Luggage Makers look for new growth paths

Bobbin, Dec, 1999 by Jules Abend

The LLGMA has been vocal in its opposition to Lipinski's proposal. Association president Anne DeCicco emphasizes, "During the past two years luggage manufacturers have introduced smaller and innovative carry-on products; the congressman's unnecessarily restrictive measure simply doesn't make sense."

What does make sense to DeCicco would be a standard from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that says 45 linear inches is the maximum size for a carry-on bag, regardless of the airline, with carry-on luggage limited to two bags, excluding a woman's handbag but including a business case: "That would really be sufficient for most travelers and most airlines to solve the carry-on problem," she states.

But for now, the FAA and the LLGMA have agreed to disagree about standardization. Although the FAA definitely doesn't look on the issue as a template in a teapot, it is reluctant to intervene because its main charter is to oversee safety. Says FAA spokesperson Kathryn Creedy: "We have always felt that it was a passenger convenience issue until the last few years, and we have been monitoring it much more closely to see what the safety angle is to it. ... It's still an issue in flux."

Still, two petitions before the FAA -- one from the LLGMA, the other from flight attendants -- "might contain information that might cause us to change our minds," Greedy notes.

Stepping back to explain the FAA's standard view of the situation, Creedy relates: "You might ask why we don't regulate one-size-fits-all? We don't have a one-size-fits-all for any regulation because airline operations differ so much. And when it comes to the cabin, flexibility is absolutely needed because aircraft equipment varies between airlines and within airlines. And load factors vary. From London to New York, for instance, in the middle of winter, load factors are very low. Consequently, the carrier can accommodate more carry-on baggage than in the summer."

That said, Creedy acknowledges that some clarification is needed as to what constitutes a carry-on bag, especially given the overwhelming crush of passenger traffic that has tripled in the past 10 years. "People are asking, 'Will a purse fit? Does a laptop? Does a briefcase? Does a knapsack?'" she says. "Luggage has changed over the last decade; and some women come on with purses that could take the whole hard copy Encyclopedia Britannica."

To facilitate a better understanding of the existing rules, the LLGMA and the FAA have launched a joint public education campaign with a new consumer brochure that is being distributed at airports and placed in newly sold carry-on luggage. The major points of the campaign -- which has a theme of "Think Small. Think Smart. Think Safe." -- advises travelers to stow only essentials and valuable items in their carry-on bags, and to check with airlines on their limitations.