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Flying with your bike just got cheaper, as long as you don't exceed the weight limit. Max Ritter photo.
Following suit from competitors like American Airlines and Alaska, Delta Airlines eliminated its $150 flat fee for oversize sporting equipment. Until now, flying with a bike, surfboard, or other large sports gear would come with a hefty price tag. Those days are gone (sort of), under the new rule that treats this as regular luggage.
Of course, with any good thing comes a catch. If you read the fine print on Delta’s website, you’ll learn that the standard baggage allowance for economy class is a 50-pound bag that cannot exceed 62 linear inches. What does that mean? Good luck getting any mountain bike in a bike bag to play by those rules. Last time I flew, with a size L carbon-framed MTB in a Thule Bike Bag (one of the lightest around), it came in at 60 pounds and god knows how many linear inches.
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The good news is that if you fly anything but economy class on Delta, or have frequent flyer status, that weight limit gets bumped up 70 pounds.
While we appreciate a move in the right direction, Delta’s marketing hype really doesn’t accomplish much for the everyday traveler who’s just trying to take a bike on their next vacation. Our advice? Play nice with the gate agent and maybe they’ll make your life easy.
