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10. Don’t cause a scene
When flying to tandem rallies and tours (4-6 annually for the past decade), Jan and I often take 3 or 4 full-sized tandems plus 5 or 6 suitcases. While we almost always pay some extra fees, it’s usually less than the published tariff. But after an agent explains their calculation (I always ask nicely), I simply pull out the credit card. And if I thought the charge was too high (which has not yet happened), I’d pay without further complaint at the airport, and later write a short letter to the airline respectfully asking them to “adjust” their mistake. And if the airline does not respond to such a request, you could legitimately ask your credit card company to reverse the charge. Yes, even if the agent asks for an outrageous sum, my advice is to pay it without complaint. Getting angry or causing a scene at the counter—never a good strategy—would be especially ill advised with today’s heightened security. Even if your first instinct is to raise a fuss—this would be as stupid as arguing with a policeman. Similarly, asking for an agent’s name so you can report them to management will only provoke them to write you up as an unruly or bullying passenger—a report that could haunt you for years. Finally, if you write a nice letter later, the airline is ten times more likely to adjust a questionable charge in your favor if didn’t provoke the check‑in agent to type a scathing rebuttal into your record.

11. Don’t phone the airline.
If they tell you “no” and attach a memo to your reservation, the agent at the counter will feel obliged to turn you away. Can’t you phone anonymously? When you call their toll-free number, computers at the other end of the airline’s phone will often identify you, and display your file to the agent. If any airline employee decides to tag you as a “troublesome” passenger, you can anticipate years of problems.

12. Employ a willing ally
When curbside help is available, Jan and I always flash some cash while trying to check our bags and tandem(s) with a sky‑cap or porter. On the way back from our Hawaii tour in ’08 a $60 tip caused a porter to shepherd four boxed tandems plus four overweight suitcases through the TSA and agricultural-inspection lines before asking me to give him my credit card so he could “let me relax” while he checked my stuff at a remote counter. When he returned to have me sign the slip, my total fee for 4 tandems and 4 oversize suitcases was $80. While most porters won’t be this helpful, even when they only go so far as to escort you inside, I’ve learned that airline counter agents (who don’t take tips but do assess fees) provide better treatment to passengers who have tipped porters. Does this make sense? Sure. Airline check‑in agents rely on the overworked and poorly-paid porters to help them process crowds and get planes dispatched on time. Treating a sky‑cap’s clients poorly, and depriving these helpers of their source of tips, would be unthinkable. So whenever you have a choice, find and use a porter to help you with check in. While the agents at the counter cannot accept tips, a sky‑cap who spots your cash will instantly understand your desire for “superior customer service.”

13. “Should I expect to pay an extra fee when checking a moderately oversized suitcase?
No. But if you pack your tandem into an older SafeCase with removable wheels, you might get dinged with an oversize fee if you forget to remove those wheels BEFORE you lift your case onto the scale (which is explained below).

14. “What if I’ve heard elsewhere that airlines charge extra for a “non-regulation” case
with combined dimensions exceeding 62 inches?”
Decades ago someone came up with the archaic 62‑inch rule. Most check‑in agents don’t even know this rule exists. Unless you show up late or have an attitude, airline employees who know about the arcane 62‑inch regulation won’t bother to enforce it.

15. “Shouldn’t I worry about the size of my tandem SafeCase?”
In spite of the horror stories you’ve read on the web, or the stern warnings you’ve heard from dealers who’d love to sell you a pair of smaller cases, there’s no need to worry. If you don’t believe me, measure your trusty carry‑on case and compare those measurements with the published dimensions of a “regulation” under seat bag. Truth is, a majority of the under‑seat cases plus many thousands of oversize suitcases are traveling through airports every day without causing a hassle or triggering an extra charge.

16. “Others have sworn that my case will be measured!”
When this issue surfaced a few years back, I measured the gusseted cordura suitcases that Jan and I had been checking for years. They were all oversize! Not only had our outlaw suitcases never been measured, they were dimensionally identical to millions of suitcases sold at Target and Wal‑Mart. Later, reacting to tip received from the inventor of S&S couplers, we learned that millions of narrower suitcases sold overseas (and at U.S. swap meets) were exactly the same height as an S&S case—but a few inches longer. Once I knew what to look for, I spotted dozens of these taller “third-world” suitcases every time I went through a large airport. In the mid ‘90s Santana found a commercial source for these “nonregulation” cases and provided them “free” with the purchase of a coupled tandem. Once we confirmed that these non-regulation cases didn’t cause so much as a raised eyebrow, we designed our SafeCase with proven dimensions. Altogether, Jan and I have traveled with “non-regulation” luggage for nearly 25 years (for the first decade we didn’t even realize we were outlaws). How often have we had a non-regulation suitcase measured? Twice. One agent said “close enough” and the other charged us $80.

17. “Since they already weigh suitcases, won’t airlines start measuring them?”
Here’s why that won’t happen. Because they get you to lift your luggage onto their scale, weighing a suitcase is easy. To measure a suitcase, however, an agent will have to climb off their stool, find a tape measure, wrestle with your case, write down two measurements, wrestle with your case some more, record the remaining measurement, and then manually add the three numbers. Instead of being trained to perform this inefficient procedure, agents are instead trained to use the visual “cheat marks” that appear on the backstop and platform of the scale. Agents know through training that items which obscure one or more of these visual cues may jam the conveyor belt system that delivers checked baggage to a remote staging area. When a case obscures a cheat mark (which happens if you forget to remove the wheels from an older SafeCase), it is essential that the agent set it aside before paging a baggage handler to arrive with a cart to transport the “oversize” item through the terminal. The “oversize” fee is totally unrelated to the size of an airplane. It is instead a reasonable charge for the special handling required when an item might jam a terminal’s automated luggage system (which could cause a string of late departures). Because a SafeCase was designed to fit through TSA scanners and terminal conveyor systems, it won’t obscure the cheat marks or trigger a fee for special handling. By the accepted definition used in airport terminals a SafeCase is NOT oversize. Because a SafeCase won’t jam their system, if they ask “Is it oversize?” an honest reply will be “No.”

18. “Why would airlines publish a 62‑inch rule if they won’t enforce it?”
Instead of publishing a complex set of measurements for each peculiar shape (i.e. suitcases, duffels, backpacks, gun cases, strollers, framed art, etc.) the airlines use 62 inches as a universal measurement that serves to notify passengers that larger items may trigger a fee for special handling. As long as the combined dimensions fall within 62 inches, even an item the shape of a cue‑stick or an artist's folio cannot jam the airport’s automated conveyor systems. A normally proportioned suitcase would need to be much larger than 62‑inches to jam these same systems.