Airline travel with a tapper

[rjgoos]

Has anyone travelled lately, on an airline with a tapping instrument?

Anyone know what the rules are? What can go as carry-on and what can't?

When Bob Culbertson flew to Fargo a couple years ago, he had his Stick in a soft case as carry-on. Is that sort of carry-on still allowed?


Any clarifications would be appreciated.

[Spaghetti]

I'm having a tapper built by Yuri Vassilevsky in Belgium, but I live in Italy: since I don't trust express couriers very much, I will fly with ryanair, a low-cost company. They offer the possibility to bring a musical instrument or sports equipment on board for 45 euros. I must phone and ask them WHERE it will be stored, whom it will be handled by, and such... then I'll decide between soft and hard case.

BTW, since I'll graduate on July 18th anyone who goes at the seminar will most likely see my tapper completed before me :(
Life sometimes isn't fair :/

[arsacane]

Don't worry, we will send you pictures and may be a sound clip ;-)

[GaryOpenhill]

Originally posted by Spaghetti
I'm having a tapper built by Yuri Vassilevsky in Belgium, but I live in Italy: since I don't trust express couriers very much, I will fly with ryanair, a low-cost company. They offer the possibility to bring a musical instrument or sports equipment on board for 45 euros. I must phone and ask them WHERE it will be stored, whom it will be handled by, and such... then I'll decide between soft and hard case.

BTW, since I'll graduate on July 18th anyone who goes at the seminar will most likely see my tapper completed before me :(
Life sometimes isn't fair :/

You know,flying with ryanair f.inst. to and from London from Oslo, is sometimes SO SILLY CHEAP that to rent an extra seat for an instrument is cheaper than having it sent trough a postal service. Also,you can get away with not paying the additional 25% tax. And you get a trip on top of it.

[dhrupad77]

RJ,
I'll make some phone calls this week. If you get any info send me a note. This will be useful info for others flying into BWI.


I need a friend in Europe who will let me crash on their floor, so I can go to E-tap. Hope you guys have a great time, too!




~ D.





Originally posted by rjgoos
Has anyone travelled lately, on an airline with a tapping instrument?

Anyone know what the rules are? What can go as carry-on and what can't?

When Bob Culbertson flew to Fargo a couple years ago, he had his Stick in a soft case as carry-on. Is that sort of carry-on still allowed?


Any clarifications would be appreciated.

[rjgoos]

Both NWA and United have the same info on their web sites regarding domestic flights:

>Carry-on luggage cannot exceed 45 linear inches (L + W + H). <

Perhaps some people have been successful with having a gate agent allow them to carry on a Stick with the soft/padded case, but it's around 59 linear inches, and a gate agent who is going by the rules will require that it be checked.

Both NWA and United say individual pieces of checked baggage has to be less than 50 pounds, and less than 62 linear inches (L + W + H), or an additional fee ($100) will be added.

TSA's web site says that it has particular restrictions with regards to the transport of musical instruments on airline flights.

So, for the Baltimore seminar, I'll either have to build/buy a checked-baggage-worthy case for my Stick or ADG, or bring a homemade unit in checked baggage in a shotgun/rifle case.

[Jersey Ray]

RJ,

I have travelled with mixed results -

best airplane by far is the 747, you could put several people in the overhead compartments of those. Very long, high and deep compartments.

The 737 is also very good and fortunatley it is the workhorse of the domestic airline fleet here in the US. The key is that the overhead bins are long on the 737. Since most business travellers like to put everything in carry ons, they seem to have configured 737s with this in mind.

The newer 757, 767, and 777 have shorter overheaed bins and you probably will not be able to fit a bass scale length guitar in them. However, these planes usually have a coat closet. The coat closet is in the first class section but youhave to walk through it to get to coach (except the 777) so you can slip it in there and in the summertime nobody will care, because nobody is wearing coats. Even if they did, your guitar can fit in a space behind where the coats are.

I had a problem finding space on a 777, and I ended up squeezing it between my window seat and the bulkhead - not a good solution but they let me do it.

Don't expect much from the smaller planes, but I did fly on some kind of Fokker in Europe (AMS to BRU) and miraculously it had a lot of overhead space, long bins. The Embrair commuter jet planes that are common in the USA can't fit much more than a sandwich in the bins, and you'll have to gate check it, which might be ok.... or might not.

Having said all this, two things to keep in mind:

They say that airlines configure their planes in all different ways, and each airline is different from each other. I have noticed though, that the general trends I describe above are true on a few different carriers. YMMV.

Secondly, I heard a rumor that all guitars are now banned because of the threat from using a string to strangle someone. This allegedly went into effect with the new round of security restrictions last summer. So call and check, maybe everything I just typed is a waste of space.

Nowadays I travel with an accordion which is a whole other game (I'll spare you all the details) - but like guitar it can be a hassle and there is a lot of uncertainty. You may not know until you get on the jetway if you are going to make it on with it or not. At least double bass players know that they will be checking it as an oversize every time, and flute players know that they have nothing to worry about.

If you really want that kind of peace of mind, get a flight case and just check it. Large keyboard cases work out, you can stick your guitar in its gig bag inside the keyboard case. I did that once too!

good luck!

