Ryanair: The Briton enlisted the help of a tailor to modify a coat so it could store his stuff (Image: Facebook/Lee Cimino)

Ryanair flights have been criticised after the budget airline introduced their strict new hand luggage policy last week.

But one British man has discovered an ingenious way to cheat the new rules and avoid paying extra charges.

Ryanair passengers can now only travel with a personal bag that measures no more than 40cm x 20cm x 25cm for free and need to pay extra if they wish to extra bags on board.

Lee Cimino was so frustrated when this policy was introduced that he decided to take the matter into his own hands and get creative.

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Lee uploaded a video to Facebook which has rapidly gone viral, showing his cunning method in action.

His flight to Belfast was two days after the extra charges came into effect and he refused to pay the added money.

The Briton enlisted the help of a tailor to modify a coat so it could store all of his holiday belongings.

He used pairs of old underwear as large extra pockets on the inside of the coat where he could store clothes.

The tailor also added in a shoe compartment and sewed in little washbags where he could keep bits and bobs.

There was also a small plastic bag where he could keep his liquids, in line with airport security rules.

From the outside, however, the coat looked just like a normal coat – although it does stick out slightly at the back from the added bulk.

The entertaining video shows Lee trying to get through the airport without being caught out.

His friend films him walking through the airport as he frets he might not be able to get away with it.

“What are we going to do if it doesn’t work?” he asks his pal – as ominous-sounding music accompanies the footage.

“It looks like they’re proper checking everyone,” Lee says as they stand in line at the Ryanair gate for their flight.

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Flights: Ryanair passenger beats new hand luggage rules with ingenious travel hack (Image: Getty Images/Facebook/ Lee Cimino)

Ryanair: The entertaining video shows Lee trying to get through the airport without being caught out (Image: Facebook/Lee Cimino)

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However, next time the camera shows Lee he is running down the stairs towards the plane with a wide grin on his face – his coat ruse a success.

Lee captioned the entertaining footage: “This is for you if you’ve ever been frustrated by Ryanair. This is how you get around the new baggage charges every time. It might even make you smile.”

His Facebook followers have been full of admiration for Lee’s stunt and praised him online.

“You absolute legend,” one person wrote, “This is fantastic only you can do this matey,” another added.

One Facebook user said he should take the enterprising design to business TV show Dragon’s Den.

Ryanair has announced that it will be closing its website and app for 12 hours tomorrow as it updates its systems, and is encouraging passengers to check-in online today ahead of the web closure. 

Travellers will be unable to make new bookings or make changes to existing flights during the 12-hour closure.