aaronpass wrote:
Anyone have any updated luck flying with a soft case? I fly to Maui on Sunday and am much more comfortable putting my bike in my EVOC case as opposed to a cardboard box...
Despite the "policy" going into effect last summer, I have not heard one instance of anyone actually being turned down with a soft case. Given the wide breath of people I know who travel with bikes, you would figure a FB rant would have shown up in my feed if it did happen. In the handful of instances where locals I know were aware of the policy, when they asked the actual check in people at the terminal, none of employees knew the policy even existed.
Furthermore, when traveling inter island, 99% of the time you can self check in, and never deal with a Hawaiian Airlines employee. You select that you have a bike case, pay for it at the kiosk, then tag it and drop the bike case off with TSA for inspection. TSA is not responsible for following policy that is specific to one airlines that another airlines doesn't follow.
If you call the Hawaiian Airlines customer service number today, they will likely recite the policy to you. What actually happens at the airport is probably a different story. Hawaiian Air is likely using the policy as a way to squash any soft case claims. Meaning the policy is in place, they might accept your soft case, but any damages, even if it's because an employee rolled over your soft case with a fork lift, is not their liability.