The Supreme Court has declared it legal to carry personal items on airplanes in excess of the carry-on baggage allowance. “Victory” lost another trial, but is not going to implement the laws

News, 17:21 08/07/2018

Pobeda lost: passengers will continue to take fur coats and bouquets on the plane

Context

MOSCOW, August 7 – RAPSI. The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation rejected the claim of Pobeda Airlines, recognizing the legal obligation of carriers to carry a number of items in excess of the norm hand luggage in the cabin of the plane, a RAPSI correspondent reports from the courtroom.

In October 2017, the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation approved changes to the rules for the carriage of hand luggage on airplanes: airlines were able to establish a free baggage allowance (at least 5 kg - approx. ed.), but they became obliged to allow a passenger to take on board a handbag or briefcase, a bouquet of flowers, outerwear, baby food, suits in a suitcase, child seats, medicines, crutches and canes, as well as goods from duty free.

Representatives of the airline asked the court to partially invalidate paragraph 135 of the Federal Aviation Regulations." General rules air transportation of passengers, baggage, cargo and requirements for servicing passengers, shippers, consignees." In the claims, Pobeda asked the court not to limit the carrying of "social" luggage: medicines, cradles, crutches and walking canes.

The low-cost airline wants to use different rules: the airline allows you to take on board only luggage that fits in a special calibrator measuring 36x30x27 cm, and it offers to check in all other things as checked baggage for an additional fee. The carrier pays attention only to the size of the items, and not to the weight. Pobeda's lawyers ask the court to partially cancel this clause of the rules, and the administrative defendants - the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Justice - to develop a different procedure for carrying hand luggage, to define and structure "dimensionless" personal belongings.

Safety first

Participated in the court hearing CEO low-cost airline Andrey Kalmykov. According to him, Pobeda turned to aircraft manufacturer Boeing for advice on establishing the size of safely carried hand luggage. The aircraft manufacturer calculated the size of the calibrator based on the ability to carry 189 passengers, since the carrier operates only one type of aircraft: the Boeing 737-800.

The airline’s position was expressed by lawyer Heinrich Padva: “These points do not seem to sound very serious. The point is that they do not ensure the safety of passengers’ flights. The law repeatedly establishes the wording “within normal limits.” And in paragraph 135 we have a whole list items without limiting their allowance. Passengers who enter the cabin first completely fill all luggage compartments. For our safety, the airline wants to limit the size of hand luggage so that things do not fly around the cabin during turbulence.”

Representatives of the airline have repeatedly noted that the goal of the low-cost airline is not to profit from passengers, but to ensure safety in the aircraft cabin. “All luggage space on the plane is given to customers free of charge, we are not trying to make money, but want to restore order,” Kalmykov added. Lawyers for the airline believe that a number of items of hand luggage are not clearly defined and the court may recognize even a briefcase with straps as a woman's bag.

Flowers and fur coats

Representatives of the plaintiffs, in support of their claims, brought a calibrator into the courtroom - a blue metal box with a high "back" - and showed the court the "absurd" amount of things that a passenger can take on board without a weight limit. The head of the airline placed several business bags, suitcases with suits and bouquets of flowers next to the meter to demonstrate to the court the possible abuse of the rules by passengers.

The plaintiffs also expressed their negative attitude towards the ability of passengers to take bouquets of flowers on board due to the air circulation device and the unsafe flight of passengers with allergies, and also noted the cunning of passengers flying for shopping.

“Our company flies to the suburbs of Milan, and people take three fur coats with them into the cabin and at check-in they say that this is hand luggage. We have to transport it in the cabin,” said the head of the airline. The administrative defendant argued that it was impossible to limit the possibility of carrying outerwear in the cabin, since Pobeda does not use the passage through the “sleeve” from the airport buildings, and people are often outside in sub-zero temperatures.

Defendant's position

During the court hearing, representatives of the Ministry of Transport stated that the rules being appealed would be changed to establish legal certainty, but they asked the court to refuse to satisfy the airline’s demands. According to the department, the airline wants to increase fees from passengers, and does not care about the safety of transportation. The agency is developing a draft amendment to the contested rules, according to which the provisions of paragraph 135 will be moved to another paragraph of the document and subsequently edited.

