Originally Posted by fiddlestickies

It's a good thought, and definitely a good idea, to have a great case, and I'm lucky to have a very protective one. Unfortunately they are not immune to every collision. To give you an example, one day I was carrying my case on my back as I always do and one of the straps broke somehow. The case went directly backwards and hit the pavement relatively hard. I shakily opened the case when I got inside, and every string had broken, and the soundpost was slightly damaged. It wasn't a big deal, as the cost to replace everything and have the soundpost moved was around $250 but it just goes to show you that these things are REALLY fragile. Also most insurance does not cover putting an instrument in a cargo hold.

I think I've been a little bit prone to exaggeration here, but basically my point is this: Every violinist(or musician that has an instrument that is not big enough to have to buy a seat for, but is big enough to cause some anxiety of getting on the plane) should try their hardest to board early, and if there is a problem, they should be as polite as possible in finding another solution. There almost always is one. It's just in extreme cases, if you see a red-faced person on the verge of tears who is carrying their instrument, cut them some slack