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I am flying on Eurowings (from Hamburg, if it matters), and I'm planning on taking a standard international-size carry-on bag that fits within their dimensional requirements. However, their website states a maximum weight of 8kg. My bag weighs 4.2kg empty, and I'm expecting it to be stuffed fairly full, so I'm not certain it will be under this limit.

Do they actually have any process to weigh it at the gate, or are they likely to accept my bag if it is simply the proper size? I am not planning on stopping at the ticket counter, as I can check-in online.

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  • I've never experienced weighing of carry-on bags on any airline or even measuring thes size of it, but what will you do if they would?
    – Neusser
    Feb 21, 2018 at 9:15
  • Remember (this is more guided towards future readers) that you'll most likely have to lift your bag into the overhead storage compartments. So even if the airline doesn't weigh your bag, and you could get a kg more through, don''t overdo it. - And I've seen staff repackage those compartments so even when you've put it there, you can't be completely sure they won't notice if you're transporting something very heavy.
    – Henrik supports the community
    Feb 21, 2018 at 9:34
  • @Neusser If I was reasonably certain my carry-on wouldn't be accepted, I would check it in advance, particularly if it would wind up costing me extra to check it at the last minute.
    – Zach Lipton
    Feb 21, 2018 at 9:36
  • (I've never flown from Hamburg so what I say might not be valid for your case) By carry-on you mean it has weels? If so be prepared to the eventuality of the staff taking your bag in order to see if it fits in the measure. In case it's noticeably heavier than 8kg they might ask you about it's weight and possibly contest it. However, I've never witnessed the weighing of baggage during boarding phase. My suggestion is to weigh it at home, and if it's between 8-10kg you should be fine, but don't take my word for it. In any case be prepared for it to be sent as checked luggage or to pay extra
    – Marcus
    Feb 21, 2018 at 13:57
  • Nobody seems to know, so I'll report back next month I guess
    – Zach Lipton
    Feb 28, 2018 at 0:11

4 Answers 4

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Almost every time, nobody seems bothered about the size or weight. However...

I've had my carry-on weighed once, back in the days when everyone queued up at the check-in counter with a paper ticket. They put a carry-on approved label on it, and it was OK for years afterwards.

I've also had my carry-on declared "too big", even though it is one of those officially sized as carry-on, and even though I protested, they wouldn't consider checking that it fitted in the cage or was within the weight limit. "It's too big... gotta go in the hold" - end of argument.

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  • "too big" here may mean they were concerned about having enough overhead bin space, but they should have been more explicit, if that were the case.
    – Jim MacKenzie
    Mar 22, 2018 at 16:50
  • I always carry an ikea paper measuring tape with me. Never had an issue, but just in case
    – Indra
    Mar 22, 2018 at 20:37
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It's not impossible. On a recent Eurowings flight from Heathrow to Hamburg, my carry-on was weighed at the gate. It was not on the return journey from Hamburg, however.

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Nobody weighed my bag, nor was there any sort of carry-on sizer or scale at the gate in Hamburg. Nobody even looked at my bag at all, as I didn't stop at the check-in counter (online check-in and mobile boarding pass), and they use electronic gates for boarding.

I did see some people with "carry-on approved" tags on their bags, presumably affixed at the check-in counter, but I never got any such labels and nobody noticed or cared.

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    One data point recorded - we'll need a few more to have a more concrete answer. It wouldn't surprise me if they do weigh bags, but they may not do it all the time.
    – Jim MacKenzie
    Mar 21, 2018 at 22:43
  • @JimMacKenzie Agreed. They very well might if you're in front of the scale at the check-in counter anyway, but they had no facilities to weigh bags at the gate or even see if they were oversized.
    – Zach Lipton
    Mar 22, 2018 at 4:58
  • When I've seen carry-on bags weighed at a gate (not at Hamburg), the scales used were portable and so the lack of facilities at Hamburg does not necessarily mean that bags are never weighed there.
    – Martin
    Mar 22, 2018 at 11:47
  • @ZachLipton One thing I've noticed from personal experience is that if you act like the bag doesn't weigh much, you're more likely to be left alone :)
    – Jim MacKenzie
    Mar 22, 2018 at 16:49
  • The people with the carry on approved tags usually have checked in bags. I almost always have checked in bags and they always give me that. Otherwise they won't really check in my xp
    – Indra
    Mar 22, 2018 at 20:36
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Don't rely too much on previous answers: Today in Düsseldorf when checking in my suitcase they weighed my carry-on, and in a quite impolite way she made it clear that they do not tolerate a weight of 9.4 kilos instead of their allowed 8 kilos - and she seemed to enjoy to execute her power. Unfortunately, for this destination I had no alternative to Eurowings.

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