I’d be fine being charged for overhead space. I simply cannot afford the added time of checked bags. I was off the plane and in my rental in 5 minutes Wednesday night. Small airports are nice like that. Checking and waiting for the bag adds up when you’re traveling most weeks.
I wouldn’t mind so much, if you lurked just a little farther away so that it was more clear you weren’t actually in line yet.
And for the shortage of overhead bin space, I’ll blame the airlines for not enforcing their own rules against gigantic carry-on luggage.
A similar complaint for those that check bags:
What is the presumed advantage of crowding up to the luggage conveyer when you have no idea when your bag may appear? This puts you smack dab in the way of people who’s bag HAS appeared. FFS stand back a few steps, and then step forward when your bag comes up/down the feed chute. And a double FU to those who parallel park their smart cart against the conveyor.
Back to the OP: wheeled “carry on” luggage should require a doctor’s note. If it is too heavy/big to carry, it is too big. Seems like fully half the boarding issues are people hanging these on seats, fucking with the retractible handle, the trying to hoist all 80# into the overhead where it only fits one way which they don’t have the spatial perception to determine without first testing all other possibilities.
OK, that was a bit hyperbolic, but the wheels and handle add enough weight and bulk, that when you eliminate them it becomes practical to, you know, CARRY a carry-on.
I’m simply convinced that the mere act of stepping foot into an airport drops one’s IQ by 20 points (at least). It helps explain a lot of the behavior around me.
They really need to put dividers in the overhead bins and match them with their corresponding seat numbers. Too small? Too bad. You paid for your seat and 18" of linear overhead space.
Do this and board back to front. The end.
…Which is why Green Bean is saying it seems counter-intuitive that boarding from the back first actually takes longer.
My annoyance comes at the other end of the flight. At the baggage claim. Everyone runs up and crowds around the carousel. Which means everyone’s view is blocked and it’s hard to move around. And it’s not like having the “best” spot accomplishes anything. You don’t get your luggage off the plane any faster.
It would be so much better for everyone if people just stood back and waited. Let everyone have a view of the carousel. And then when you see your luggage appear, step forward, pick it up, and leave. Everyone would actually get their luggage quicker because they wouldn’t be wading through the crowd.
Except I always get a window seat and waiting till the end means one or two people have gotten comfortable and now I am making them get up. Whereas if it’s a general free for all, we’re all kind of in transition and then all work out getting in the seats and then not making anyone move. Plus, I don’t want folks to get their hopes up that there may be an empty seat, and then have those hopes dashed, and have to get up and move. 
I use no carryon’s at all, nothing for the bin, nothing under my seat. I sit back and read my kindle until the last call then stroll to my seat. Generally, everything I need is my shirt pocket. I use brightly colored luggage and at the carousel I again hang back until I see it, then swoop between the crowd and just grab it with an “EXCUSE ME”. Flying doesn’t have to be hard.
We rode Alaska Airlines this summer and they boarded back-to-front - seemed to work pretty well. I don’t recall people stowing their carry-on in the first rows, but I can see that being a problem.
I love how some people pay more for 1st class and then are asked to board before the rest of the cattle in steerage. Then, they get to have a whole plane full of people shuffle past them and bang their bags into their shoulders, stand next to them in their bubble, make eye contact, and have to smell their farts. Sheesh - if I paid extra for one of those seats, I would not have carry-on anxiety and I would board dead last.
And so very yes to enforcing the carry-on size limit. I like the idea of partitioning the stowage area in the cabin and assigning it to seats, as Hampshire suggested. If it does not fit, tough shit - it goes below.
I would trade that for what the people do here in China. They grab a baggage cart and push that right up to the edge of the luggage conveyor, and then stand next to the cart. I’m no longer shy about moving other people’s carts out of the way.
Exactly this. A few years back I was crossing the Atlantic multiple times a month for work and this system worked well for me. Occasionally I’d even get lucky and there would be bar near the gate where I could get a drink while everyone boarded.
I don’t know how much you’re flying but if it’s a lot have you signed up for the frequent flier clubs? If you’re primarily on the same carrier the miles add up quick and before you know it you can qualify for upgrades and access the lounges – just a thought.
