Following in the footsteps of American budget airlines like Spirit and Allegiant, Wizz Air will charge a fee for travelers with large carry-on items. While it will be free to travel with small items such as laptops and handbags, items that cannot fit under the seat will be charged at €10.

Fees for carry-on luggage will begin as a trial period starting August 1, 2012, for all flights from London Luton to Katowic (and vice versa). Passengers who pay the carry-on luggage fee will also be given priority boarding.

Wizz Air hopes this will improve on-time performance and streamline the boarding process.

The press release from Wizz Air reads: “Wizz Air will now improve the least popular part of flying – the often stressful and inconvenient boarding process. We believe an online fee as low as €10 for large cabin baggage will encourage most passengers to bring only one small cabin bag that could easily fit under the seat. This will make boarding a more pleasant experience without the discomfort of congested cabin aisles, overfilling of the reduced storage space and consequent delays for offloading excess baggage. Less weight in the cabin will also result in less fuel burn, reduce costs and protect the environment. We hope our passengers will enjoy these benefits during the test on the London-Katowice route. If the test proves successful we will be rolling out our new cabin baggage policy and the benefit of the best boarding experience in the industry to all of our 244 routes across 28 countries.”