01/30/2025
WHAT YOU CANNOT TAKE ON A PLANE: YOUR AIR TRAVEL LUGGAGE GUIDE
https://www.click2refund.com/Blog/What-You-Cannot-Take-on-a-Plane-Your-Air-Travel-Luggage-Guide
✈️ Ever Had Trouble at Airport Security? ✈️
Have you ever seen passengers arguing with security over a pair of scissors in their bag? Or maybe you’ve been asked if you packed batteries or chargers in your checked-in luggage? 🤔
When flying, knowing what you can and cannot carry in your baggage is crucial. From size and weight restrictions to banned items like sharp objects, aerosols, and lithium batteries, airline regulations can be confusing. 🚫📦
Want to avoid last-minute hassles at security check-in? Our latest blog covers everything you need to know about air travel luggage rules—from carry-on restrictions to the dos and don’ts of checked baggage. 🧳✅
And if your flight gets delayed due to security checks or other reasons, Click2Refund can help you claim compensation with zero upfront costs and a 98% success rate. 💰✈️
🔗 Read the full guide & check your flight compensation now! ⬇️
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Have you ever noticed people and the officer arguing at the security check-in because a pair of scissors were found in their bags? Or, you may have found out the personnel at the check-in stand asking you if you, by any chance, ended up putting chargers or batteries in your checked-in baggage.
Apart from issues with tickets or boarding passes, one of the most critical elements of air travel is your luggage and what you are carrying in it. All the airline authorities, airports, and aviation ministries of every country and zone have rules and regulations that state what you can take when boarding a flight. Want to discover more about the air travel luggage guide and the dos and don’ts to follow when packing for flights? This blog has got you covered. Let’s dive in.
The Different Types of Luggage Allowed by Air Travel
There are usually two types of baggage: cabin or carry-on luggage and checked-in baggage. Understanding the various types of baggage allowed in air travel is critical because most airports and airline authorities have rules for each.
Carry-on baggage
A carry-on baggage is the one that you can take with you on the plane. You can place it under your seat or in the overhead bin. Hence, the size of your bag should be ideally small and never heavyweight. The number of cabin bags you carry will depend on the rules and regulations of the airlines you choose to travel with and the type of ticket you wish to purchase. Usually, you will be allowed to have just one bag so it can be easily placed in the passenger instead of the separate cargo one.
Weight and Size
Almost all airlines have their own guidelines on passengers' weight and size of carry-on luggage. Generally, it should be at most 7 kg, starting at 5 kg or 11 lbs. Additionally, it must have a maximum depth of 10 inches (25 cm), width of 18 inches (45 cm), and maximum length of 22 inches (56 cm). The measurements include handles, side pockets, etc.
To avoid additional costs, contact your airlines before your travel and ensure that your carry-on baggage allowance is included in your ticket costs. If you are on different airlines for your journey, don’t forget to check their websites for updated rules and regulations for carry-on luggage and its allowance.
Checked-in luggage
Checked baggage is the bigger and heavier luggage that airlines keep with themselves and send to the airplane’s cargo hold area. You cannot access your luggage once you drop it at the check-in counter. Once you land at your destination, the airlines make it available on the conveyor belts, and you have to identify your luggage and pick it up.
Size, Weight, and Number
Most airlines have their guidelines for checked-in luggage. However, the number and weight of the luggage mentioned as free of cost can vary depending on the airline’s guidelines, routing, ticket pricing, frequent flyer status, etc. To avoid extra costs, check your airline rules before you pack your bags. Also, scan the accepted weight and size of the checked-in luggage while you book your tickets.
Also, checked-in bags should be at most 23 kg or 50 lbs. All airline authorities set this regulation internationally for the health and safety of airport staff who must pick up and drop off thousands of bags daily. If your bag is heavier than this, you may be asked to shift your stuff to any extra carry-on or cabin baggage or label it as heavy luggage. In the US and European zone, the maximum weight for such luggage is 32 kg or 70 lbs. Some airlines may have a lower limit as well.
