Air India Introduces Pre-paid Excess Baggage Charges for Domestic Flights

Pre-paid excess baggage means paying for extra weight or extra bags before you reach the airport. When Air India introduced it for domestic flights in 2016 it could be bought only by phone or at an office, in four small weight slabs. The airline has since moved to a simpler offer that covers its international flights as well and can be bought online. This article describes the offer as Air India publishes it now.

What you can save

Air India says paying in advance saves up to 20% compared with the charge at the airport. The saving varies by route.

Who can use it, and how late

• You need a ticket whose number starts with 098, which means it was issued by Air India. The offer is valid on Air India's own services, not on interline or codeshare itineraries.
• Extra bags or extra weight can be pre-paid as late as two hours ahead of departure.
• For one overweight bag, extra allowance (to a ceiling of 32 kg) can be added until six hours before the flight.

How to pay

1. Online: use Manage Booking on the airline's home page.
2. By phone: call customer support.
3. In person: at an Air India city booking office, an airport office or an authorised agent.

Airport rates if you do not pre-pay

These amounts exclude taxes and apply when the ticket is on the weight concept, which means the allowance is a total weight. No single bag may exceed 32 kg.

Within India, passengers whose free allowance is under 25 kg may check one piece; those with 25 kg or more may check two. Travellers starting or ending in the north-east states and a few other airports listed by Air India are exempt from the tax on excess baggage tickets.

Free allowance to compare against

See our note on Air India's domestic checked allowances, which lists the free weight by fare brand.