Originally Posted by
csdf
[PEDANT]It does, just not very much compared to gases.[/PEDANT]
water behaves slightly differently than other liquids, at 4 degrees C it's in it's most contract state, as it gets colder and approach 0 it actually starts to expand - hence why glass bottles filled with water based liquids crack when put in a freezer.
the cargo hold is pressurised but it is not temperature regulated (well certain parts are for pets etc...). It is the fluctuation in temperature not pressure that is likely to cause a leak. So only put plastic bottles or cans in your luggage, the plastic and aluminium can expand and contract. Glass bottles of high percentage alcohol are fine as alcohol freezes at much lower temperatures. But bottles of beer or wine would be taking a risk - if you put the bottles in the middle of your case, surrounded by clothes then they would be well insulated and the temperature would not drop that quickly. Also if your luggage is placed in the middle of the hold surrounded by lots of other luggage it would also be insulated. However if you luggage is place on the sides close to the sides of the hold the temperature drop could be fast enough to bring the bottle temperature in the 0-4 degree range and may leak/explode.