A traveler avoids Ryanair excess baggage charges by removing the wheels from his carry-on suitcase.
The Spaniard was told that he would have to pay an additional 70 euros to take the battered suitcase on board, more than the cost of his flight and more than double the price he paid for the travel suitcase a decade ago.
His novel solution was to remove the wheels one by one with the help of a friend who was accompanying him so that they fit into the Ryanair caliper and could be taken on board at no additional cost.
Fellow passengers watching laughed as he joked, “Imagine it doesn’t fit after this” while he sweated.
He received a first round of applause when he removed the last of the four wheels and a second, louder applause when a witness offering a running commentary shouted: “It’s in,” while confirming that it now met the dimensions of the Ryanair bag.
Travelers are seen ripping off the legs of one of their suitcases.
They told him he would have to pay an additional 70 euros to take the battered case on board.
An airline worker watching the surreal scene unfold before her eyes couldn’t contain her laughter.
The traveler smiles at the camera after confirming that his damaged suitcase met the airline’s standards.
An airline worker watching the surreal scene unfold before her eyes couldn’t contain her laughter.
The strange sequence of events occurred at Palma airport before a Ryanair flight to Malaga.
The two travelers, identified only as Daniel and David, were returning to the Costa del Sol after spending a few days with friends in Mallorca.
Daniel, the owner of the case, said: ‘I told Ryanair that it cost me €30 10 years ago and I wasn’t going to pay the €70 they were asking for, so I decided to break it up.
“It would have cost me more to review the case than I spent on the flight.”
The strange sequence of events occurred at Palma airport before a Ryanair flight to Malaga
Travel companions applaud success
Daniel, the owner of the suitcase, said: ‘I told Ryanair that it cost me 30 euros 10 years ago and I was not going to pay the 70 euros they asked for, so I decided to break it.’
Coats with lots of pockets have previously been proposed as ways to avoid airline excess baggage fees.
A coat first announced in 2017 boasted that it could hold up to 15kg of luggage in its hidden pockets.
An article from the time said: “There are 14 different pockets so you can store laptops, cameras and even shoes without any pesky flight attendants noticing before you board.”
Last year it emerged that TikTokers were trying to avoid additional baggage fees by wearing fishing vests at the airport.
When journalist Bobbi Hadgraft tweeted a photo of a pair of black cargo pants covered with pockets all along the front and tagged Ryanair, the low-cost airline responded with a screenshot of the same Marc Jacques Burton designer pants with a priced at £1,280 on the website.
He added mockingly alongside the snapshot: ‘£1,280? Just pay for one bag, Bobbi.