MOSCOW, August 7. /TASS/. The Supreme Court (SC) of Russia rejected the claim of Pobeda Airlines, demanding a partial abolition of the rules for the carriage of hand luggage, which allow a passenger to take flowers, a backpack, a handbag and some other things into the cabin in excess of the 5 kg limit, a TASS correspondent reports.

“The airline’s claim must be rejected,” reads the court’s decision. The defendants in the lawsuit were the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Transport.

As stated by Pobeda CEO Andrei Kalmykov and lawyer Genrikh Padva, the airline will appeal the decision. “We, of course, will appeal this decision, since we see the unenforceability of such rules,” Kalmykov said. “But if the decision comes into force, then after the appeal we will be forced to reconsider our rules.” According to him, “the turnover schedule aircraft will change," which will lead to an increase in ticket prices.

According to the lawyer, the company will appeal the court's decision to the appellate instance.

Background

Litigation in the case began in the spring. The airline, after changing the legislation on the carriage of hand luggage and introducing mandatory free carriage of at least 5 kg of luggage, introduced its own rules: they are not tied to the weight of luggage, but limit the dimensions to 36x30x27 centimeters in three dimensions.

In April, Pobeda lost a court case with the prosecutor's office regarding compliance with paragraph 135 of the Federal Aviation Regulations. According to this clause, passengers, in addition to the established free baggage allowance, can take on board a hand bag, a backpack, a bouquet of flowers, baby food, outerwear, a suit in a suitcase, medicines, a device for carrying a child, canes, crutches as hand luggage. , walkers, wheelchairs, rollators and goods purchased in duty free stores. In May, Pobeda filed a lawsuit with the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation demanding that the new rules for carrying hand luggage on airplanes, which were adopted in the fall of 2017, be partially invalidated.

Pobeda asked to remove a handbag, a backpack, a bouquet of flowers, and a suit in a briefcase from the list of free items for transportation, leaving all other items on the list. In this case, a bag, backpack and other things are allowed to free transportation, if they correspond to the dimensions specified by the company. The Ministry of Transport insisted on postponing the consideration of the case. According to its representatives, the department is now developing another bill that will transfer the entire list from FAP-135 to FAP-133.

Positions of the parties

In addition to Kalmykov and Padva, the head of the legal department, Alexey Tankevich, spoke on the side of Pobeda in court. The airline justified its lawsuit by saying that allowing excess carry-on luggage threatens the safety of passengers.

During the court hearing, representatives of Pobeda, for clarity, while explaining their demands to cancel the free carriage of some items, demonstrated a calibrator for determining the dimensions of luggage. Kalmykov, proving the company’s position, explained that the low-cost airline ordered a special study from Boeing (TASS has a copy of it), in which the manufacturer came to the conclusion that for the safe transportation of 189 passengers on board (the maximum load of the Pobeda aircraft), each passenger can place one piece of hand luggage measuring 36x30x27 cm in three dimensions on the top shelf.

At the same time, Kalmykov noted, Pobeda cannot ask the passenger to put his hand luggage under the seat in front: the layout of the aircraft is as tight as possible and there is only room under the seat for the passenger’s legs. “The design of our specific aircraft is such that the layout of the aircraft is made taking into account maximum density. We use so-called thin seats to transport as much as possible large quantity passengers. The legroom is 29 inches. It’s very small, so there’s no space for hand luggage downstairs,” he said.

Kalmykov also added that with the existing rules he cannot ensure the safety of passengers. Moreover, Kalmykov said during the meeting that the current requirements for hand luggage were developed without taking into account the passenger capacity of aircraft and their types. According to him, now the requirements are the same for both narrow-body aircraft and wide-body long-haul aircraft.

In turn, lawyers from the Ministry of Transport told the court that the rules were developed in agreement with the airline and taking into account passenger complaints. “When authorizing the carriage of a list of things in excess of the norm, it was taken into account that some things cannot be weighed, while others are essential items during the flight,” the lawyer noted.

The Prosecutor General's Office supported the Ministry of Transport in court, considering that the disputed paragraph of the rules complied with the law. The court decision has not yet entered into force and can be appealed.

MOSCOW, November 20 – RIA Novosti. The Supreme Court rejected the appeal of Pobeda Airlines regarding the carriage of hand luggage, a RIA Novosti correspondent reports from the courtroom.

The representative of the Ministry of Transport, in turn, noted that according to the standards discussed in Pobeda, it will be impossible to transport an ordinary bag or jacket.