Someone, on these boards, once said they couldn’t understand why airports even had bars. I think the OP just about nailed one of the MANY reasons airports NEED bars …
I have never flown Delta, but this problem applies to other airlines I have flown with.
First class/ business class board before the sheep. Fair enough. They are also allowed extra carry on baggage. Okay- they pay for it- no problem.
However, even though they have more space they bring on so much that the overhead lockers are full. Problem solved- sheep haven’t boarded yet so we’ll put our crap in the front rows of the economy class. They can work it out. It is like the domino effect.
If it is a flight of a few hours it is no big deal as most passengers can get by with a small amount of carry on. When it gets to a 15 hour flight everyone has a ton of stuff and I feel sorry for the stewards trying to work things out.
Bonus: You have your choice of empty seats! Don’t like your assigned seat at 32E? There’s a perfectly good aisle seat at 12B with nobody in it. And since you’re never checked to see if you’re in the “correct” seat, it’s not like anybody cares or will get upset (unless the 12B person shows up at the very last second, that is. Then you can wave it away as an error on your part/bum knee/whatever.)
You’re assuming everyone collecting their baggage is as bright as you are. What about the jackass who doesn’t check his/her baggage stub and walks off with your baggage just because it looked similar? The best thing if possible, is to position yourself at the point where the carousel enters the terminal building. You get to see the baggage first, and if your baggage arrives you can it pick it up (after checking the tag!) before the jackass (and there are one or two on each flight) gets into the act.
I try to only have a carry-on that fits under the seat. Also, for just a few dollars less, I get to be In the group that can enjoy less time sitting in the plane. Crazy like a fox, right?
Eff that. Parents with children take up like 900% of available overhead bin space. They would strap shit to the wings if they could get away with it. As a business traveler I despise them and their brats. This shit is not hard and FFS check your goddamn car seat/stroller/baby bunker! Book your seats together and you get one SMALL briefcase sized carry-on plus maybe a purse. You DO NOT get to haul your fucking duffelbag of baby toys and seven week zombie survival kit backpack as carry on.
In short, if a six year old cannot carry it aboard, it’s not carry on. That’s the fucking rule we should enforce with cattle prods and summary execution. That battle for stowage space has completely fucked up the boarding process.
You know why jet blue has a great on time departure ratio? No first checked bag fee. You’d be amazed how much smoother it is when people aren’t trying to save 25 dollars by wearing five days worth of clothes or carrying a backpack stuffed to the gills.
Because that’s what really slows the process down, and no amount of re-ordering the self-loading cargo is going to make much difference until we get the overhead stowage part of the loading process under control.
Keep in mind three things: 1) I fly a lot and fly a lot of long haul, 2) If it were up to me infants would go in overhead bins and there would be a “family seating” area at the rear of the aircraft with weatherproof seats so you could just hose that whole are down with disinfectants between flights. Ya’ll are some diseased bastards. 3) I am old and cranky. 
Regards,
-Bouncer-
My carry-on is the same backpack I’ve had for the last 17 years. With careful packing, it can easily fit under the seat, so it can also count as the personal item. If I’m traveling without checking baggage, I use a small wheeled bag that easily fits the correct way.
The biggest problem is the lazy people who don’t want to have to actually carry their carry-on the length of the plane from the door to their seat, so they stick it in the overhead as soon as possible. This both slows down the boarding and screws over the people who actually sit below those overhead compartments. Clearly they don’t have anything in those bags they actually need during the flight, so their bags should be taken away and gate-checked for a large fee.
Many of these issues could be alleviated by the airline personnel taking charge.
Upthread someone mentioned the lining up by boarding group, that’s a great system. I have been on plenty of planes where the flight attendants monitor who puts what in the overhead: if it would fit under a seat they cajole the passenger to move it there, if they take up a bin in row #15 but are sitting in row #42 the flight attendant gets on them about that too.
But…BUT…when any of this happens, I know that a large percentage of Americans scream like stuck piglets, “Squee! Squee! The airline people are being such NAZIS!” Well, we can’t have that now can we? 'Cause we’re Americans! We like our FREEDOM! So, the result is that airline personnel just step back and let it all happen however.
People {sigh}, well people is jerks.
You know who is to blame for this? those darn trees, that’s who… errr… what.