It’s interesting to see how territorial some passengers are on flights. We all loathe that person who decides to stick their stinky hooves on the bulkhead, but almost as bad are the those claiming overhead locker space as their own.

Usually it is possible to put your bag above your seat, but frequent flyers will know this is not always possible. Anyone arriving late in the boarding process is at risk of their bag being put somewhere else, which could be above another row, in a wardrobe or, god forbid, in the cargo hold!

Overhead Locker Wars

You’ve probably been there, happily sitting in your seat when someone arrives late in the boarding process, usually sweaty and red faced. They demand someone remove the bags from THEIR overhead space. When no-one replies, they will grab the offending bag and ask, “Who’s bag is this?”

The bag owner usually good naturedly replies, “Mine!” and the huffing passenger will then ask for it to be moved. The question is, should you be moving your bag or not?


Well, the answer is no. The overhead locker space is, for the most part, available to everyone. Flight attendants and cabin crew will also agree that this is the case. That means you can pretty much put your bag anywhere, which is good news for those who routinely put their bags in a locker across the aisle from their seat so they can see if anyone touches it during the trip.

Really the only time overhead compartments are reserved is by travel class. Business class passengers put their bags in their section of the plane, premium economy in theirs and so on. That’s pretty much the only rule and carriers like American Airlines even label them as such.

Overall Thoughts

It’s good to know the overhead lockers are for everyone. People generally place their bags above their seat or as close to that as they can get. There is no reason to claim someone’s bag is in your space, because it just isn’t.

For those precious people who are irritated by having their bag placed elsewhere, my advice would be to board earlier. That really is the only way to guarantee to have your bag above your seat.

Have you ever witnessed any shenanigans on board a flight with people fighting about the overhead bin space? What happened? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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Featured image by Mattes via Wikimedia Commons.