“Given that Pobeda has baggage-free fares, which means an additional payment, it seems to us that the rights of passengers will be violated in this way,” explained a representative of the Ministry of Transport.

The airline's general director objected to the department's arguments. He recalled that Pobeda is a low-cost airline with increased passenger capacity, which was achieved, among other things, by installing thinner seats and a dense layout.

“Passengers whose belongings do not fit into the luggage compartment of the plane send their belongings under the seats, which is contrary to safety standards, especially during evacuation,” Kalmykov said.

He called the main problem the lack of balance between the passenger’s right to carry hand luggage and ensuring the safe transportation of baggage. The general director asked the court to invalidate the law regarding the airline’s obligation to accept oversized bags in excess of the carry-on baggage allowance.

Carrier's reaction

After the court's decision was announced, Kalmykov told reporters that he was surprised and did not agree with it.

"We cannot fulfill current rule which we dispute, and ensure flight safety. In court, we clearly demonstrated that the list of things established by the rules cannot be transported in the cabin of an aircraft,” he said.

According to Kalmykov, the company will file a supervisory complaint against the decision. In case of refusal, the airline will be forced to set symbolic dimensions for hand luggage, he added.

“We will most likely set ridiculous dimensions for hand luggage, for example 10 by 10 by 10 centimeters; we will carry everything else in addition to hand luggage, as the Ministry of Transport asks,” concluded the head of the company.

The essence of the conflict

New rules for carrying hand luggage came into force in November last year. Thus, the free carry-on baggage allowance cannot be less than five kilograms. In addition, the passenger has the right to take with him a number of things, including a handbag, a backpack, a men's briefcase, a backpack, a bouquet of flowers, a cradle, crutches, rollators, and outerwear.

Pobeda decided to challenge the rules because, according to the carrier, they do not take into account the capacity of the aircraft's luggage compartments. As Kalmykov noted, due to the fact that Pobeda flights are almost always 100 percent loaded, passengers can only take on board the calculated baggage allowance (36*30*27 cm). It is impossible to place anything more in the cabin beyond these dimensions, Kalmykov said. At the same time, the airline did not demand the removal of wheelchairs, rollators, walkers, crutches, and cribs from the list.

The so-called low-cost airline was forced to abandon its long-standing rules for carrying free items of hand luggage. The carrier removed descriptions of the briefcase and handbag from its website, and also removed restrictions on the size of these items. Similar instructions were sent to Pobeda representatives at various airports, reports the correspondent. website.

However, previous notices with invalid descriptions and restrictions are still available at check-in counters at at least some airports, including Moscow's Vnukovo. Templates for measuring briefcases and handbags are also still not dismantled. In case of conflict situations, passengers should refer to the information on the Pobeda website.

Let us recall that Pobeda has been demanding from passengers for more than a year, in violation of federal aviation regulations (FAR), that the briefcase, computer or handbag carried free of charge be no more than 75 centimeters in the sum of three dimensions. She also refused free transportation of those briefcases and bags that were more than 75 centimeters (and this is the majority of briefcases and a significant part of computer bags), or did not fit the definitions of these items created by the company itself (this made it difficult to transport unusual handbags and the like). At the same time, statements and letters from regulators represented by Rostransnadzor and the Ministry of Transport about the illegality of this practice did not stop Pobeda.

In February 2016, Rostransnadzor, after a passenger’s complaint, issued an inspector’s order to Pobeda to cease violations, but the airline appealed it in arbitration court. The court of first instance (case No. A40-123705/2016) confirmed the correctness of the regulator in July 2016, the appellate instance - in October, the cassation instance - in February 2017. Nevertheless, Pobeda appealed to the Supreme Court, which at the end of May refused to consider the company's appeal against the decisions of lower courts, finding no violations in the decisions of the latter. Having thus exhausted the possibilities of appeal, Pobeda was forced to remove illegal requirements from its transportation rules.

Unfortunately, it took almost a year and a half of litigation to resolve this not very difficult issue, which reached the Supreme Court. In fact, months of appeals allowed Pobeda to use them as a reason to not comply with the regulator’s and FAP’s orders for almost a year and a half. It is possible that delaying the execution of the decision (and not canceling it) was the real goal of the airline, since it allowed it to continue to charge passengers extra fees for hand luggage for all these 16 months, based on the illegal provisions of the Pobeda carriage rules. At the same time, it is not entirely clear why the court decision, which entered into legal force in October 2016 after the decision of the court of appeal, was executed by the carrier only in May 2017.

