Dear Sirs, my apologies if this is an old chestnut but I would really appreciate some advice. I hope to collect a half set in B made by Mr. Haneman in the relatively near future. Due to pressure of time I will have to fly to Dublin from Newcastle to collect the set. It is my understanding that the budget airline which I would need to use has size limits to cabin luggage which will make it necessary for me to purchase an extra seat on my return journey in order to have the pipes with me in the cabin. The pipes will probably be in a standard sized case approx:800x300x150mm.
I would like to know if anyone has resorted to this and if they had any difficulties. This might seem a stupid question, but has anyone had problems getting pipes through security checks at Dublin? Would they query why the case had not been put through as check-in luggage?
I am a nervous flyer at the best of times and will be even more so when attempting to bring back a new set of pipes. I do not wish to put them in the hold if I can avoid it. I know some might say that that is how sets are transported around the world when delivery is required, but I would consider it a last resort.
Thank you and again my apologies if this subject has ben discussed in detail before.
Litsj
Unless said airline is so budget they don’t have overhead compartments…A half set should fit in a pretty compact case that fits in the overhead. In 30 years of travelling with pipes I have never had to put them down under. At worst the cabin crew will let you put them in their coat locker.
If you are travelling with Ryanair then definitely book a 2nd seat as they are very strict on the 55x40x25cm hand baggage restrictions. Last time, I completely disassembled the pipes, put them in a suitcase measuring the required dimensions (and put my clothes in my pipes case which I checked in) to avoid having to get a 2nd seat, and that worked fine.
Also, you’ll have no problem with security at Dublin Airport. I’ve brought them through Dublin airport many times, both in their proper case and in the suitcase. They know what uilleann pipes are.
Yoann,
thanks very much for your advice and reassurance. I am trying to find a case of the appropriate dimensions. I have contacted my pipemaker to ask him how well the set would disassemble and to what size. If the worse comes to the worse I’ll purchase a 2nd seat. I just find on-line booking/check-in systems intimidating.
When I was playing in Croatia earlier this year I had to learn that the airline (Air Berlin in this case) was under no circumstance willing to make an exception from their hand luggage regulations. Although weight and volume of my pipe case was far less than allowed, and my case fits easily in the overhead compartment as well as under the seat, they told me that any length exceeding 55 cm was just absolutely impossible. And, no other airline going to Rijeka…
I ended up giving my pipes to someone who was driving by car to the same event.
I once broke a 3/4 set down completely and fit it into a backpack (a bookbag-size backpack, not a hiking-size backpack) and got it on Ryan Air without the extra charge. I wrapped each piece in bubble wrap and put the reeds in a tin. It’s a surprisingly compact bunch of tubes when you take it all apart. I didn’t enjoy doing this at all, but it worked.
Perhaps the pipemaker can help you. When I received a new bag, stock, and drones in the mail, it all fit into a box that was 12.5cm by 12.5cm by 57 cm.
This past weekend I met a piper who fit a full set, plus an extra chanter, minus bellows, very precisely into a hard-shell contoured fiddle case (the kind that is fiddle-shaped rather than oblong). The bellows went into a suitcase. Or you could carry it. Also, I once met another piper who broke a full set down into a large briefcase (again, minus bellows).
In each of these scenarios you would check the standard case your maker is giving you. You do want that, for domestic travel.
If you’re going Ryanair, then buy a seat. The cost is likely to be reasonable, and you will have established your right to transport the set in the cabin. Breaking the set down into the necessary size requires removing all reeds and possibly having a custom case made (unless you want to trust them to a briefcase or soft case!) which will be of little or no use in your ordinary travels - for everyday use you will need a “proper” size case.
I’ve done this (dismantled pipes into a small, specialized case, etc.) but it’s only for the paranoid and I can’t recommend it. In my case I would not do it again since the pipes plus case are over the cabin bag weight limit on some routes, which defeats the purpose. At least with Ryanair’s “buy a seat” policy, you have established some claim to cabin space for the pipes; on other airlines, while problems with modest-sized cases are rare, you are depending on the airline attendants’ whim. In the US there is an agreement of sorts with the AMerican Federation of Musicians (http://static.bretpimentel.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/AFM_carryon.pdf) which accommodates carry-on instruments, space permitting, but I am not sure there is any such agreement within the EU.
