Airline Adds Surfboards To List Of No-No Baggage
Beginning November 6, British Airways will no longer accept
surfboards and other bulky sporting equipment, according to
SurfersVillage.com. The announcement by the airline has sent
British surfers to sea in protest over the decision.
British Airways issued the following warning, "Due to the large
size and handling complexities, some sporting equipment cannot be
accommodated through the airport baggage system or within the
aircraft hold. Therefore we no longer accept the following
equipment at check-in as part of your sporting equipment allowance.
Please contact your local freight company to arrange carriage for
any items that exceed the permitted weight and size."
The list includes hang gliders, windsurfing boards and sails,
surfboards, kayaks or canoes, pole vaults, and javelins. Surfboards
- which often weigh less than eight lbs and are usually about
six feet long -- are too cumbersome to check in, according to the
airline.
The airline will however continue to accept golf clubs and skis,
as checked baggage.
The British Surfing Association -- reportedly 10,000
members-strong -- has set up a petition and a members' group on
networking site Facebook in a bid to overturn the decision,
according to metro.co.uk.
Karen Walton, the British Surfing Association's national
director, said she was "extremely shocked" by the decision.
"International surf
travel companies are expanding every day as British people look to
pursue their new-found passion abroad, particularly in the winter
months and BA has recently reopened its route from Gatwick to
Newquay, no doubt keen to capitalize on the growing number of
British people heading for the surf.”
The association arranges travel for British Surfing Teams
yearly, and favored BA as their carrier. "We therefore feel
completely let down and angered by the news that our national
airline is banning surfboards rather than following some other
airlines and charging a supplementary fee.
"Although every surfboard, piece of sporting equipment and
musical instrument is different in shape and size, we'd find it
extremely hard to believe that the average short board would be
more difficult to handle when compared to a double bass and a full
bag of golf clubs," Walton adds.
"Most people would fit into a double bass case, and a full set
of golf clubs would certainly weigh more than your average
surfboard which would be around 4kg, so how BA can justify these
ridiculous statements is beyond us.
"We can only imagine that many more of BA's frequent flyer
executive club members are golfers or musicians than surfers and
that the decision to ban surfboards is a commercial one made on
this basis.
"Either way, we find it alarming and would be keen to stress to
other airlines that this is a move that is in no way
satisfactory."
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