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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.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
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.
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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.
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The yard is nothing but a fence, the sun just hurts my eyes...
https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/148381/taking-your-guitar-on-ba#latest
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