Travel warning after hand luggage passengers arrive an hour before their flight – but are banned from boarding

A COUPLE were banned from boarding their flight after arriving an hour before it was due to take off - but said they should have been allowed as they only had hand luggage.

The pair, flying from an unnamed airport in New Zealand, were travelling on a long-haul flight.

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Getting to the airport at 3pm, the flight was due to take off at 4pm.

Without any checked luggage, and having checked in online, the pair arrived at the airport just an hour before departure thinking they could still make their flight.

Not realising they had to show their passports at the check in desk, they were then told it was closed and were not able to proceed to security.

The pair were forced to pay around NZ$1,200 (£533) for new flights, overnight accommodation and meals.

Most airlines close their boarding gates around 30 minutes before departure while check in can close around 60 minutes before a flight.

Despite this, hand luggage travellers can often bypass the check in desk, meaning they could still make the flight if they can get through security in less than 30 minutes.

And with lots of airlines now charging for checked luggage, some passengers may think they can arrive later than advised if they don't have bags to drop.

Also thinking the same, the couple took the airport to a tribunal and were awarded NZ$700 (£311) in compensation for their return flight.

An airline representative warned that not only should passengers know to allow more time, but that the boarding pass also alerted passengers they had to go to the check in desk even without luggage.

But tribunal referee Shaurya Malaviya told local media that the airline terms and conditions were "ambiguous" for what was expected of a passengers who had "already checked in online, has a boarding pass and no luggage to check in".

Brits may want to try it for themselves, especially following a recent 'airport theory' trend on social media which sees people arrive 15 minutes before a boarding opens.

A number of people claimed they got through security in less than 10 minutes, meaning they were still one of the first to get on the plane when boarding opened.

Current travel rules advise leaving two hours before a short haul flight and three hours before a long-haul flight.

EasyJet closes check in desks 60 minutes before departure, while gates close 30 minutes before departure.

And Ryanair's check in desks close 40 minutes before flight departure, while gates close 30 minutes before.

This is the same for British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, although you are advised to check your boarding pass in case it is slightly earlier for long-haul flights.

As someone who flies nearly every month with just hand luggage, do I advise trying?

I've been able to get through security in less than 10 minutes, and have also been stuck in queues for more than 40 minutes - so I'd say don't risk it.

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