The Bread Knife

Some of you are already aware of this.But for all of those who aren't..............................

Last night I took my Mum to Manchester airport for her flight to Sydney.
She is off for good so therefore, on a one way ticket.

She went to the check in desk, but her luggage was over the allowance, so they sent her to the Malaysia Airways help desk.
The woman behind the counter said that her luggage weighed in at 41 kilos. 20 kilos is the normal alllowance but she was given an extra 10 kilos as a goodwill gesture. She then proceeded to add up the extra 11 kilos and gave my Mum a bill of £350.00!!!!!!!!!!!!! I kid you not. £30+ for every kilo over the allowance.
Fortunately we were there to take her extra bag home with us.

Just make sure you weigh all your bags before you leave for the airport :scared:


The Bread Knife

chr1sarter

Good God. That is high. Glad you were there to help. Some airlines allow upto 40K for emmigrating people. Does Malaysian airlines only allow 30k.

The Bread Knife

Yes, Malaysian Airways only allow 30 Kilos now.
They have stopped the Migrant allowance apparently!!!
As we found out last night.

The Bread Knife

alrobson

Interesting...

We've booked with Malaysian and we were quoted 20 kilos. My own personal guess is that if you are over that by a bit then they won't trouble you, and if you are saying they allowed you 30 kilos then that's quite generous as it's another 1/3 of the weight. I guess the problem is trying to send what you don't need with the shippers and leave what you do, but I'm thinking that most people end up with more stuff than they realise when they eventually leave !!!

Definitely a good job you were with your Mum. I will be weighing mine before I leave and then watching the wife to make sure she doesn't try to sneek things in

andrew63

I am a very frequent flier in the back of the flying tubes and even though 20 Kg is the standard allowance (outside of US), I routinely carry 24 - 30 Kg without ever an issue.
The rule for baggage handlers is that they will not lift a case >32 Kg.
Anything greater than 32 Kg in one case (no matter what your allowance is ) will cause problems.
Trust me on this one!

Andrew

stephenwhite68

This is my Quantas experience.

We originally booked a return flight to Perth as going on holiday while validating and then returning to tie up loose ends.
Well 3 months ago decided that all loose ends have been tied up and we may aswell go and stay on the flight already booked.
Phone up Quantas and advise them of this where they tell me that we will have to pay to transfer the ticket over to a migrant ticket and then we may not be able to get the flight we where on ????
The nice lady advised that we should just stay on what we are on and then let Quantas know when we get there and cancel the return leg.
Ok i thought, then realised we would like the 40Kg allowance for migration to which she advised NO !! you can't have it unless you change your ticket.
So we have 20Kg each ... what a joke !
We now have to send 2 suitcases as Extra Baggage 3 days before for £160 and then have to take the suitcases we have
they will charge us £16 for every Kilo at the airport that they feel its over.

Im Not impressed and this has put me off using Quantas ever again.

Not impressed with there customer service .

S

abergas

I flew back to the UK in March last year and was careful just to take my 20kg limit. On returning to Australia, after abit of shopping etc, my weight was 32kg. I rang the airline (Singapore) who said even though it said 20kg on your ticket, they allow you 30kg but just don't advertise it. Otherwise they would be well over weight wise.

wargod

Should have left the kitchen sink at home!

Pollyana

Anyone hoping for the 40kg migrant allowance must get it in writing from the airline - don't just turn up and hope for the best. And if possible ring the airline service desk at the airport just before you fly and get them to check your PNR - this is your personal booking record which will confirm if they've allowed the 40kg.
Qantas have always insisted on only granting it with their migrant fare - which is approx £200 more than normal. Don't believe any agents who tell you otherwise!

shecha

Hi Polly,

You're right about this, coz I've already checked with Singapore Airlines and they stated they require migrating passangers to confirm in writing their visa details prior to booking flights.
I now have it confirmed in writing from them that they will give my hubby and son 40kg's instead of the usual 20kg's ready for when I book flights with them. They also stated this is only agreed for those with permenant residency visa's, not temporary.
Anyone hoping for extra baggage allowance, check it out first with the airline before you book!!!

Shell

samnrob2

Surprised no one else hasn't already posted this so I guess I will!

Fly to Oz via the US and you get 64kg per person (standard). Plus, flying 'tother way round the globe should cut down on the jet lag you suffer.

With that in mind, can anyone post back to say why every man and his dog seems to fly to Oz over Europe/Asia? Armed with the above information, it doesn't really make sense - migration fare or otherwise.

Oh and the cost of flying via the states is the same if not cheaper (I've been quoted £480 per person via Air NZ).

Cheers,

Rob

PWBCSA

I’m sorry. I’ve been wondering if I should reply to this thread because it has become apparent to me in the past that people can take offence quite easily...

But!

If I understand correctly you and your Mother turned up at the airport and just expected her to be allowed to take over 40kg’s on the plane because she ‘had the right’ as somebody on a one way migrant ticket.

Did it not occur to you, or your Mother, to check directly with the airline that taking more than double the normal allowance was going to be OK?

I apologise if I have misunderstood but it appears to me that you were a little bit unrealistic in you expectations. Surely it makes sense to find out for definite what the situation is and get it confirmed etc.

You should be grateful that they gave you so much extra for free and only charged for half of your extra 100%.

I don’t intend offence; I was just slightly taken aback by the whole surprised tone of your post.

Cheers.

Pollyana

The US route has been posted before, many times, and people do go that way. The problems with it are - you have to enter the USA, so you need to meet visa waiver conditions, or get a full visa, and go through customs/immigration with all your luggage. Imagine that with a tribe of kids, no thanks!
Some people feel its worthwhile, others - like me - didn't want the hassle.O like the Asian airports en route, and I like the ease of luggage in one end - then settled till Aus. Also, there is a matter of personal airline preference, lots of those which are popular and reasonably priced - like Singapore and Cathay - go via Asia.

And a note of caution - 64 kg, yes, but GET IT CONFIRMED IN WRITING!!! Its not automatic. And no one item can weigh more than 32 kg, owing to health and safety - baggage handlers won't touch them.

shecha

Hi Rob,

As Polly has said, alot of people are aware that flying via US gives you 64kg's, however, there have also been many people who have done that route saying that it is common to get stuck in customs/immigration for 8-9 hours and as I have a 2 year old, the flight itself is long enough, without that as well! :scared:

It's a persnal choice, but no way do I wanna risk it - despite the fab luggage allowance.

Shell

marco121068

I've never been stuck in a US immigration queue for more than 1 hour. I'm definitely going that way round - as I want to stop off in San Fran, Hawaii and Fiji on the way through as well as benefit from the extra allowance.

Never heard of having to get baggage allowance confirmed though - I understood checked in baggage was max. 2 x 32 kg, and cabin baggage was a max of 18kg. Just did a quick check on some airline websites, and they do state 2 pieces up to 70 pounds (32kg) each.