The decision of the court of first instance, later confirmed by higher courts, in particular, states: “Having established in the Rules for the carriage of personal belongings and luggage in passenger compartment aircraft on flights of Pobeda Airlines LLC such type of luggage as a “handbag” (free of charge), the company reserved the right to decide what type of handbag fits or does not fit this definition, which is unacceptable and contradicts paragraph 135 of FAP-82. " The courts have also indicated that airline rules must not conflict general rules air transportation and worsen the level of passenger service in comparison with the guarantees established by the FAP.

Currently, the text of the rules of “Victory” has been corrected; provisions indicated by the courts that do not comply with the FAP have been removed from it. The new text posted on the page for selecting baggage options of the reservation system actually repeats the wording of the FAP and reads: “the following items are carried free of charge in the aircraft cabin if they are with the passenger and are not included in the luggage: a handbag or briefcase (one of these items), a folder for papers, an umbrella, a cane, a bouquet of flowers, outerwear, printed publications for reading during the flight, baby food for the child during the flight, a cell phone, a camera, a video camera, a laptop computer, a suit in a suitcase, a cradle when transporting a child. "

At the same time, another case of discrepancy between the rules of Pobeda (and a number of other airlines) and the requirements of the FAP, considered in this case, remains unresolved. This applies to the passenger's right to carry 10 kilograms of baggage free of charge. Paragraph 122 of the FAP establishes that “the norms for free baggage allowance, including items carried by the passenger, cannot be less than ten kilograms per passenger.” This provision actually gives the passenger the right to decide whether to carry these 10 kilograms in the cabin or check them as checked baggage, although it does not explicitly say so. However, a number Russian airlines they interpret this differently: Pobeda requires that these 10 kilograms be checked in as luggage, while Sibir (S7 Airlines), UTair and some other carriers, on the contrary, require that the passenger take them with them into the cabin. Meanwhile, arbitration courts do not agree with the opinion of all these carriers.

In particular, in the same case of Pobeda against Rostransnadzor, the courts of all instances came to the conclusion that the airline did not have the right to charge the passenger who filed the complaint a 2,000 ruble fee for carrying hand luggage, since this luggage weighed only 9 kilograms and could be carried free in the cabin, not just in the luggage compartment. In another case No. A40-219359/2016, which was heard in 2016 after a passenger’s complaint against Siberia Airlines, the arbitration court decided that the passenger had the right to insist on checking such an item into luggage instead of carrying it in the cabin, as Siberia demanded. In particular, the court indicated that if such an item, weighing within 10 kilograms, exceeds the dimensions allowed for hand luggage or contains items prohibited in hand luggage, then the requirement to carry it only in the cabin violates the passenger’s right to free transportation.

In other words, the courts interpret the FAP in favor of the passenger’s right to choose the method of transporting 10 free kilograms. Unfortunately, not a single court, examining all these particular cases, has formulated this right of the passenger in plain text, limiting itself to only indicating the illegality of the actions of carriers in specific cases of complaints. There is no direct wording in the FAPs themselves, which provokes airlines to interpret this point differently.

Until this point is finally settled by the courts (or until the FAPs themselves change), Pobeda passengers can carry 10 kilograms of checked luggage for free, plus take into the cabin for free any items from the above list, including a briefcase or computer or handbag, outerwear , a folder for papers, printed materials, a computer, a camera, a video camera, an umbrella, a bouquet of flowers, etc. It should be remembered that some Pobeda passengers at one time complained about the nagging of certain representatives of the carrier about cases or covers for a computer, camera or video camera and demands for payment for the carriage of these items. It is not entirely clear whether this strange practice has already been stopped. The Pobeda website contains a vague statement about this: “It is not recommended to place a laptop computer, camera or camera in cases or other containers.”

