Originally Posted by
AA100k
It hasn’t happened to me as I write and I have no idea how it would be sorted out. However, given the choice of having my equipment damaged or stolen, or missing my flight and paying a change fee, I’d take the later. Checking my photo equipment is not a risk I would ever be willing to take.
I was thinking of this last night and if I was already on the plane and realized there was no more room, you could just offer $200 for someone to move their bag and check it. I bet there'd probably be a taker. But I am like you, it hasn't happened to me thankfully but I would have think long and hard about just taking the next flight and pay up because losing my equipment is not a risk I'm willing to take. It's not even so much as losing it but it would most definitely be damaged upon return, which would put me in the same spot, unable to use equipment if I was heeding to a job,
What I don't understand is if getting overhead space is so important, particularly in this case, why not better your chances and have airline CC's or buy priority boarding?