Taking flutes on airplanes

[fiddlerwill]

I normally have a rake of whistles, bagpipes, uilleann, all sorts, never had a problem, one time I was carry a pair of high hat cymbals, they wanted to know what they were! Mind you they took the babys fork away In case I impaled a stewardess I suppose. I always wonder because the Low D could do a fair bit of damage !

[mutepointe]

I wanna be a world traveler and carry around an expensive flute and tell someone I'm a flutemaker too. Lucky ducks.

Actually, I'm enjoying myself right where I am. But it's nice to wish.

[Ronnie]

I fly often from Amsterdam to Cork with the flute in my handluggage. Never had a problem, never gotten it out, never been asked any problem. On the other hand if you come from the States they could suspect you of trading. So watch out with saying you are a flute maker in that case.

[Doc Jones]

I took a Hammy Hamilton Practice flute down to Haiti once...had it strapped to the side of my pack.

The Hammy as you may know is a black delrin headjoint on an aluminum tube. The TSA guy took it and was holding it by the head and slapping his hand with the pipe. "This looks pretty formidable" he says "what is it?". I told him it was a flute and he had his supervisor come over. They were both talking about what a good club it would be. Finally the supervisor says "Play a song on it". So there I stand playing Fig for a kiss at the metal detector. After the tune, they let me right through.

Doc

[Nanohedron]

I took a Hammy Hamilton Practice flute down to Haiti once...had it strapped to the side of my pack.

The Hammy as you may know is a black delrin headjoint on an aluminum tube. The TSA guy took it and was holding it by the head and slapping his hand with the pipe. "This looks pretty formidable" he says "what is it?". I told him it was a flute and he had his supervisor come over. They were both talking about what a good club it would be. Finally the supervisor says "Play a song on it". So there I stand playing Fig for a kiss at the metal detector. After the tune, they let me right through.

Doc

I had a similar experience the very weekend after 9-11, except it was the headjoint lining that set them off, not any clublike aspect - which is only a patently ludicrous observation with flutes, particularly keyed, sectional ones, being what they are: hollow, structurally barely stable and too delicate for effective cudgelhood. The metal head lining, being tubular, made them think it might be a pipe bomb, never mind that it was hollow and empty. So after much posturing and "aha-I-got-you" glinty-eyed grilling by the suspicious head guard, and cordial answers on my part, he finally challenged me to play it (along with every thing else I had to offer to do that too), so I lit in to O'Farrell's Welcome Into Limerick. Immediately his attendants started dancing, and the main official got upset that I was nobody but a fluteplayer. Better luck next time, I guess.

But now in addition to all that, looks like we're also going to have to worry about CITES certifications in more earnest than ever before, what with that latest raid on the Gibson company. Pain in the wazoo, that.

[I.D.10-t]

I suppose to the TSA the limits of their Imagination make everything seem like a cudgel.

TSA Official "What's that?"
Passenger "It's a Ruger .44 magnum."
TSA Official "Hmm... Looks heavy, bet you could knock someone out with that."

~~~~~~~~~

Got pulled over for one of the random bag searches where a guy looked over a fife I brought. Other than looking down the bore for a joint or who-knows-what it was treated like any other luggage.

[skyspirit]

Just got home from Brisbane, Australia. Was visiting there to witness the birth of my new granddaughter.

No problems with my flute. Not even on 9-11-2011 in Los Angeles. I just made sure they knew that it was an irish flute. Only had to open it up to show them once.

I did get to go to the irish club in Brisbane. That was a blast. The guiness pie and the guiness was as it should be. Great. I noticed that they have irish music most every night there. Not the night that I was there. But, I did get to listen and talk to two whistle players practicing near our table. I did get to talk to them. They knew of the forum here. I think that they had Burke whistles. A bit foggy in there if you know what I mean and the Australian dialect is tough even from my 5 year old grandson William. They said that they were American whistles and look like Burke to me.

I had a great time.

[deisman]

"The Hammy as you may know is a black delrin headjoint on an aluminum tube. The TSA guy took it and was holding it by the head and slapping his hand with the pipe. "This looks pretty formidable" he says "what is it?". I told him it was a flute and he had his supervisor come over. They were both talking about what a good club it would be. Finally the supervisor says "Play a song on it". So there I stand playing Fig for a kiss at the metal detector. After the tune, they let me right through."

Lawd Doc - I hope you shared this w/Hammy. Another way to use recycled flutes. cudgels. lol...

[MarkP]

I get stopped maybe twice a year I'd say, never in Ireland, either they're slack or they recognise it straight away. No major queries, I usually mime flute playing at the screen operator as I go through so they have a clue. Usual problem is if there's a metal whistle in along with the flute. In general they have an alert on mixed material combinations. Got hauled over in the Czech Republic though with two guys trying to force the whistles inside the flute parts to make gun barrel

flexible mic cables are another story altogether, anything you can tie someone up with. Nearly lost two of those.