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Kazakhstan's Agency for Protection of Competition has launched an investigation into FlyArystan airline concerning its practice of charging a uniform fee for overweight carry-on baggage. The probe focuses on whether the airline's policy unfairly impacts passengers.

Uniform Fees Under Scrutiny

The investigation، announced by Nurlanuly Nurlan، head of the Almaty branch of the Agency for Protection of Competition and Development، centers on FlyArystan's method of charging for carry-on baggage that exceeds the standard weight limit. According to the regulator، the airline charges a fixed amount regardless of the actual excess weight. This means a passenger with just 1 kg over the limit pays the same as someone with 5 kg over.

"As the practice of other airlines shows، a differential fee can be charged for exceeding carry-on baggage weight، meaning for the actual excess weight،" Nurlanuly explained. This suggests that a more granular، weight-based fee structure might be standard practice elsewhere.

Potential Consumer Rights Violations

The Department believes this uniform fee policy could potentially infringe upon consumer rights. Despite receiving a notification regarding alleged violations of competition law، FlyArystan has not yet complied with the agency's demands. Consequently، an investigation is now underway، and a decision will be made based on its findings.

Recent public discussions have highlighted passenger dissatisfaction with FlyArystan's baggage policies. A video shared by journalist Askhat Niyazov، complaining about increased carry-on costs and the airline's general pricing strategy، gained significant traction on social media. Numerous complaints have also surfaced regarding passengers being charged for items purchased from duty-free shops، which were then counted as additional carry-on baggage.

For instance، passengers on the Istanbul-Aktau flight reported being forced to pay for goods bought at shopping centers. One passenger shared that airline staff insisted on consolidating all items into a single carry-on bag not exceeding 5 kg، and then charged for the excess weight. "We checked in، handed over our luggage، and bought items from duty-free. But at boarding، problems started: they wouldn't even let us take small bags، measured the purchased goods، and demanded payment. The communication was very poor،" the passenger recounted.

A similar incident occurred on the Kutaisi-Almaty flight. According to one passenger، FlyArystan staff set up scales at the boarding gate and began weighing all purchased items، including a bottle of wine from duty-free. "They told me، 'Pay 27،000 tenge or leave it.' They didn't even allow me to transfer it to someone else's bag،" the passenger wrote on social media.

Following these public complaints، the airline has since updated its rules for carrying goods purchased from duty-free shops. Starting October 1، 2025، passengers on international flights will be allowed to carry duty-free items as part of their carry-on baggage free of charge.

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