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NEWS > BUSINESS > 95 BOA CONSTRICTORS MEANS HUGE LUGGAGE FEE FOR MALAYSIAN MAN
95 BOA CONSTRICTORS MEANS HUGE LUGGAGE FEE FOR MALAYSIAN MAN
September 8 2010
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Though it has become almost mundane in modern life, the achievement of flight is still quite incredible in human history. A little over a hundred years old now the fact that we can even consider taking something like 
human flight as pedestrian shows how far removed we are from our ancestors. Even fifty years ago commercial flight wasn’t common and now it is hardly more complicated then getting on the bus and riding to the next town.
Of course it is slightly more complicated but not because of the mechanism of flight but rather the process of actually getting on and off planes. Boarding a plane has never been as streamlined as other forms of travel such as trains or buses. In today’s world though, where people have used planes as giant missiles, the reality of embarking on a plane has become even more tortuous. Add to that the decreasing profit margins of carriers which results in severe luggage and seat restrictions, the process of travelling through the air has become almost bothersome. Much easier than walking perhaps, the onetime ease that planes offered has all but been eroded leaving many headaches. That reality is one all over the world as a Malaysian man discovered the hard way after his 95 snakes cost more than a pretty penny in additional luggage fees.
“The individual, Anson Wong, was caught while trying to board a flight from Penang to Jakarta on August 26. The staff became alerted to the situation when they spotted a broken suitcase aboard the conveyer belt. In trying to lift the bag from the belt it was discovered to be far heavier than restrictions allow which means a major fine,” said a spokesperson for the Kuala Lumpur airport authority. “It was discovered that Mr. Wong was attempting to transport 95 snaked out of the country which caused his bag to go well over the weight restrictions. He has been fined a significant amount and will serve jail time for his actions.”
Wong will serve six months in jail and pay a fine of $61,000 USD, a relatively light punishment in Malaysia.
“This is certainly an extreme case but that is almost always the situation in Malaysia. I’m not going to say they overreact but they do overreact a lot of the time. People are
put to death for transporting drugs so he actually got off light in this situation. That is likely because Malaysian airlines simply haven’t fallen in line with the types of restrictions in other countries,” said Scrape TV Airline analyst Jeffry Johnson. “This is a pretty average fine for this kind of offence in Malaysia frankly. Five pounds over receiving a lashing, ten pounds gets you a month in jail and a fine. The punishments just escalate the higher and higher you go but people are willing to tempt fate quite often because it is such minor punishment compared to everything else in the country.”
Apparently, fifty pounds overweight results in summary execution though that has never occurred. Passengers too large to fit in seats are forced to fly in the cargo hold.
“I frankly wouldn’t be surprised to see some of those innovations start to come over 
stateside. People complain but the reality is that margins are razor thin and they need to do whatever they can to keep fluid. They have people to pay and planes to keep in the air and they can’t do that on wishes and butterfly wings,” continued Johnson. “The exact model won’t be the same obviously. Lashings and lengthy prison sentences likely wouldn’t go over very well in the U.S. but the fine thing, well that’s another story. I mean people are already mortgaging their houses to travel across country so a little more could hurt, but it will sure help the airline’s margins. I’m sure they are keeping an eye on this case.”
The snakes were not charged.
William Ashford, Business Correspondent
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