Extra Charge for Scuba Luggage!

[RikRaeder]

What's this! Philippine Airlines (and associates) charge excess baggage fee for Scuba gear, even if you're not over the standard allowance?! Just carrying the gear sets you up for $100 from the States, or luckily for me, 2000JPY? Hiway robbery, I say. Way to gouge the toursits. And I thought the Japanese were bad. Unless, of course, you want to invest $60 a year for the priveledge of carrying 20kg of gear (excess to be charged at normal rates). Who the hell do you have to bribe...?


Correction: Unluckily, that's 2000JPY per kilo for me. I just read the fine print!

 

[shugar]

What's this! Philippine Airlines (and associates) charge excess baggage fee for Scuba gear, even if you're not over the standard allowance?! Just carrying the gear sets you up for $100 from the States, or luckily for me, 2000JPN? Hiway robbery, I say. Way to gouge the toursits. And I thought the Japanese were bad. Unless, of course, you want to invest $60 a year for the priveledge of carrying 20kg of gear (excess to be charged at normal rates). Who the hell do you have to bribe...?

$60 is the sports plus package? ask pakman quick because he seems to have been allowed to carry everything short of a minisub on his trip last week

Jag

 

[RikRaeder]

Thanks Shugar. I'm PM(s)ing now!

P(m)S- Nice ducky.

 

[chip104]

Easy Rik, keep your camera rig and dive gear separate. Weigh your dive gear bag to make sure it doesn't go over the limit then don't offer any priveleged information at the baggage counter. The fact that you're carrying dive gear is on a need to know basis....

 

[RikRaeder]

I figured as much, but of course I just got the nice Tusa roller backpack that says "Tusa" all over it not to mention "Scuba System." Camera and regs definitely going into carry on. Thanks though. I'll contact P.A. and see if I can enroll in the Sports Plus at the counter then do so if they bust me. Otherwise I'll fork over the 8k JPY. Geeze!

 

[Mike Veitch]

i don't think the PA ticket counter person will know TUSA from a hole in the ground....

 

[chip104]

I figured as much, but of course I just got the nice Tusa roller backpack that says "Tusa" all over it not to mention "Scuba System." Camera and regs definitely going into carry on. Thanks though. I'll contact P.A. and see if I can enroll in the Sports Plus at the counter then do so if they bust me. Otherwise I'll fork over the 8k JPY. Geeze!

hehehe, yeah, hard to be discreet when the "scuba" might be a dead give away.

 

[Charlie99]

While I haven't looked at the specific tarrifs for PA, on several other airlines, when I looked up the specifics it seemed to be a charge similar to that for carrying equipment that couldn't be put into a suitcase ----- surfboards, bicycles, javelins, etc.

If you showed up at the airport with a bunch of scuba gear, including a set of doubles on your back and dropped it on the counter, PA would accept it and charge you the fee. Weight and size wouldn't matter.

Put your scuba gear (without a tank) in your luggage and stay within weight limits and you'll not get charged.

I have not yet seen a credible report of any diver ever getting charged for checking scuba gear, other than standard overweight charges.

 

[Web Monkey]

I've never had any problems, except one time when I had packed an empty pony bottle with the valve removed, and they said "do you have any SCUBA tanks?"

Both the TSA and the airlines typically only ask if you have any specific prohibited items, but have never asked "Is this SCUBA equipment?"

As long as your bag is under the weight limit, it shouldn't be a problem.

Note however that I have never used Philippine Airlines, so they may be different.

Terry

What's this! Philippine Airlines (and associates) charge excess baggage fee for Scuba gear, even if you're not over the standard allowance?! Just carrying the gear sets you up for $100 from the States, or luckily for me, 2000JPY? Hiway robbery, I say. Way to gouge the toursits. And I thought the Japanese were bad. Unless, of course, you want to invest $60 a year for the priveledge of carrying 20kg of gear (excess to be charged at normal rates). Who the hell do you have to bribe...?


Correction: Unluckily, that's 2000JPY per kilo for me. I just read the fine print!

 

[Traminer]

Is this for PAL only? I'm flying Cebu Pacific from Singapore and worry about the 20kg baggage limit.