Another important concept is the piece concept, which is used widely for flights between Canada and the US. It means the number of bags you can take as per your ticket. Whenever you see the piece concept applied, it indicates you can carry two pieces of checked luggage, and each piece should not be more than 32 kg (70 lbs) and in no case more than 158 cm (62 inches) when adding the dimensions: height + length + width.
What Not to Pack in Carry-On Baggage
Here are a few things that you should always avoid packing in your carry-on baggage.
Sharp objects
This is a complete no-no to carry with you if you travel on planes. Any cutting elements or objects with sharper edges of any length, metal or not metal, are prohibited in your carry-on object. If you still need it for some sporting purpose or if it is necessary, then pack it in your checked-in luggage. You cannot take it in the cabin bag or on yourself.
Here are some of the things that airlines often refer to as sharp objects:
Knives with blades more than 6 cm.
Razor blades, scissors, and box cutters with blades more than 6 cm from the pivot point.
Hatchets, axes, cleaves, ice picks, or ice axes
Sabers, swords, pointed or sharp martial arts elements or equipment.
Gels, Aerosols, Liquid and Alcohols
The aviation security regulations have outlined how much liquids, gels, and aerosols you can put in the carry-on baggage. The current rules from ICAO imply on almost all countries, and this includes:
Not more than 100 ml of liquids
Liquids are to be placed in a transparent, easy-to-reseal plastic bag.
Maximum capacity should be 1 liter for the resealable bag.
You must separate these plastic bags from your carry-on bags when you go for security check-in.
If you carry powder over 355 ml/12 ounces, you must undergo extra screening at the airports.
However, baby food or milk, special dietary needs, and medicines are some exceptions to the above rule.
Alcohol
If you are carrying alcoholic beverages, make sure the alcohol quantity in the beverage is less than 70%.
It should always be in retail packaging.
One individual can carry only 5 liters of alcoholic beverage.
The airline does not restrict beverages with an alcohol quantity of less than 24%.
Aerosols
You can carry aerosols in your checked-in luggage but not in carry-on baggage. But make sure these aerosols are non-flammable, contain non-toxic gas with no risk, like carbon dioxide or nitrogen, and are only used for sporting or household purposes.
You can carry a quantity only up to 0.5 kg or 0.5 L.
If your aerosol contains medicine or toiletry articles, the quantity should not exceed 2 kg or 2 L.
Remember that the total net quantity for each aerosol piece you carry should be less than 0.5 kg or 0.5 L.
Most importantly, you should release all the valves on aerosols and secure them with a cap or other fitting equipment to prevent gas leakage.
Medical equipment
If you need to use medical syringes, such as insulin, oxygen pumps, etc., while you are on the plane, always carry proof of this medical condition along with other documents for medical history. Also, ensure that these materials are properly packed, and retail labeled. In the absence of labeling, the staff at the security screening can remove the medication.
Additionally, if you think the medication in your carry-on baggage will exceed the prescribed limits, inform the airline authorities in advance. Keeping the doctor's letter handy reduces the chances of security screening hassles.
What Not to Carry in Checked-in Baggage
Usually, many people stuff in the restricted items not allowed in carry-on baggage into their checked-in baggage. Still, there are rules that you need to remember when packing your checked-in bags.
Lithium batteries in portable devices
Lithium batteries mainly comprise cathodes and electrolytes. They can be found either as non-rechargeable anodes (lithium metal batteries) or polymer, chargeable batteries used in electronic devices (lithium-ion devices). In portable devices, these batteries can pose a fire risk if they are not used safely and packed properly.
By any chance, if you want to take spare batteries, electronic ci******es, vapes, or power backup/power banks, make sure you don’t pack them in your check-in luggage. You can still carry them with you in your carry-on baggage. Any spare batteries must be wrapped carefully, and they must be safe from any short circuit.
