Air China Carry on

[PGSTC776]

So, I'm flying Air China.  Yes, I know they don't have the best of reviews, but they were $300 cheaper than anyone else on my dates. 

Wondering if anyone has any experience with how strict they are for carry on.  I'm going to try and get a Tom Bihn Aeronaut 45 on as carry on, but if it's too large I'll check it and pull out a smaller bag.  Mostly wondering if they will actually weight carry on.

[Biennial]

I just flew them from SFO, and I didn't see them weighing carry ons.

Put it on the other side or out of sight as you pass check in and boarding people.

[PGSTC776]

How was the flight?

[Little Evil]

14 hours ago, PGSTC776 said:

So, I'm flying Air China.  Yes, I know they don't have the best of reviews, but they were $300 cheaper than anyone else on my dates. 

Wondering if anyone has any experience with how strict they are for carry on.  I'm going to try and get a Tom Bihn Aeronaut 45 on as carry on, but if it's too large I'll check it and pull out a smaller bag.  Mostly wondering if they will actually weight carry on.

Air China's website says international legs have a carry-on restriction of 21x14x7. Your bag is 22x14x9, but assuming it is a duffel bag, might be able to be squeezed on without people noticing. I guess it depends on how full you pack it. 

[PGSTC776]

4 hours ago, Little Evil said:

Air China's website says international legs have a carry-on restriction of 21x14x7. Your bag is 22x14x9, but assuming it is a duffel bag, might be able to be squeezed on without people noticing. I guess it depends on how full you pack it. 

Yeah, that’s the plan.  Ill have a daypack packed in it with my electronics that I can easily pull out should I have to check it.  I’m not too worried about dimensions, weight is the problem.  There’s no way I can fit the 5kg limit with one bag. 

[wadman]

4 hours ago, PGSTC776 said:

Yeah, that’s the plan.  Ill have a daypack packed in it with my electronics that I can easily pull out should I have to check it.  I’m not too worried about dimensions, weight is the problem.  There’s no way I can fit the 5kg limit with one bag. 

My tricks to get down my carry on weight:

- I wear an oversized fanny pack around my waist, with the bag turned around so it's sitting on my ass, so the check-in agent can't see it.  Pack it with small, heavy items

- I tie the heaviest sweater/shirt around my waist.  This helps in obscuring the fanny pack too.

- I pull out my laptop (1.5 kilos), and use it to show my e-ticket

- if I still need to whittle down weight, I'll put items in my pockets.  Umbrellas in one pocket of pants.  Roll up heaviest pair of shorts tightly, put into other pocket of pants.

The check-in agents aren't stupid of course, and they likely know what I am doing.  But it's plausible deniability for them: if you put a carry on bag on the scale that's over their guidelines, they have to say something.