Travelling with guitar on British Airways

Moominpapa

My brother-in-law is flying over in a few weeks. He's travelling with British Airways and wants to bring a guitar. The guitar is small and has a very good, sturdy padded case. BA rules say instruments should travel in hard cases. Has anyone had experience with British Airways of turning up to the airport and being allowed to stow the guitar in the cabin in a gig bag, rather than checking it in a hard case?

edenfield99

I was talking to an American musician about this last week and he uses a hard case and stores it in the overhead lockers in the cabin. He just makes sure everyone at the check-in and the gate has been informed prior to boarding and even offers to go in the plane before anyone else to make sure it fits and if there's a problem it can be moved to the hold. He regularly travels between the US and Europe and the only airline he's ever had problems with was....British Airways!   

ICBM

I don't know, but surely it would be better for him to just use one of your guitars?

What I do know is that most of the broken instruments I've seen where serious damage has occurred when in a hard case have been done by airline baggage handling - and whether or not due to the simple numbers I don't know, but most at Heathrow.

Moominpapa

@ICBM ; This IS going to be one of my guitars 

stickyfiddle

9 times out of 10 you can bring a guitar in the cabin, even in a hard case. That said, if it's a Fender-type, it's safer with the neck taken off and put in a proper suitcase surrounded by clothes. 

My standard copy/paste on how to get it in the cabin with you:

I'm happy to take a Tele or Strat in a Hiscox through the baggage system, since I figure that's about the most indestructible guitar & case combination possible. And wrapped in that industrial cling film stuff to stop baggage guys trying to open anything...

I've got Gibsons in standard TKL type hardcases in the cabin with me a couple of times. To do that I ask nicely at check-in to gate check it. They never have a real reason to say no, but if necessary you can lay it on with a little "it's very fragile so while I'm happy for it to go in the hold I need to make sure it doesn't go through the conveyor belt system". 

Then when you get to the gate, say nothing unless challenged, and tell them the staff at checkin told you it could be carried to the plane and then put in the hold from the cabin, not via the baggage system. When you get to the plane, either put it straight into an overhead (if you're on a plane with big enough bins) or ask very nicely for them to put it in a cupboard (again because v fragile & sentimental value etc etc). They key with all this is to be as friendly and polite and accommodating as possible at every stage, while being firm enough to make sure it doesn't ever see a conveyor belt or baggage handler thug because that's what will get it broken.

What also helps here is I have a lot of loyalty with a couple of airlines, so get priority boarding, which makes all of this much easier. And gold/platinum status means they're usually happier to do whatever they can to help. But the key thing is politeness and appreciation with everyone you speak to throughout the process.

Jalapeno

stickyfiddle said:

9 times out of 10 you can bring a guitar in the cabin, even in a hard case. That said, if it's a Fender-type, it's safer with the neck taken off and put in a proper suitcase surrounded by clothes. 

My standard copy/paste on how to get it in the cabin with you:

I'm happy to take a Tele or Strat in a Hiscox through the baggage system, since I figure that's about the most indestructible guitar & case combination possible. And wrapped in that industrial cling film stuff to stop baggage guys trying to open anything...

I've got Gibsons in standard TKL type hardcases in the cabin with me a couple of times. To do that I ask nicely at check-in to gate check it. They never have a real reason to say no, but if necessary you can lay it on with a little "it's very fragile so while I'm happy for it to go in the hold I need to make sure it doesn't go through the conveyor belt system". 

Then when you get to the gate, say nothing unless challenged, and tell them the staff at checkin told you it could be carried to the plane and then put in the hold from the cabin, not via the baggage system. When you get to the plane, either put it straight into an overhead (if you're on a plane with big enough bins) or ask very nicely for them to put it in a cupboard (again because v fragile & sentimental value etc etc). They key with all this is to be as friendly and polite and accommodating as possible at every stage, while being firm enough to make sure it doesn't ever see a conveyor belt or baggage handler thug because that's what will get it broken.

What also helps here is I have a lot of loyalty with a couple of airlines, so get priority boarding, which makes all of this much easier. And gold/platinum status means they're usually happier to do whatever they can to help. But the key thing is politeness and appreciation with everyone you speak to throughout the process.

This. 

But with BA you are still far more likely to encounter awkward jobsworths, don't know why they are such a pain with other airlines being more sympathetic,given the cut-throat competitive market. 20yrs ago BA used to be a total pain in the ass about hand carried laptops too, but they eventually moved on.  IME UK airports have more jobsworths than overseas airports

If in a gig bag make sure it is your ONLY piece of hand luggage, they are on slightly thinner ice (but ultimately it still falls outside their cabin baggage template, so still a risk).

I still don't know why guitars can't be treated the same as pushchairs & wheelchairs - drop-off and collect at the walkway - I'd have no qualms at all putting a guitar in the hold on that basis.

simonhpieman

I asked this question of a friend of mine who manages baggage handlers at Stansted.

