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Can I Bring CPAP Machine In My Carry On Bag?
Good morning, I have a question about traveling with a CPAP machine.
I know medical equipment is exempt from luggage fees and should be carried on.
What I’m not clear on is if the CPAP machine needs to be in its own case that has only the machine, or if I can put my CPAP machine in my carry on suitcase with my clothes?
If it’s packed with clothes, does it still count as a ‘free’ / exempt item?
Before using a CPAP machine, we traveled with very small under seat luggage.
It’s going to be annoying to juggle the small luggage AND the CPAP case.
It would be better to use a small overhead suitcase that holds everything, but luggage fees are outrageous.
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2 Replies
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You need to be able to separate it as its own bag or it could be counted as a personal item or a carryon.
Not all gate agents will call you on it though.
One lady had food and water for her service dog and a few other things in a small bag and they charged her for a carryon.
She was super irritated as it was supposed to count as a medical device (the dog was a medical alert dog).
So she just boarded and was going to take it up with Frontier when she got home.
We travel with my son’s scoliosis brace which is a medical device and it needs its own hard case and can’t be checked.
I usually put coats in the middle of it because it helps it from collapsing, but my family knows the drill that all those coats might have to come out of the medical device bag and we might need to wear them on the plane and then repack them once we are in the plane.
I usually tell the gate lady we can put them all on right now and then hold up boarding by repacking once we are in the airplane.
they have let us pass with the coats in the bag, but a medical device is supposed to be only medical device.
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Probably depends on which airline you are flying and what ticket you have.
If you are flying Basic Economy on Spirit or United, I would expect them to be quite strict even if your CPAP machine is technically a medical device.
Personally, I would just pay to check it and avoid the hassle.
You can reach out to the specific airline to ask their policy if you really want to carry it on.
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