A man was escorted out of Orlando Airport after being denied boarding on a Frotier Airlines flight after refusing to pay to take his second carry-on item onboard. He claimed that his pillowcase (filled with clothing) did not count. Sorry pal, that’s a stupid hack that does not work on a budget carrier.
Pillowcase Hack Fails On Frontier Airlines
The incident took place inside Orlando International Airport (MCO) in Florida. A man thought he could take a pillowcase onboard (full of clothing) for no charge because it was a pillow, but was denied. He was told he would need to pay up to take it onboard, but he refused, arguing instead.
The arguing continued until the aircraft door was closed. Suddenly the man had a change of heart and was willing to pay, but it was too late. Once he realized he was denied boarding, he became even angrier, prompting Frontier staff to call the airport police. The man was not arrested but was escorted out of the secure side of the airport since he no longer had a valid ticket.
@natashaorganic Stop listening to the internet #airline #travelhacks #pillow #frontier #mco #orlando
I have addressed this issue before. In a 2022 story titled The Airline Pillow Trick…Don’t Rest On It, I wrote:
The premise of the “hack” is simple. Pillows generally don’t count toward your carry-on or personal item limit, so filling a pillow case with clothing or other items is a smart “hack” to beat extra baggage charges.
That’s a dangerous premise to rest on, though. I’ve looked through the carry-on rules of several airlines inside and outside the United States and cannot find any reference that a pillow would not count as a personal item.
Just be prepared, if you use this trick, to pay up if you get “caught” with the extra item, because it technically isn’t a loophole you can rely on.
I think my advice was spot-on…too bad the shulb on Frontier did not read it.
> Read More: The Airline Pillow Trick…Don’t Rest On It
On The Matter Of Clickbait
This is a good time to talk about clickbait again, because 1.) I write a lot of clickbait but 2.) there is good and bad clickbait.
You might want to start here, which sums up my thoughts on clickbait. Here too.
> Read More: The State Of Travel & Points Blogging (In Defense Of Clickbait)
From my perspective, the most important differentiator about my clickbait is that it is clearly meant for entertainment, not meant to give [bad] advice:
I do a lot of clickbait here on Live And Let’s Fly, but you will notice it is almost always about passengers who misbehave, not about my experience and assessment of carriers. My reviews are a very serious endeavor, and the photos and commentary are anything but fluff.
One thing that (I hope) distinguishes this brand from others is that I travel a lot and I take my reviews very seriously. I go out of my way to be fair and I realize that a negative flight or hotel review can have very serious consequences concerning the employees or even carrier involved.
In short, my clickbait is of the non-substantive variety. It is fluff meant to entertain more than to enlighten. I don’t mess around with my reviews and don’t make sweeping judgments or generalizations about a carrier based on one bad flight.
> Read More: Travel Vlogger Doxxed By Airline After Negative Review
If I was trying to tell you about a “great trick” for cheating the airline out of ancillary revenue by “disguising” a carry-on bag as a pillow, you’d have every right to mock me. But I’m not going to give you bad advice or propose tricks that may make me a lot of cash in terms of clicks but are unethical or just plain stupid. Hold me to that!
CONCLUSION
I’m so glad this guy got caught and denied baoding on Frontier Airlines for trying to use the “pillowcase hack.” I hope millions will see THIS video and think twice before trying the same thing. It will save many headaches…
Hat Tip: View From The Wing
I’m with you Matthew – to me “clickbait” is when you write a headline that promises one thing, but the article delivers another thing.
It’s not clickbait to write an interesting headline that makes someone want to click to read more – that’s just good marketing, as long as your article delivers what your headline promised.
I am waiting for the day the Budget Carriers start pricing tickets based on a passenger’s weight – after all, the airlines have used the “weight” excuse for getting away with charging for the weight of baggage. Why are lard buckets allowed to pay the same price for a ticket as a normal sized person is charged for a ticket?
The issue is the lack of consistency applying rules for additional charges on board. I’ve read dozens of stories where pax were allowed to board in one airport with carry on free of charge only to be charged at the connecting airport.
Where is this alleged pillowcase in the video or pictures? All I see is the backpack he’s wearing, nothing else.
It’s there. Watch closely.
I have found for the most part that you keep to the right side of the line, Matthew. Well, other than your shirtless abs photos. Just put a damn shirt on! 🙂