. Most passengers traveling on a domestic Basic Economy ticket receive one personal item but not a full-size carry-on. United generally does not sell an overhead bag as a separate add-on. The passenger must purchase a higher fare. So overhead bin space costs more.
Air Canada Basic, WestJet UltraBasic and Porter Basic use similar underseat-only fares on some routes. Flair charges separately for an overhead bag. This is already normal in Europe. Ryanair, easyJet, Wizz Air, Norwegian, Vueling, Eurowings, Transavia, Finnair and others advertise fares that include only a small bag.
Aer Lingus actually has the ‘perfect incentive model’ passengers are talking about – on many intra-Europe fares checking a 10 kilogram bag is included at no charge but carry-on comes at a fee. Ryanair Plus and Transavia Plus include checked luggage without including a full-size overhead bag. Volaris has international fares that include checked luggage but not an overhead carry-on.
Why Charging For Carry-Ons Makes Sense
There’s limited capacity in overhead bins. When demand exceeds supply (like for an exit row seat!) the passenger can capture the excess value for themselves, or the airline can do so with a fee.
An overhead bag is cheap for an airline until overhead bins fill up. Then its cost increases sharply, since full bins means last minute gate checking bags which require a different gate setup, staffing, and procedures. Plus, passengers stop in the aisle while searching for space. It can also delay flights.
The flipside is what Southwest has discovered – charging for checked bags means more passengers carry bags on. That makes boarding take longer.
Checked bags aren’t free, of course. A whole infrastructure is required to manage them, not to mention the costs of dealing with mishandled bags. But the marginal cost of an additional checked bag (versus being held in the plane, so weight remains constant) is very low once the structure is in place. However making checked bags free causes passengers to check more bags and that means more weight and more fuel.
One of the major reasons we have these fees, though, is tax arbitrage. On U.S. domestic flights, airfare is subject to a 7.5% excise tax. That doesn’t apply to fees. So moving money out of the fare and into fees means airlines pocket tax savings, even if the net cost to the passenger is the same.
I like the Jetstar model though – more permissive carry-on rules, strong likelihood of getting bin space regardless of when you board – that’s actually worth something.
That is an interesting concept. The problem with that for someone like myself is that when I travel I carry confidential client documents in my carry on that I am legally obligated to protect. Trusting an airline not to lose the bag is not an option for me.
This idea is nothing but a money grab. Do you really think less overhead bags will change departure time? When I fly the 6:30 flight to PHX I push back at 6:30. I don’t say hey the boarding is done early so let’s go! Guess what….the gate at PHX won’t be available. Reducing overhead bags leading to some kind of saved time is a farce. Kinda like the hotel not washing your towels to “save the planet” It’s all BS to make more money! Trust me on this.
I may be swimming against the tide here, but I like this concept. Passengers prefer carry-ons to avoid the costs and wait times associated with checked bags. The only difference is that passengers now have to pay for that privilege. Yes, it’s another way to separate us from our money, and make the airlines more profitable, but fees and surcharges are the reality of our brave new world. If there’s going to be a charge for baggage regardless of whether it’s checked or carry-on, I’m one of the few that would prefer to check my bags instead of schlepping them around the airport.
Thank you, Gary, for including the “We already have this in the US and Europe” section, so that those of us based there do not have to explain how this is nothing new in certain segments of those markets.
Unless folks live or have visited Australia or parts of E. Asia and Oceania where Jetstar and its affiliates operates, they may have never even heard of the airline. It’s a low-cost wholly-owned subsidiary of Qantas. For the most part, I’d say the on-board experience is like Frontier or Allegiant in the US; however, they do have a few wide-bodies, too, so that is unique.
Eh. By far the best international baggage model is the American Major Carrier one. You install large bins and everybody gets a normal size carry-on and personal item, and there’s no hassle. People like this system and they buy tickets. Is there a single flyer out there who objects to being able to bring a reasonable amount of luggage on board a plane and not pay extra for it? I doubt it. The American carriers transport millions of people a day with the system and it works pretty darn well.
I would not like my checked bag to be limited to 20 kg. In Canada, we get up to 23 kg (50 lbs)von mainline air carriers. I have often found that I need those last 3 kg.
Finally, a company that delivers what its guests are asking for.
I’d add one more solution: on landing, overhead bins stay closed until everyone who doesn’t need access to them gets off the plane. No carry on = you get off the plane faster.
The only people complaining about deplaning are the spoiled, entitled whiners. They think they should be able to sprint off the plane first from wherever they are seated because they are special and privileged because their Airline tells them they are, I recently traveled on one of the Major Carriers in the US and my friend and I were seated in the very last row of a 737 Max-8. We were off the aircraft 10 minutes after the front cabin door opened, I timed it. My friend and I stayed sitting until the passengers in front of us began moving and would have been quicker if the Wheelchair Attendant at our departing city had not lost my carry on cart at Security. The best thing Airlines can do is tell their whiners to chill, they won’t actually die waiting a couple of minutes to deplane.
They might also tell them to grow up as they really do sound like they are throwing a tantrum. But yet this same group of whiners would like to ban children from their flight.
American: I want off the plane as fast as possible, because I’m mildly claustrophobic, have a bad back and knees, and usually in the middle of a nicotine fit. I also only do carry-on, so I want my exit to be as efficient as possible. And, yes, I’m a spoiled, entitled whiner and love being so.
I’ve been saying this for years. On airlines that allow BE travelers to bring a full size carry on you always see pax and FA’s trying to find space for a massive roll a board when all the bins are full.