He said "I heart baggage handlers stickers go a long way."

I've never been able to take a guitar into the cabin unless it had an extra seat paid for. I wouldn't ever dream of risking it in a gig bag given how badly my Fender TSA case was smashed (a case, given the TSA locks, that is supposed to travel). Luckily the guitar was ok but cases are still expensive and the original case being fucked is only going to cause valuation issues down the line.

jeztone2

It’s ridiculous that we even expect this stuff to get destroyed. I’d love to fit a guitar case with hidden cameras, then put it through every major airline. Then post online. It’s shameful. 

Majorscale

BA used to be good in my experience, but just over a year ago they changed their rules on instruments in the cabin. Unless you get lucky then your choice is to buy it a seat or put it in the hold. 

Majorscale

https://www.britishairways.com/jba/ba/fi_FI/baggage/bagsport.html

johnl

British Airways make life very, very awkward. Bizarrely it's a much more straightforward process with Easyjet where you can book an extra seat for the guitar online.

LordOxygen

I have taken an electric guitar in a soft bag to the US in hand luggage. No issue at all in business class as there's loads of room. I wouldn't fancy it in economy even if they let you.

p90fool

Ask Larkin Poe what they think. They just did a few gigs in the UK last week - BA lost their guitars on the way here, forcing them to borrow stuff, then they lost them all on the way back, including their 30s Rickenbacker lap steel. 

Moominpapa

Thanks all. I think planning for it to go as checked luggage is looking like the wisest option. (Actually the wisest option would probably have been not to fly British Airways in the first place - the stuff  I hear about their service makes me determined to never use them if I can help it. But the flight was booked before I had a chance to make a recommendation.)

Jalapeno

To be fair guitar attitudes aside, BA is usally one of the better airlines for in flight service IME.

boogieman

Jalapeno said:

To be fair guitar attitudes aside, BA is usally one of the better airlines for in flight service IME.

I’ve only used them once, they were appalling. On the cusp of rude and arrogant inflight staff, crappy food. They seem to trade on past glories of being the best, but they’re certainly not any more. 

Boromedic

Jalapeno said:

To be fair guitar attitudes aside, BA is usally one of the better airlines for in flight service IME.

Seems like an unpopular opinion but having flown a lot in recent years with quite a few airlines I agree totally. BA are way better than most, United Airlines were dreadful and Etihad a close second worst. Most airlines now shaft you on trying to take guitars. I packed mine in an SKB case inside a box that I had cling wrapped. Survived with no apparent damage despite the Heathrow baggage handlers.

erky32

Apparently for local (EU) travel EASYJET are accomodating allowing guitars to be hand carried and stowed in o/h locker. Obviously a gig bag fits easier - my mate regularly carries acoustic both gig bag &/or hard case without any discussion. Can anybody support this ?, - because in a couple of weeks I'm planning to take a bagged acoustic on a single leg return (France to Switzerland)  EJ flight. At the same time , same mate is hoping to bring a hard cased guitar back from UK to France.

chris_john

BA wouldn't let me take a guitar in the cabin when I flew Heathrow to Seoul a couple of years ago. If I remember rightly, I had to take it to a separate bagging handling area - presumably so it doesn't get crushed by suitcases. I had anticipated this, so I just wrapped the guitar in bubble wrap. Then I stuffed more bubble wrap inside, and wrapped the hard case too. It came out fine.

mattacjones

My experiences here
https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/148381/taking-your-guitar-on-ba#latest

Jalapeno

War story last week - Business Class return Heathrow to Amsterdam (using up squllions of Avios points). Acoustic in a soft carry bag.

Outboud, full flight - my only piece of handbaggage. Nothing. Cabin staff very helpful at putting guitar into wardrobe.

Return, also full flight (it turned out), again my only peice of handbaggage.

- check-in, agency ground staff. didn't know policy properly, total jobsworths, rang supervisor 3 times when I pointed out the contradictions within BA own policy in that they do not accept soft cases for the hold. Tried to sell me an extra ticket, but flight was full.  After 20 mins insisted on tagging the bag but let me carry it to the gate, on the proviso that it is up to the crew.

- gate, were pre-warned and ready, ambushed me, and tried again (two different jobsworths), a bit more half heartedly  (again these weren't the crew - jobsworth ground staff again)

- crew on board,  again cloudn't be more helpful. (And in business class overhead lockers were 2/3rds empty anyway)

Moral - don't fly BA with a guitar as they're arseholes.  KLM are apparently twanger friendly, or hopefully next time Eurostar provided they've sorted the UK immigration checks at Amsterdam central as there are none, you have get off in Brussels on the way back, get checked and board a different train, Outbound is fine - there are NL checks in London.