In addition, passengers should remember about other aspects of traveling on Pobeda flights: payment for more than 10 kilograms and parts, lack of food on board (and attempts to take your own food in a separate bag will lead to a fee of 2,000 rubles as for paid hand luggage). When purchasing on the Pobeda website, the company includes by default a ticket at the minimum “Standard” fare, to get rid of which you need to independently uncheck the corresponding item at the bottom of the selection page additional services. Seat selection, and to stimulate the purchase of this “Victory” service, passengers flying together to opposite ends of the cabin and to another place. A year ago, this led to a loud scandal: “Victory” to a family with a baby for the parents’ attempt to reunite on a plane - after the airline itself deliberately seated them in different rows in an effort to earn an extra 149 rubles for changing seats. Since then, Pobeda has also at least doubled this wild fee for the opportunity to sit together on the plane.

The Supreme Court has allowed handbags, backpacks, a suit in a briefcase and other things to be carried free of charge in hand luggage. Low-cost carrier Pobeda advocated for restrictions on their free transportation on planes. But the court sided with the Ministry of Transport

General Director of Pobeda Andrey Kalmykov (center) (Photo: Andrey Lyubimov / RBC)

In addition to hand luggage, air passengers can also take on board backpacks, handbags, umbrellas, crutches and other things that are specified in the Federal Regulations free of charge. aviation regulations. This decision was made by the Supreme Court on Tuesday, August 7.

In May, the low-cost carrier Pobeda (part of the Aeroflot group) went to the Supreme Court with a demand to declare illegal the rules for the carriage of hand luggage for non-refundable so-called baggage-free airline tickets, by order of the Ministry of Transport in November 2017.

The defendants in the case were the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Justice.

According to the new rules, airlines can sell tickets at baggage-free fares (previously it was mandatory free rate 10 kg), but the passenger can take with him free hand luggage, the weight of which is 5 kg. However, in addition to this, according to clause 135 of the Federal Aviation Regulations, airlines are required to take a set of things from the approved list for free. It includes: a backpack, the weight and dimensions of which are established by the carrier’s rules, ladies bag, a bouquet of flowers, outerwear, a suit in a suitcase, baby food for the child during the flight. In addition, the list includes medications, crutches, canes, walkers, duty-free goods packed in a sealed plastic bag, the weight and dimensions of which are established by the carrier’s rules, etc.

However, Pobeda opposed this approach. The carrier believes that by its order the Ministry of Transport imposed mutually exclusive obligations on airlines: to accept for transportation hand luggage, the weight and dimensions of which ensure its safe placement in the aircraft cabin (clause 133 of FAP-82), and the obligation to accept items for transportation as hand luggage without taking into account their weight, dimensions and the possibility of safe placement in the aircraft cabin, with the exception of a backpack (clause 135 of FAP-82).

The general director of Pobeda, Andrei Kalmykov, in the courtroom demonstrated the things that, according to clause 135 of the FAP, are mandatory for transportation by the airline: a briefcase, a woman's bag, a backpack, a bouquet of flowers, outerwear. As a result, we ended up with a whole bunch of things that were allowed to be carried free of charge. At the same time, Kalmykov emphasized that the obligation to transport these things threatens flight safety. "We don't mind baby food, as well as social items such as crutches and the like, we will find a place for this in the salon,” he said. Kalmykov added that the law does not contain the concept of “woman’s bag.” “For some, a woman’s bag is a huge checkered shuttle bag,” he clarified.

The representative of the Ministry of Transport suggested “not bringing to the point of absurdity” the topic with things from the list of FAP 135. He added that this list will be adjusted to eliminate contradictions.

The Ministry of Justice sided with the Ministry of Transport regarding the carriage of hand luggage. The representative of the Ministry of Justice also added that the “excess” allowance may be adjusted in the future.

When asked by the prosecutor about the basis on which the airline concluded that the things shown endangered safety, Kalmykov explained that they turned to the manufacturer of the Boeing aircraft used by Pobeda for consultation. “We contacted the manufacturer, and we received an answer that there were 189 more people (the number of passengers on the Pobeda liners. — RBC) it is possible to place carry-on luggage only that corresponds to the calibrator,” he noted.

In December, the carrier submitted new baggage rules to the Ministry of Transport. According to the airline's general director Andrei Kalmykov, the ministry should not impose service requirements on airlines; the rules should only specify safety requirements. At the same time, Pobeda has its own rules since December 10, prohibiting passengers from taking into the aircraft cabin items that exceed the size established by the airline for free hand luggage of 36x30x27 cm, even for an additional fee. The airline explained the change in rules due to the lack of space for extra baggage in airplane cabins.

It might be useful to read: