Jetstar really wants to charge you for everything but the seat

August 5, 2026 — 12:44pm

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The ritual hoisting of your carry-on bag into the overhead bin on a Jetstar flight? Come February, you’re going to have to pay for the priority to put your bag there.

Jetstar announced today it will reduce passengers’ free carry-on allowance to a single item, down from two, and begin charging a fee for guaranteed access to overhead bin space. Unpaid carry-on items will still be permitted in the overhead compartments, but only after the cash-paying priority travellers get first dibs. Jetstar passengers are now being forced to compete in the carry-on Hunger Games.

What’s galling is that the “new product” – access to the overhead bin – was formerly a standard product. Jetstar’s marketing is a sleight of hand, of sorts.

As consumer advocate Adam Glezer notes: “You’re not paying for a bin. You’re paying for a better chance at one.”

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© The Age