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Following up the discussion on size limitations for checked luggage on airplanes, I would like to ask your experience on the following:

What happens if your suitcase meets the weight limitation of the airline, but exceeds their size limitation of "Length+Width+Height = 158cm"?

Example: This suitcase by a known brand with a length sum of 175cm.

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    This will vary a lot by airline, and the clerk who checks your bags. What do you actually want to know?
    – Flimzy
    Apr 6, 2014 at 18:19
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    No, that's not answering my question. What do you want to know? Asking for an opinion poll is not a suitable question. What, specifically, do you want to know? Which airlines will fudge? How much will they fudge? What's the worst that can happen?
    – Flimzy
    Apr 6, 2014 at 18:33
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    In all the years I've been flying, I have never seen anyone measure a checked bag.
    – DJClayworth
    Apr 6, 2014 at 19:34
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    If your bag doesn't look insanely huge or heavy, you'll usually get away with it, in my experience. You're more likely to get away with over-heavy (pack your anvils in carry-on) than grossly over-size if you can stifle your grimaces.
    – Spehro Pefhany
    Apr 6, 2014 at 21:57
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    Asking people to share their experiences comes under polling in the faq and is considered off-topic. I'd highly recommend you reword or edit your question to a SPECIFIC question, rather than polling people.
    – Mark Mayo
    Apr 6, 2014 at 22:18

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Personally, I've never seen airlines reject (or charge more) for a bag being slightly too tall. They only check the weight and move on. Now, if your checked baggage is obviously much too long (eg. skis) then your item will have to go to the special handling area. I've travelled in North America, Mexico, Europe, the UK, and South-East Asia if that helps at all.

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    I've seen people who have had suitcases that were too large to fit in X-ray machines at quarantine/customs, and ended up having those suitcases manually searched. Not really an issue, but takes more time and is a bit of an inconvenience.
    – Sam
    Apr 8, 2014 at 1:59

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