Ryanair is to begin charging passengers for carry-on luggage.
The airline announced last night that ‘non-priority’ passengers will have to pay between €5 and €8 to bring larger pieces of hand luggage on board.
Under the new rule, passengers who do not pay the surcharges can only bring one free small personal bag.
The changes take effect from November 1st.
Under the airline’s previous rules, passengers were entitled to bring one 10kg carryon bag and one small personal bag – although the larger piece had to be placed in the hold free of charge.
Passengers who purchase ‘priority boarding’ at a cost of €6 to €8 will still be able to carry-on the two bags.
Announcing the changes, the airline said it was attempting to cut boarding gate and flight delays.
It insisted 60% of passengers will be unaffected as 30% already pay for priority boarding and 30% only bring personal bags.
There are only 95 priority boarding seats available on each flight.
The airline insists it does not expect to make money from the changes, claiming any increase in Priority boarding and 10kg checked baggage will be offset by passengers downgrading from the current 20kg checked bag – which costs €25 – to the new 10kg one.
The new policy comes into force on November 1st and passengers who are already booked to travel after that date can either add Priority Boarding or cancel for a full refund.