JR

[Jersey Ray]

one other note, I never actually got charged extra for an oversized checked bag. It is like that linear inches rule, they don't seem to enforce it. Usually they are just glad you check your bags to save time loading the plane.

But maybe I am just spoiled, flying Continental all the time. They have generally been accomidating to my instrument transport needs.

[rjgoos]

Originally posted by Jersey Ray
one other note, I never actually got charged extra for an oversized checked bag.


I wanted to take one of my homemade units with me on a trip a few months ago. I called the airline and said I had a homemade guitar in a shotgun case that I wanted to bring as checked baggage. I told them the dimensions. They told me that it would be $100 extra. I asked if it would be $100 extra if there was a shotgun in the case. They said no. I asked that if I put a shotgun IN with the guitar (it is a double shotgun case, after all), would they charge me $100 extra. They said no.

So there you have it folks...you can save $100 by bringing a gun to the airport. Oh the marvels of bureucracy.

Don't worry, Daniel, I'm not bringing a gun to the seminar (I don't own one).

[Jersey Ray]

The one time I did travel with the ADG in a big SKB keyboard flight case, they did not charge me, but it was shortly after 9-11, airplanes were empty, and I think the airlines were just happy to have customers again.

[dhrupad77]

Originally posted by rjgoos

Don't worry, Daniel, I'm not bringing a gun to the seminar.


LOL!


sheeeew!



~ D.

[danimedea]

Hi,

When I bought my Megatar around 2/3 months ago I asked Traktor for a send it to Florida (I didn't want to wait 3 months (yes, 3 months....) for a delivery from US to Italy as I did for my 8-string bass a couple of years ago...it was a nightmare....).

I was there for work, so I brought it in a soft case as a carry-on during my flights back to Italy (Miami-Frankfurt and Frankfurt-Italy). I didn't have any problem at all. And I didn't pay any extra charge for that. The main rules are: no more than 2 bags as carry-on and dimension limits for those bags. But at the check-in counter they perfectly understood I couldn't do the check-in a "guitar" in a soft bag.

I was stopped at the passport/metal detector gate: the guy at the monitor was wondering what that "kind of guitar with lots of strings..." was...

On both planes, I just asked for a safe place where to put it. It was laid on the floor, right behind the last row of seats of the compartment. I guess it would have ben safer in the pilot's cockpit.....

At the end, the overhead lockers are not that safe: your guitar would end up being under the other passengers' bags...not really something to recommend....expecially in a 9-hour flight, with people opening and closing that lockers a thousand times, taking and leaving their stuff...

just my personal experience..

Ciao

Dan

[Bearguitars]

I´ve travelled several times with my shorter "Village Dump" Tapper via cheaper Airlines. There was´nt a Problem, when I showed `em my axe. - One of a Kind, very expensive, and so on... -
Joe Conti from Hawai have tell it before. He travelled allways in this way.
OK, one time I´ve done a presentation of it without an amp for the security guard in Frankfurt Airport. They find it unhazardous and intresting. ( "i´ve tell it my friend, he play a bit guitar"). So I give them my web adress, and take my axe on Board.

SIGGI

[Blackie]

I can reinforce what Greg said.
Always be polite, but firm, and most times if you can get it on the plane, your problems are over.
Coming back from Belgium I had a check-on guy tell me that my guitar would have to be stowed in baggage because of the full seats. I very politely and humbly told him that the guitar was the most valuable thing I owned, and that if the airline could insure it for $5000, I would be happy to stow it in baggage.
He left me alone for a while, and when it came time to board, he wished me bon voyage, and looked the other way.
The flight attendant on the plane told me that some folks take thier jobs a bit too seriously, and gladly put the guitar in their closet.
This was after a plane-change in Heathrow, and I would recommend that anybody flying to Europe avoid this airport.
Never has a single flight attendant complained that I brought an instrument on board. They have always been helpful.
When I first check in at LAX, I leave the flight case in my car (same as Ray recommended, a keyboard case that fits the entire guitar in it's soft case), and walk to the counter with the guitar in it's gig bag. I tell them that this guitar is worth more than my auto, and I would like to carry it on.
Always, the response has been positive.
It never pays to be rude, in my experience.
This is not to say that this will always work, especially in the current climate of fear.
Sorry to be so verbose, but here is a fun flight story.
Coming back from Hawaii, when I arrived at LAX, the captain of the flight was waiting at the door with the flight attendant who had my guitar. He said he was curious about what was in the bag, so I opened the zipper to show him the headstock, and prepared to launch into the obligatory monologue about what it was, and how it was played.
"Oh sure" he said before I could say a word. "I know Joe Conti".
JW

[dhrupad77]

if you go to their webpage and search 'musical instruments' you get this:

Musical Instruments

We know that your musical instrument is important to you and depending on the size, we accept musical instruments or equipment as checked baggage, carry-on baggage, or cabin-seat baggage. Please help us to keep your instrument safe by bringing it in a hard-shell case.

Carry-on Baggage

Guitars and other smaller musical instruments, such as violins, will be accepted as your free carry-on baggage on Delta operated flights1. These items must easily fit in the overhead compartment or approved stowage location in the cabin, on a space available basis at the time of boarding. If adequate space is not available, the item must be checked.