I try not to fly United Airlines if I can help it.  The last time I was on a United flight, it was when Bill and I moved to Germany.  It’s not that it was such a terrible flight in terms of safety or anything…  it was just really uncomfortable.  While Delta is only marginally better in terms of comfort, when you’re on a long haul flight, that’s something worth considering.  So the news that United is going to crack down on carry ons isn’t really a huge deal to me.

Unless, of course, United’s new policy rubs off on other carriers.  God knows that’s likely to happen, since folks in the airline business pay close attention to trends in other companies’ policies.  Bill and I usually check our bags and if we aren’t going on a long trip, I often don’t even bring a carry on.  That may change once Bill goes off active duty and we have to pay luggage fees.  For now, we usually get to check our luggage free.  Actually, though I’d rather see airlines just roll the “luggage fees” into the cost of the ticket, I will probably still check luggage.  It just makes sense to me.

I guess I can see why people like bringing their bags on the aircraft with them.  They don’t want to pay fees, nor do they want to risk that they won’t get their bags when they get to their destination.  That’s understandable.  But putting bags in the overhead bins is a pain in the ass and people can be very rude about trying to sneak oversized bags onboard.  Sometimes there’s not enough space if the flight is full.

I guess I’m glad I bought a RedOxx SkyTrain bag.  It’s just the right size for a carry on, is easy to pack and carry, is well-made and comes in one of twelve colors.  I have several RedOxx bags and the SkyTrain is by far my favorite.  It’s worth what it costs.  There may come a day when I’ll want a bag that rolls, but for now, I love my Sky Train.  And I’ll still avoid United if I can!