After hearing how much Jetstar charges if you try to travel excess baggage with a heavy carry-on bag. Stewart Sowman-Lund gets good and mad on behalf.

There’s nothing more satisfying than beating the system at its own game. Not paying for parking and not getting a ticket, not getting ID’d when you’re under 18, piling on heaps of clothes when you go through airport security. 

Anyway, this isn’t 800 words of Jetstar critique, although I probably have it in me. It’s about a very specific bone that I have to pick with everyone’s second favourite domestic airline: excess baggage charges.

Aaaaaaah Jetstar.

Anyone who knows me personally will know how threatened I am by basically any fine or fee. I’m someone who will fight any parking infringement as though my life depends on it. Got snapped driving in a bus lane? I’ll offer you my very best pro bono efforts to get you out of it. Speeding ticket? Sure, I’ll give it a crack. 

I spend an inordinate amount of time seething on behalf of other people about costs. My sleep paralysis demon takes the form of a parking warden. 

So when I heard Alice’s harrowing tale of Jetstar injustice, I felt personally affronted. I’d heard whispers of people being charged for heavy carry-on, but never thought it would be a reality.

And it’s not an isolated incident: several Spinoff employees have reported being similarly targeted in recent weeks, as has one of my friends excess baggage.