United Airlines does not comply with baggage policy from IATA Resolution 302?
- By
- Aparna Patel
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- 21 Jul, 2023
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UA Baggage Rules do apply but the reasons offered by the “accepted” answer are incorrect. Res302 doesn’t apply to your journey. For journeys beginning or ending in the USA, the USDoT regulations take precedence over IATA Res302.
USDoT requires that the first marketing carrier’s baggage policy is applied. In this case, that’s segment 1 of the journey, Indianapolis to Newark, marketed by UA. From their website, it looks like UA policy is the default FMC rule. (Some carriers have a MSC policy).
The process to work out which carrier’s baggage rules apply to your journey is:
- determine applicable regulations (USDOT, CTA, RES302)
- the first marketing carrier decides whose baggage rules to use (based on MSC or FMC)
- that carrier’s baggage rules apply to the whole Journey
- if there is a stop of greater than 24 hours on the ticket, subsequent segments are charged as a separate Journey
Note: US DoT legal summary
§ 399.87 Baggage allowances and fees.
For passengers whose ultimate ticketed _origin_ or destination is a U.S. point, U.S. and foreign carriers must apply the baggage allowances and fees that apply at the beginning of a passenger’s itinerary throughout his or her entire itinerary. In the case of code-share flights that form part of an itinerary whose ultimate ticketed origin or destination is a U.S. point, U.S. and foreign carriers must apply the baggage allowances and fees of the marketing carrier throughout the itinerary to the extent that they differ from those of any operating carrier.
United Does honor IATA Resolution 302. Simple as that.
Where you are going wrong is confusing marketing carrier and operating carrier.
Your flight from Newark to Tokyo may have a ANA flight number, but it’s operated by United, and when it comes to baggage (including IATA 302), it’s the operating carrier that is important.
Under IATA 302, the airline that flies you Newark to Tokyo is the Most Significant Carrier, and thus it is their baggage rules that apply.
United has recently changed many of their international baggage charges, and from the 1st of June, for flights from the US to Japan, the first bag is free, whilst the second bag is $100 (presuming you do not have United/Star Alliance status). It is these rules that apply for your flight, not those of the marketing carrier (ANA).
Credit:stackoverflow.com‘