Work tools
Though this is restricted to carry even in the carry-on bag, you should prefer to avoid packing work tools like screwdrivers, pliers, wrenches, etc. Some airlines may allow tools that are less than seven inches. The good thing is that nail clippers, bottle openers, pill cutters, and small scissors with blades of length less than four inches from the fulcrum are allowed and categorized under the seven-inch tools. Besides this, you must ensure those tools are carefully wrapped and packed. Here are some of the work tools that you must not carry with you:
Drill bits and drill
Saw (including a portable power saw)
Stanley knife
Screwdriver
Pliers
Hammer
Bolt gun
Spanner
Blowtorch
Crowbar
Chemicals
Chemicals are always highly flammable, and no flammable items are allowed when traveling through planes. Even if you carry one with permission from the airline authorities, ensure they are properly and correctly labeled, and keep all documents ready to validate your purpose of carrying the chemical. Here’s a list of the prohibited chemicals:
Organic peroxides and oxidizers like bleach or car body repair kits.
Alkalis or acids like spillable wet batteries
Bleaching agents or corrosives that contain high levels of mercury
Fuel and vehicle batteries
Radioactive materials like commercial isotopes
Disabling or self-defense sprays like mace or pepper spray
Electronic devices
This is a primary one for checked-in luggage. You can carry your laptops, tablets, phones, headphones, power banks, etc., in your carry-on bag, but never put them in your checked-in luggage. These items are separately screened at the security check-in with your cabin baggage and placed in a separate tray with cases removed.
Strictly Prohibited Goods for Passengers
Apart from this, here are some things you can neither pack in your carry-on bag nor stuff in your checked-in luggage secretly. These are mostly items that can cause harm to human life or have the potential to injure someone.
Matches and lighters
As mentioned, no highly flammable items are allowed in planes, matches, or lighters. No matches, not even safety matches, should be found in your luggage. These include lighter fuels, refills, strike-anywhere matches, premixed burner lighters without protection, etc.
Guns, weapons, and ammunition
Definitely NO. All airlines provide extremely nuanced guidelines on the arms, equipment, and ammunition you cannot carry and how you can be severely penalized if you break the code. This is considered a high-level offense and can get you deported as well. The rule specifically mentions arms like:
Detonators And Fuses
Mines, Grenades, And Other Explosive Military Stores
Smoke Canisters
Dynamite
Plastic Explosives like Percussion Caps and Black Powder
Hand Grenades
Blasting Caps
Imitation Explosive Devices (Including Replica or Model Guns)
Fireworks And Pyrotechnics
Smoke Cartridges
Gunpowder
Flares
Gun Cigarette Lighters
How Can Click2Refund Make Your Life Easy
Despite knowing all the rules, regulations, dos, and don’ts, there are situations when a traveler has to carry restricted yet critical items with them when traveling on a plane, especially when it’s a medicated drug for disease or certain sports equipment if they are a player. Unfortunately, so many times, they have to go through a trail of questions and objections despite having all the documents and prior permissions from the airlines at the security check-in. This hassle leads to delayed boarding and, a lot of times, they even miss their flights.
So, the only way left is to seek flight delay compensation or a flight cancellation refund, which again puts you in a maze of paperwork, filing lawsuits, and waiting for penny-like claims for an eternity. To pull you out of this labyrinth, Click2Refund will help you build your case, research, navigate legal proceedings, and get the flight delay compensation you deserve.
Don’t Let Security Check-in Hassles Ruin Your Journey
I hope this blog helps you understand and learn in detail what you cannot carry in your cabin and checked-in luggage. However, critical items, especially medicines or life-saving medical objects like oxygen pumps, don’t deserve to face any kind of boarding delays or hassles.
Services like Click2Refund’s will make sure you get the amount for the hassles you face without burdening yourselves with legal mazes or paperwork. We will unburden you from this tedious, complex task and do all the hard work for you. Choose us because we ensure:
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