Ryanair passengers will soon be able to take slightly larger hand luggage aboard their flights, the budget carrier has announced, in a shift that comes amid newfound alignment among European airlines on approaches to cabin baggage.
Specifying the dimensions, a spokesperson said Ryanair will increase its “personal bag” capacity limits by 20%, in a change that is set to take place “over the coming weeks.” The new Ryanair cabin bag size is defined as 40 x 30 x 20cm – a volume of 24 litres, versus the old measurements of 40 x 25 x 20cm – a volume of 20 litres.
The announcement follows a wider move by European airlines to agree standard minimum size for cabin baggage, adopting minimum dimensions of 40 x 30 x 15cm. This, said Ourania Georgoutsakou, managing director of Airlines for Europe (A4E), would “bring more clarity to passengers across Europe. From city-hoppers to family travellers, everyone will benefit from the same clear rule across our members’ networks.”
However, the sudden meeting of minds has not come about spontaneously or solely for passengers’ clarity. Behind the development, the European Parliament is in the midst of legislation over cabin luggage issues, and has suggested a cabin bag allowance of 7kg in weight, not exceeding 100 cm. Small so-called “personal items,” MEPs say, should be able to be taken on board at no extra cost to flyers. If adopted, these rules would apply to all flights to and from the EU, which includes routes between the EU and the UK.
Commentators have pointed out that the airlines now appear to be aligning on bag size in the hope of staving off the legislators’ broader consumer rights drives, including to allow two items of hand luggage per person. Against that context, Ryanair appears to have made a compromise, upping its hand luggage allowance in terms of capacity to better match its rivals and show willing, while standing firm against the proposal of permitting two cabin bags.
It’s also a clever bit of marketing from Ryanair, as news outlets are reporting the increase in their minimum bag size, giving free publicity to the notion that they are now among the more generous airlines.
The truth of the matter is that Ryanair remains one of the least magnanimous carriers when it comes to cabin allowances. British Airways, easyJet, Jet2, and Wizz all have cabin bag specifications that already exceeded the newly-agreed minimum. EasyJet at least has said it has no plans to downsize.
