Help! Guitars and flying...

[Stevie]

Hi there,

I am considering flying with guitar and wanted your experiences on the subject. I'll be flying from the US to Australia and the guitar will be an Axis in the standard black shell. I've heard a few stories about how to pack the guitar so I think I've got that covered. However what concerns me is the ability to take the guitar as carry on. I know each airline is slightly different on what can be carried on, but have any of you being able to take a musicman in it's hard shell on board as carryon?

One other question, does one loosen the strings or leave as is?

Thanks,

 

[sanderhermans]

Leave it as is. I recently read some aticle on facebook it said that airlines can not refuse you to carry your guitar on the plane. (1 guitar per person of course) so you should get it on the plain with you.

 

[Magic Jason]

Buy an EXCELLENT soft gig bag but not too big nor too thick. You should then be allowed to carry it with you as an overhad.
I also always bring the shop "tag price" or the receipt of the guitar with me. If they are reluctant at the check-in and insist that the guitar can't fly with me, I just show them how much it is worth and ask them with my nicest smile if they'll fully cover any damage.

As a gig bag I have a Reunion Blues Aero which is great. Not enough pockets but fantastic guitar protection.
Reunion Blues Gig Bags & Cases - Product - Aero Series Electric Guitar Case

 

[Flash Gordon]

+1 for the gig bag. I have a great EBMM bag that came with my silhouette back in the 90's. I use it for air travel. I put the guitar in the bag, place the bag in the coat closet. Easy peasy!

...just don't forget it on your way out!

 

[MJK28]

Hey man! About a year ago I had to fly with my JP-13. I got a Mono gig bag for 2 guitars and also called the airline in advance; they told me they had no trouble with me taking it as carry-on. I got early to the airport and secured a space for the gig bag on an overhead compartment. I didn't make any adjustments to the instrument and it arrived ready to play. Hope this helps.

Have a safe trip!

 

[ksandvik]

Yes get a confirmation from the airline, best even an email and printed copy that you could show while boarding to avoid issues.

 

[Spudmurphy]

The MM cases were designed to be small enough to fit into an overhead locker?

No adjustments are necessary to the guitar - why would you want to?

 

[ksandvik]

The MM cases were designed to be small enough to fit into an overhead locker?

No adjustments are necessary to the guitar - why would you want to?

Hmm, I doubt you could push one of those (excellent) MM cases into the overhead lockers on most airplanes.

 

[Stevie]

I contacted the airline and now have it noted on my booking that I will be flying with guitar in hard shell case back from the US. As the linear dimension of the case is within the set limits and the weight was only 1kg higher than maximum allowed, the airline will allow me to take it as carry on. The case will fit into the overhead locker, however, space permitting it will be stored in a cupboard, this I will find out when when I hop onto the plane.

So far so good.

 

[Tim O'Sullivan]

I have flown US/US many times and I always put my guitar in the hold. I generally use a Hiscox Lite Flight case and they have always been safe. One of my cases got cracked pretty badly on a flight but my guitar was perfectly safe!

 

[Flash Gordon]

Remember if you put your axe in the hold, it is subject to multiple, rapid and extreme changes in temperature, pressure and humidity.

 

[vinniemallet]

Gigbag is the way to go. I brought mine from USA to Lisbon - Portugal without any problem.

 

[varjao]

I wasn't allowed to get into 2 flights with Delta Airlines with my JP12 in it's case. Thank god when I finally landed home the guitar was fine, the case with some marks though and a little opened in one corner.

But I saw a girl leaving the airplane in one of those flights with a Gibson in it's case, so I think it's a crap shoot, completely arbitrary. I almost started to scream to the crew "WTF, why is she allowed to carry a gibson on the overhead bins, my MM is worth more than her Gibson, and it has a better quality control, damn it...and it has stainless steel frets!"

 

[DrKev]

Remember if you put your axe in the hold, it is subject to multiple, rapid and extreme changes in temperature, pressure and humidity.

Actually that's not such a big worry as people make out. Baggage holds on passenger aircraft are pressurized same as the cabin. Humidity drops, yes, but no more that it does in the cabin because it's the same air in the hold as in the cabin, all goes through the same air conditioners. Temperature doesn't drop very low in the hold, and won't drop lower than about 8ºC/45ºF and changes slowly. Your guitar case also helps shield the guitar from temp and humidity changes. (I've had three pilots confirm this for me, one of them a forumite here).

