Dubai Airports bans ‘irregular’ and ‘oversized’ baggage

Dubai Airports has announced that passengers will soon be banned from travelling with “irregular” and “oversized” baggage.

The ban, set to be enforced from March 8, will apply to all baggage that does not lie flat.

The airport authority said the move aims to improve the performance of its check-in and baggage operation at Dubai International.

“Dubai International provides some of the most sophisticated baggage systems in the world,” said Ali Angizeh, vice president of Terminal Operations at Dubai International.

“However, even the most technologically advanced systems can be disrupted by irregular shaped or oversized bags. Bags that are round or do not have a flat surface of any kind are by far the largest source of baggage jams.

“These jams can shut down sections of our system, delay baggage delivery to the aircraft and inconvenience our customers.”

Dubai Airports has already informed all airlines operating out of Dubai International Airport of the new rules and has updated its website, mobile app and signage to help raise awareness.

“We are trying to get the message out there as much as possible,” said Angizeh.

“Passengers, who show up at the airport with non-compliant baggage, will also be given the option to have it repacked in boxes for a fee.”

Stretching 140 kilometres and covering a surface area of 75 football fields, DXB’s baggage handling system is among the largest in the world.

It has 15,000 trays and is powered by 21,000 motors. DXB handled approximately 9.3 million bags in January this year. A bag spends an average of 29 minutes in the baggage system at DXB.