Airline Adds Surfboards To List Of No-No Baggage

Beginning November 6, British Airways will no longer accept surfboards and other bulky sporting equipment, according to SurfersVillage.com. The announcement by the airline has sent British surfers to sea in protest over the decision.

British Airways issued the following warning, "Due to the large size and handling complexities, some sporting equipment cannot be accommodated through the airport baggage system or within the aircraft hold. Therefore we no longer accept the following equipment at check-in as part of your sporting equipment allowance. Please contact your local freight company to arrange carriage for any items that exceed the permitted weight and size."

The list includes hang gliders, windsurfing boards and sails, surfboards, kayaks or canoes, pole vaults, and javelins. Surfboards - which often weigh less than  eight lbs and are usually about six feet long -- are too cumbersome to check in, according to the airline.

The airline will however continue to accept golf clubs and skis, as checked baggage.

The British Surfing Association -- reportedly 10,000 members-strong -- has set up a petition and a members' group on networking site Facebook in a bid to overturn the decision, according to metro.co.uk.

Karen Walton, the British Surfing Association's national director, said she was "extremely shocked" by the decision.

"International surf travel companies are expanding every day as British people look to pursue their new-found passion abroad, particularly in the winter months and BA has recently reopened its route from Gatwick to Newquay, no doubt keen to capitalize on the growing number of British people heading for the surf.”

The association arranges travel for British Surfing Teams yearly, and favored BA as their carrier. "We therefore feel completely let down and angered by the news that our national airline is banning surfboards rather than following some other airlines and charging a supplementary fee.

"Although every surfboard, piece of sporting equipment and musical instrument is different in shape and size, we'd find it extremely hard to believe that the average short board would be more difficult to handle when compared to a double bass and a full bag of golf clubs," Walton adds.

"Most people would fit into a double bass case, and a full set of golf clubs would certainly weigh more than your average surfboard which would be around 4kg, so how BA can justify these ridiculous statements is beyond us.

"We can only imagine that many more of BA's frequent flyer executive club members are golfers or musicians than surfers and that the decision to ban surfboards is a commercial one made on this basis.

"Either way, we find it alarming and would be keen to stress to other airlines that this is a move that is in no way satisfactory."

FMI: www.britsurf.co.uk/, www.britishairways.com/travel/baggag/public/en_gb