Some pipes cases (mine) are about the size of a violin case, so it is all applicable. I have tried some of these methods myself and had success, even with RyanAir. When I checked in, I held the pipes below the check-out counter, had a laptop in a small backpack, and checked in a larger backpack with clothes and such in it. The check-in counter person noted that the only carry-on I appeared to have was the laptop. That was, however, back in the day before RyanAir swept the Twats of the Year Awards and started eyeballing bag-sizes as you board the plane. Once you were past check-in, you were golden. Most other airlines still don’t bother after you get through check-in. The above article is spot on in saying that you and your instrument must walk onto that plane with utter confidence, as if you (and the pipes) are perfectly entitled to be there. It’s amazing what you can get away with if that is your attitude.
I’ve never yet attempted, or had reason to attempt, the “Super Incredibly Worst Case Scenario,” but perhaps shouting, in an airport, “These bagpipes are worth a million euro!” would get attention. My Super Incredibly Worst Case Scenario" was with Singapore Bloody Airlines, flying from JFK to Amsterdam, via Frankfurt. They would not let me carry the pipes on board because, wait for it, it was in a HARD CASE and they cited this as being dangerous (at the time, I kept them in one of those big, gun-type cases). After much tears and pleading, to no avail, I ended up buying a duffle bag in the airport, stuffing the pipes in that, and checking the empty hard case. The motherf*ckers lost my baggage on that trip, so that duffle bag was the most worthwhile 90 bucks I have ever spent in my life.
I often fly in a heavy coat, no matter what the weather, in the event that if things go truly tits up, I can wrap the pipes in the coat and carry them on!
EasyJet and Aer Arann at the very least do the checking your bags as you board the plane now, from my own personal experience. On Aer Arann, it was only that I, literally, stamped my foot and threatened an even bigger hissy fit, that I got the fiddle on board. Basically, I won’t be flying with them again.
At least with EasyJet, they have a clear and reasonably tolerant policy to musical instruments. They say quite clearly on their website that you can take anything up to a standard guitar on board for no additional charge as your one piece of hand luggage. And they stick to it. It does mean that you have to book anything else in the hold, not matter what size, but that’s not too bad, really.
Book under name ‘comfort seat’ with your own passport Numbers[for check in] . thats what I did after inquiring AT Ryan air.
The only Time I was questioned about my instruments was when I was carrying a set of Hi hat cymbols and crash etc in my check in ! .Pipes no problem yet… But I have to stress the Ryanair regulations are strictly followed regarding case size. but the actual limit is really quite generous if it wasnt for the 55cm length!! Also in my experience get there early at the front of the cue if you are a little over size [stuffed full] they have no problem denying access if your at the end while if your at the front, blocking access ,the whole plane will be held up as you debate the issue …they are under a heavy time schudule and negotiations are easier under those circumstances. I also make a point of speaking to the supervisor if there is leeway, they are IME often Older , quite possibly more intelligent and can override over zealous Counter Girls, who are only doing their job hasten to add.
I actually have made a cardboard box exactly the right size and carried it in a big carrier bag. One time she insisted it had to be checked in, after a heated argument , after sussing it was the bag that was too big , I removed the box and slid it into the size limit box… she passed me the ticket in silence, with smoke coming from her ears. The new limits also allow a 2nd bag 20/20/35, no weight limit. which makes my life so much easier… Always remain polite and courteous.
The secret to transporting my B pipes has been the detachable bass reg bar.
With this excellent little addition to the pipes it has allowed me to pack my B set away into a practice sized case (for sale on NPU or directly from consort cases mooncoin) without removing one reed.
Chanter fits snug, remove the ends from the drones, take off the bass reg and separate at the non reeded section and put everything and I mean everything into that case.
I have traveled from Ireland to Australia with two full sets minus the bellows packed into this small case. My D set needed to be disassembled as it doesn’t have the detachable bass feature. And this allowed for padding between all the bits.
Even if you buy a second seat would the airline let you strap a case into an empty seat. Plus the pipes are upright in the seat so damage can happen to whichever end of the pipes are at the bottom of the case.
But if you did have 2 seats you might have more room in the overhead compartment.
good luck