To prevent breakdowns in the airport's baggage-handling system at OR Tambo Airport, airport authorities are instituting new rules about the shape of bags to be checked at the airport.

Irregular shaped bags, round bags with no flat surfaces and long straps on luggage can cause jams on the baggage-handling system, causing it to shut down and creating delays for passengers.

Beginning April 1, only bags with one flat surface (such as regular shaped suitcases) will be allowed to be checked at OR Tambo. Bags with long straps, and bags with round or irregular shapes, also will not be allowed.

Anyone with an irregular shaped bag has the option to have the bag wrapped with one side flat at airport-approved baggage wrapping stations, rendering those bags available for check-in.

The Assistant General Manager for Operation Services at OR Tambo Kris Reddy said, “We very much appreciate that these new baggage rules will potentially create inconvenience or additional cost for some passengers, so this is not a step we have taken lightly. However, a small proportion of irregular bags that cause breakdowns in the baggage handling system create far greater inconvenience for the majority of passengers. We have investigated this matter over about a year and considered a variety of alternatives. It is our view, and airlines and other stakeholders now agree, that changing rules for irregular bags will improve the overall level of service to all passengers."