Give first, extra legroom seats, and elites free carry ons. Charge for the rest of the passengers.
This is ridiculous – another “unbundling money grab.” I mean honestly – pretty soon hotels will be charging for pillows or towels. What’s next for flights, a pay per use toilet?
@Matt — I thought that was Delta?
(@L737, honestly, I think it’s actually him, but, like, maybe he’s just into a different ‘bit’ these days… gosh, I miss the old Matt. Feels like when you go to see a band live, but all they do is play their ‘new’ album, and it’s not necessarily ‘bad,’ though you really would prefer they play their greatest hits. Basically, Matt is David Bowie’s Outside Tour in 1995… refusing to play even a taste of “Changes,” “Let’s Dance,” or “Space Oddity.” C’mon, Dave give us a little Major Tom! C’mon, Matt, give us a ‘please consider’!)
Jetstar is a subsidiary of Qantas. QF advertises that every fare includes a 23kg checked bag allowance. Thus, there never seems to be a problem with carry ons. @Gary, I think the 10kg limit is more a recommendation. They just want you having a carry on you can lift without assistance. Ryanair has the same policy (get one underseat, pay extra for carryon plus priority boarding with limited numbers available), although they have to respond to EU changed policy. I didn’t see any policing to prevent “under seat only” pax from using bins, so I think the idea of priority coming with a carry on is designed to let those paying having a first crack.
@Raphael Solomon, you can buy up to 40kg of checked weight (no bag > 32kg). The 20kg mentioned is just one option.
@Steve. Your clients documents are larger than 40cm×30cm×20cm? And if so, I’d imagine that someone bearing AU$25 for the requisite security isn’t unreasonable.
Been saying for years this is the way to go. Airlines are charging for the wrong luggage type, and no matter how efficient you are with your carry-on strategy you are stuck waiting on someone who isn’t.
It will be interesting to see the impacts after its been in rotation for 3-6 months.
I’m sorry, but the airlines created this mess, and the solution is to nickel-and-dime passengers with punitive fees for things that have been included forever? (Well, except maybe on Spirit and Frontier, which would surprise no one.)
At this point, why stop there? Charge a per-visit bathroom fee. Meter the toilet paper by the sheet. Bill passengers for paper towels to combat “bathroom wanderer syndrome.” Maybe provide just enough oxygen to keep everyone conscious, then offer an “Oxygen Comfort Upgrade” for $19.95 with recycled air and $39.95 for the premium clean-air package.
The real problem is that people keep accepting this endless parade of pay-to-play fees. Every year there’s a new surcharge, a new upsell, a new way to separate you from your wallet. And when anyone complains, the response is always the same: “Nothing in life is free. Just deal with it.”
No. That’s exactly why it keeps getting worse.
Either include the costs in the ticket price or stop pretending these are anything other than revenue grabs. At least if everything is rolled into the fare, you’re getting fleeced once at checkout instead of being shaken down à la carte throughout the entire travel experience.
Just look at how well the Las Vegas resort-fee model has worked out. Everyone hates it, yet somehow every industry keeps trying to copy it.
Great idea. It’s not just a “revenue grab.” This is about customer behavior. Money motivates people. If it costs more to carry on, most people will check their bags. Sure, the “entitled whiners” will do what they continue to do. They’ll just have to pay for the privilege. The boarding issues (gate lice, people stopping to look for space, people bringing multiple carry-ons) will be reduced.
Curious to see what the status quo is say 2-3 years from now.
@1990 — I agree! But I also read any post by “Matt” with the same tone in my head haha
@L737 — To the tune of “Space Oddity”…
Ground Control to Major Matt,
Your classic bit has gone off track!
We’re sitting in the comments, feeling blue,
Waiting for the phrase we expect from you…
So give us just one hit,
Don’t play the new album yet,
Far above the crowd, there’s only one thing left to do:
“Please consider Delta.”
*audience goes wild*
Ok, one more verse:
Ground Control to Major Matt,
Your Sky-Pesos account is flat!
Did Ed Bastian steal your favorite meme away,
Or are you saving up your hits for another day?
The readers are calling out,
Across the jetway wall,
Floating in the comments, waiting for your classic call:
“Please consider Delta.”
It looks like just another fee. we need less, not more, of this.
@WearyWatchdog
The airlines created the overhead bin crisis when they started charging for checked baggage instead of including that service with the cost of the tickets. There was a marked difference in the amount of carryon luggage when that happened and “yes” there are many folks who push the overhead bin carryon to beyond the limit. I’m a business traveler and I can get a week’s worth of clothing into my carryon (not oversized) and I bring a reasonable sized backpack for laptop etc. so I can immediately disembark and get to an Uber ride and off to my meetings or hotel as soon as I land, not spending time waiting in baggage claim. Calling these people “entitled” is just patently wrong, the airlines created this phenomenon and now they are going to solve it by charging for what was previously free just like checked baggage. Where does it end good sir? I mean seriously, what is next? Toilet fees, fees for aisle seats, fees for water, coffee, the napkins they give you with your drink? I again say it should all just be baked into the cost of the ticket and the checked or overhead should just be included. Instead you think it is ok to get fleeced one step at a time.
Charging for overhead bin space will only truly work if there’s a dedicated, numbered bin that matches your seat number.
The toilet use analogies aren’t fair. There are alternatives to overhead bin space. There’s the space under the seat in front of you, and space in checked luggage. There are no practical, realistic alternatives for someone who needs to use the toilet.
@RandyO
Ridiculous toilet fee references were added to emphasize a point. Obviously flew past you.