This offers no guarantees, but it's interesting: http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/assistant/editorial_1235.shtm

This article sounds very polite and accomodating, but it really doesn't allow for gate-checking a guitar or carrying-on a full-sized guitar:

Check with your airline prior to your flight to ensure your instrument meets the size requirements for their aircraft...Bring your stringed instruments, within carrier size limitations, as carry-on items.

You're still at the mercy of your airline's policy or personnel.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Eric Jones,

Eric -

I enjoyed meeting you at the Gathering. Too bad you had to leave early.

Interesting about traveling with instruments. I'm always leery of taking my Collings along with me. Since I have a Calton case, I don't worry too much about what the baggage handlers might do to it, but I do worry about the complete lack of security throughout the baggage process. This time, I just decided to try to take it on with me and I had no negative reactions anywhere from American Airlines personnel. They were all interested in doing whatever they could to assure a smooth travel day. In fact, the flight attendant in first class from Austin to DFW insisted on putting it in the crew's space in first class. Just goes to show that it's always best to show up at least two hours early and smile alot and be pleasant. Gate and flight attendants have a great deal of power over that portion of the trip and I've never found a single time that they did not respond positively to a pleasant, cooperative attitude from the traveller.

Jim

Jim,

Glad to hear of your good experience and AA's customer focus. My trip back home on Delta wasn't so good. At Houston I did the kiosk check-in at the Delta ticket counter. The 2 Delta clerks and I had a pleasant conversation. I asked how full the flight was and one told me that it was mostly empty (which I knew from the on-line seating chart when I bought the ticket). Then she noticed my guitar and said I'd have to check it as baggage. I said I'd like to gate-check it. She said absolutely not...security (TSA) wouldn't let me through the checkpoint with it. I was *ticked* I secured the case and checked it in. When I went through security I asked TSA if I could have carried my guitar through. The agent said it wasn't a security issue, but an airline issue. When I got to the gate I asked a group of 4 Delta gate agents if they would have minded gate-checking my guitar. One of the agents spoke for the others saying that Delta's policy was that you couldn't carry on a guitar and they would have sent me back to the baggage counter. I protested a bit and they said that was the policy that Delta had agreed upon with the DOT (or was it NTSB or FAA????). So there you have it...Delta airline's policy is no gate checking of oversize instruments (I don't know about baby carriages and such)...even if the flight is mostly empty! No customer service. I guess I was just lucky to get to fly on their airplane. The guitar made the trip safely in spite of the inconvenience, but Delta's reputation came out pretty marred.

On the trip out there on Atlantic Southeast Airlines (a regional carrier for Delta), no one questioned my guitar and the flight attendant even brought it up to the cabin and strapped into the seat next to me. It's the lack of a consistent policy that is so frustrating.