For an international flight the website says you can have one 8 kilo bag in coach. My normal carry on bag meets the size restrictions but I'm not sure about the weight. Does SAS weigh carry on luggage? Also, the website does not say anything about a personal item such as a purse or briefcase. I assume that I can bring another small bag but does anyone know for sure?

I do not recall anyone checking the weight or dimensions of any bags when I flew SAS between Dulles and Copenhagen last fall. My flights were fairly full, but the airline may be more strict when the plane is completely full.

Can anyone confirm the part about the second bag? The SAS site says one piece of carry-on, but calling the airline, I was told yes, we may have a second personal item. But who knows if the people at the airport will agree? I'd feel better hearing from others who've flown SAS internationally that you can in fact take a personal item in addition to your carry-on.

If you truly want to carry your case on board, recommend you meet the weight restrictions as well. That way, you won't be surprised or upset if SAS make you check it because of the weight.

People may say they've carried on things heavier than the limit or it was never weighed. But, the fact of the matter is, if they weigh and you're overweight, they have every right to make you check the bag. And remember, don't argue with the agent (you are wrong anyway). Your bag may take the long way home.

They seem to be a little more easy going in the States. When I flew from London to Paris I was told my carry on's were too big and I would need to check them (as I walked on the plane). I responded, I would be happy to comply but this flight is late and I'm afraid I will miss my connecting flight in Paris." She responded, go ahead. I said, "Thank you."

A purse or standard-size laptop or briefcase should be fine in addition to the 8kg carry-on. I would not expect any trouble as long it fits under the seat in front of you. However, that space is usually smaller on transatlantic planes than on domestic flights, because seatback entertainment systems require a a small control box under each seat. My SAS flights had the seatback screen; I don't remember the configuration of the control box.

As an update for others that might care...We have returned from our trip and they did weigh our bags and since one bag was overweight we were asked to check our bags. We had 4 flights with SAS - two trans-atlantic and 2 inter-europe. We checked bags on all 4 flights and the overhead bins were nearly empty so it appeared that nearly everyone checked their bags. As you can imagine, this made boarding really quick. After our flight from Newark to Stockholm our bags were waiting on the carousel when we got there. After the inter-europe flights we waited once for 5 minutes and the other flight the bags were there first. On our return to Newark from Copenhagen we waited 5 minutes for our bags. We are fast walkers so we were amazed at the efficiency. If it was always like that on domestic flights we would never carry luggage on the plane.