I can also promise you that guitars can experience more extreme changes in temp and humidity when we ship via UPS or Fedex and even on delivery to the store, especially in winter. I've see the shipping palettes piled with instruments in boxes left out in the open protected by nothing more than a thin sheet of plastic wrap, in blazing sunshine and freezing cold, then moved into heated warehouse or air conditioned showroom. Just let the cases/boxes come to room temp before opening, no problem.

 

[BUC]

I'm an airline pilot.

Not all baggage holds are pressurized.

In the US they will allow you to bring it on the airplane BUT it has to fit in the overhead bin space available or they will gate check it. If they gate check it, you will not get it back until baggage claim at your destination.

Therefore, if there's a fee to to board early, it's worth it to pay that fee and bring the guitar in a gig bag. Stake out your overhead bin space early!

On bigger airplanes they might have a closet to put it in, it's worth asking, but don't count on it.

If you have a tight connecting flight, you cannot guarantee that you will early board on the connection! Same is true if your originating flight is delayed making your connection tight.

So, my advice is either:
1. Buy a guitar case that you could drive a truck over and just check it. -or-
2. Go with a gig bag but make certain that you will have AVAILABLE bin space by boarding early. Check your connections for the same thing!
3. I don't know what the rules are for guitars outside of the US.

Good luck

 

[DrKev]

I'm an airline pilot.

Not all baggage holds are pressurized.

Hey BUC, could you tell us which aircraft have unpressurised baggage holds? Would be very useful for future reference. All Boeing and Airbus are fully pressurised, yes? Thanks.

 

[BUC]

I did some research and I'm evidently wrong about this. I thought the Embrear had 1 pressurized and 1 unpressurized hold but I think they're both. I actually had a couple of E-170 pilots argueing over this, but the consensus is that they're both pressurized. The Embrear is a very common large regional jet.

HOWEVER, on most airliners, only one hold is heated, if at all.

 

[QuietSpike]

BUC,

You're not completely wrong...

I don't know of any airliners with baggage compartments that are not pressurized.... Everyone that I flew in my airline career was. All of the ones I flew had heated cargo as well... BUT... Heated cargo is an option that not all airlines opted for in the front cargo hold (I.E. The A320 series and 737 series have optional heated front cargo holds). The cargo holds, as you know BUC, are pressurized with the exact same bleed air that the cabin is... So DrKev is correct there. Even with that, if a guitar was put in right up against the seal of the door, it is possible for the case to be subjected to well-below-zero temps.

As far as your "not all baggage compartments are pressurized"... This is a true statement. MANY business jets do not have pressurized baggage holds, but they are all heated (as far as I know). Some good examples are the Astra & Gulfstream G150. The Gulfstream G200 is pressurized, but not to the same delta that the cabin is (so no live animals). I've had my guitars in the cargo of both of these with no problems, FWIW (even the G150 at 45,000 feet!). Any large cabin Gulfstream or Bombardier product has fully pressurized and heated cargo (simply because the cargo hold is accessible to the passengers in flight, unlike airliners). So you were right, not all baggage is pressurized.

Hope this helps somewhat for the non-aviation peeps. I tried to keep it simple and understandable. For point of reference, I'm a pilot (former airline, and still fly Gulfstreams occasionally), and president of an aircraft management and charter company who only manages medium and large jets. Any forum members can PM me aviation questions whenever you have the need.


Now back to figuring out how to pay for the JP15 Blueberry which I feel was made *just* for me..... I also need a new smoker/grill, and was looking at the Yoder Wichita... Ugh...

 

[beej]

You guys are awesome- that's great info to have.

 

[DrKev]

Thanks so much, guys. One of these dasy I'll get around to finishing that blog post on this I started last year!

I don't know of any airliners with baggage compartments that are not pressurized.... Everyone that I flew in my airline career was.

Great.

As far as your "not all baggage compartments are pressurized"... This is a true statement. MANY business jets do not have pressurized baggage holds, but they are all heated (as far as I know).

Business jets - doesn't apply to almost all of us.