Re: secure storage
As above; using a laptop on a plane is a good way to get the screen broken, but for sure it's not going in the hold as is.
But it seems not beyond the beyond the bounds of possibility to have some sort of locker system, perhaps mounted into a standard hold carrier; I give them the laptop, they scan it, stick it in a spare slot, and give me the key to that slot (and perhaps a voucher for a replacement laptop :)
The issue about hand luggage is annoying but obvious: if airlines want to charge for hold baggage, of *course* people will take things for free into the plane. The majority of 'hand baggage' isn't - it's there simply because it's cheaper and quicker to get out at the other end, if you don't have to wait for the carousel. Maybe there are options here to explore regarding what may be taken into the cabin.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
