photojojo

Any chance you can - or would trust - overnighting it?

Collierkr

These threads get opened every year or so and the answer is always the same. The CoCs and baggage rules say THIS which in this case means it goes in the hood. So to the OP, put it in a hard case and check it. Sure pax could tell you they got it in in the bins or closet but that is not to be expected. Especially on a full plane.

jeremyBA

You are asking an impossible question and looking for someone to agree with you.

The policy says no.

will you get it on ? Maybe. My brother in law did. They were unaware of the policy and they let it on. It was a travel guitar and not huge and this was some 3 years ago.

topperdoggle

Apologies for lack of understanding, what does that mean?

Actually, the answer isn't always the same. For the umpteenth time, I'm aware of the policy and that's why I opened the thread; we know that in practice experience is often if not usually different and I am trying to understand if in the current times, that is still the case, or whether indeed the scaremongering has any basis in reality.

Some people just can't help themselves e.g. "not to be expected" "looking for someone to agree with you" "crew were unaware of the policy" - completely without foundation but don't let that get in the way of a good "computer says no" or "this is the policy, can't you even RTFM".

photojojo

Like using a parcel service such as UPS or DHL. Might even be worth looking at shipping air cargo on the same airline since cargo ops seem to be fairly reliable compared to baggage handlers.

Krisz

The only advise I can give you just like the penguins in the movie Madagascar: “smile and wave”

orbitmic

i think that the reason for those other posters’ messages though is that you have had the answer on this multiple times upthread: the practice is that the policy is indeed overwhelmingly enforced.

does it mean 100% of the time? Of course not, nothing is. But the vast majority of times yes, even more so when flights are super busy like yours and even more so for pax in Y like you.

on that basis, I think the people telling you remember you can’t count on it are merely trying to help by suggesting you pack with the knowledge your guitar will most likely have to go through the checked luggage circuit - ie that your idea of soft packaging is likely unwise. You seem to think it will make the difference between chances of being accepted or not - quite frankly, that’s most unlikely to be the case and if they turn a blind eye on the soft packaged against policy, chances are they would have similarly turned a blind eye on hard cases in just the same way so you might increase your chances from say 3% to 5% but conversely in the overwhelming probability your guitar is relegated to the hold you significantly multiply the risk it will arrivée damaged, and you will have no recourse as you are responsible for the packing.

it looks like you want to try your luck anyway and that’s entirely your prerogative but I sort of get the question of those posters who are not sure what you expect from any of us as the answer to your purported question about what is likely to happen in practice has already been answered multiple times by multiple people and rightly or wrongly I guess they wonder if you heard it.

topperdoggle

I actually don't see many, if any people saying "I tried to take my guitar on board and they made me check it in", which is very different to "I've never done this but RTFM".

FWIW, I asked elsewhere (musician group on FB) and it seems to be much more positive than some of the comments here. The only thing I can say is that there is likely to be a higher percentage of people in that group who have actual experience of this.

Of course, different audiences are biased, and of course no Internet audience is a statistically-relevant sample. People also don't generally post on the Internet when everything goes smoothly, there's no drama, right?

Anyway, I got what I need, thank you and I'll be sure to report back either way for the next person.

mrow

Please do, given how this thread has played out, I am very interested in getting the post-travel update and having the ‘will it’, ‘won’t it’ question answered.

orbitmic

Indeed, and best of luck to the op on the trip as luck is indeed an important factor anyway.

mandolino

It's always good to check on recent actual experience, especially with things rapidly changing.
Gate agents, especially where 3rd party as is often the case, especially in busy times, often over-interpret the restrictions out of caution.
(Other times, they don't even look.)
To that end it's worth carrying a printout of the airline's instrument policy to show agents.
In your case, it will say that guitars should go in the hold or buy another seat, but that small instruments 80cm or less in length can be carried aboard.

So a Tele-like guitar with unbolted neck (which Google suggests is 65cm long, head to heel) would be OK to carry on.
Or might even fit, diagonally if necessary, in your checked bags, if you have any.
And even if you're going WT, your OW Sapphire will give some consideration from gate agents.

I would be wary of musicians' FB forums etc unless they are specifically experienced in air travel within UK/Europe (inc. Israel in this case, using the Eurovision Exception Clause) in 2022.
North American-only experiences are way over-optimistic for a European context.

Some experience here of travelling with unbolted Telecasters Steve Cropper did it routinely!. (Of Booker T & The MGs, Memphis soul artist backing bands, and Blues Brothers movies. I'm not as old as I look, my grandfather used to tell me about them :-| )

So, if your guitar will unbolt like a Tele, then IMO that is the best thing to do for stress-free travel

topperdoggle

Well, that was nice and boring. Airport very busy for a Saturday but still from arriving to passing security was 17 minutes. True, I know it, but there were no meaningful queues.

Nobody took a second glance at the guitar at any point, I was polite and so were they. It may or may not have been a bonus boarding in the first group then nipping down to my seat near the back of the plane. Herewith pics before and after other passengers put their luggage in the bin. It just sat nicely as a thin layer above the cases and bags.

So, yet another fuss-free trip with a guitar in the overheads. Sure, it may not always go this way but on today's basis, flying BA was no different to anyone else. Perhaps at LHR they are more jobsworth, who knows.

BTW, the plane is indeed chokka, don't remember anything like this at a weekend out of TLV, even pre-COVID.

mandolino

Nice!

Collierkr

best answer yet!

drwook

Looks like it worked out for you, but I would have been super worried about what would come out the other end if it had ended out in the hold in that soft case.... :-/