teleplayer wrote:
I've flown many times with my guitars with absolutely no issues at all. They security guys often make some sort of a funny comment(humorous, not nasty).
This evening, when flying from CPT, back to JHB, the Kulula check in lady made a fuss and wanted to charge me extra for the guitar, claiming it was some new policy of theirs. Clearly they've just instated this since Tuesday last week when I flew with it from JHB to CPT with no issues at all with the same carrier.
It's a new month. New policies.
Airlines are under pressure and have to look for little extra charges to impose. Also they're increasingly getting complaints from people who can't find space to store their luggage because the holder over their seats is stuffed with carved giraffes, duty-free booze and souvenir vuvuzelas.
Get used to this. I flew Easyjet last year from London to Alicante. They have a little box just before the boarding gate and your in-flight baggage has to fit entirely within that box or you have to check it in (at a cost). They also charge a fiver extra for "priority boarding" IE the right to push in front of all the lowly souls who DID not cough up the extra fiver. If everybody pays for priority boarding there's no advantage, but Easyjet have lots of extra fivers.
Several short haul airlines in Europe now charge for printing the e-ticket that you have on your blackberry but not on hard copy. And it's not a few cents per page either.
I have seen the future.
