so.. this is a Ryanair tale lol
Was flying last night and queing up to board as you (they - I usually sit down til the last minute...!!) and there was a young girl, College age I'd say, and the airline steward (she wasn't Ryanair - she belonged to the airport) asked her to put the backpack in the basket/frame thing as if it doesn't fit you should have booked your bag in and paid 25 euro. So the girl was trying to get it to fit but there were some things in the front pocket that were stopping it. She was in tears, and on her own. I was just beside her and I said to her that I had room in my bag if she wanted to put some stuff in - I had a half-empty bag. So she emptied some things, a lot of make up lol, and I went through, but the backpack wouldn't slide down - it did almost fit, but she couldn't get it to actually slide in, she could only get it in if she put it in from the bottom., ie without passing it through the basket thingy. I was kinda hovering waiting for her, but this stewardess kept on and on saying she had to either leave the bag, or pay 25 euro, or not fly. Then she (steward) said she could empty her stuff into a plastic bag, and leave the bag pack. So the girl ran over to a shop and got a plastic bag, emptied the backpack and stuffed it all into the plastic bag. The plastic bag was bulging and was bigger than the backpack now!! It was getting very heated, so I stepped back in and said 'look you're letting her take the plastic bag on without paying, but it doesn't fit into the frame/basket thing, it's too big - could you not let her go just this once with a warning'. They got very aggressive to me then, and one man - seemed like a baggage handler, he had that kind of uniform - and he hadn't been there all along he'd only just showed up - he started saying were we travelling together, etc etc, and said I needed to get on board or the plane would go without me. Basically very intimidating. So I reluctantly made my way to the plane - with this girl's stuff in my bag!!!!! In the end she got on - she said she had paid the money in the end. She was so shaken and upset - said she has flown loads of times with that bag and no problem. I just thought the steward was way OTT. She actually 'caught' 5 or more people. And she didn't hve a Ryanair uniform. She seemed to be enjoying it way too much. Of course some people were just chancers - with little suitcases on wheels - definitely not allowed . Anyway, that's my rant!!!!