According to The Guardian, Jetstar is scrapping its 7kg carry-on weight limit and replacing it with a single underseat personal item in standard bookings. Passengers wanting a larger second bag in the overhead bin must buy a Priority Carry-on add-on, which costs up to $52 depending on route and booking timing.
Overhead bin access used to come with the ticket. Jetstar is now selling it separately. The shift shows how far low-cost carriers will go to extract fees from the basic act of flying.
Jetstar frames this as solving a real problem: gate weigh-ins and crowded bins frustrate passengers and crew. The practical result is a two-tier cabin where some travelers board with guaranteed locker rights and everyone else stuffs their trip under the seat or pays the fee.
Airlines have spent years unbundling the ticket. Jetstar just found one more thing to meter. The clever part is packaging a fee increase as a customer-experience upgrade—for some people it will work. Budget flying keeps moving from cheap fare to obstacle course. Now $52 stands between your bag and the bin above your head.
Filed to the World desk · Aug 4