oh, yes;; I understand, now. . we don't play that
game. . our carry-on stuff will fit under the seat.
but, yes, many people count on the overhead spots
for big stuff. . holds everything up, either at the
ticket-taker's spot or in the airplane. . inefficient. -- j
.

I had to do that once at Heathrow. I was like 2kg over the limit,so I had to pull out a bunch of books and put them in my computer bag.

That's the opposite situation, though, from what I was describing. It seems they let people have large carry-ons. If the flight is full, there's no way they'll all fit, so they check them at the gate. It seems to be a back-door way of avoiding the baggage fee, but it leads to what appears on the surface to be inefficient behavior, with people lined up at the gate to check baggage instead of checking it at the desk where the baggage-handling equipment is.

that's like our situation, coming back from salt lake city
with our monster suitcase full of goodies. . overweight. . pull stuff out of it or pay an extra $60.
we just paid. . ouch. -- j
.

good lord, 10 hours? . I would come unglued!!! -- j
.

It seems like most passengers have large carry-ons, which don't fit and end up getting checked at the gate. This seems inefficient.

Fivedollargold just completed a cross-country trip on Delta. (He will be posting separately on this trip.) They have joined their airline brethren in nickel and dimeing customers. $25 bucks to check a small bag. But they do offer a choice of peanuts, pretzels, or cookies for lunch.

I stopped flying Delta many years ago because they were always trying to pull a fast one, and I got tired of the 10 or more hour waits out on the tarmac.