Cardboard box?

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If you look at the fine print on most airlines, they state that bikes must be packed in cardboard box or hard case. Though I have never seen any agent turn down a bike in a soft case. It's a business after all.

I just looked at delta's website which seems to have been updated recently:

https://www.delta.com/...p/special-items.html


I have been traveling with a soft case since 2012. I just picked up a hard case a week and half ago. Glad I made the switch.

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blog

I only travel with surveying equipment or trade show displays

I would never fly with my bike in a soft case nor a cardboard box anyways

I have probably flown around 300K miles with my bike in a soft case. Nothing has every happened to it. I've also rode my bike straight up to check in, takenn the pedals off, turned the handlebars, deflated and checked the bike in and reversed that process on the other side several times with no problems at all. Acutally this last approach, they treat it the best. It just gets wheeled up to the baggage pile, put on the top and then gently placed in the aircraft!

Professional Teams use them all the time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXxT9m7yw30

Yea winning !!!!!!

If I had someone buying my bikes for me and flying them for me I wouldn’t care

My flying miles stats suggest my soft case has a good track record. I hear of many of my peers having things destroyed in the hard case, often when the case falls off a big pile. The baggage handlers TEND to handle the soft case "softly" and the hard cases more "harshly". There is a reason for this. The soft case is way lighter. They don't have to apply a lot of force to move it around like the hard case.

It's the same logic people use to drive a large vehicle like an SUV thinking they are safer, but the accidents per mile for compact vehicles like a Sentra or Jetta are far lower since they are more manouevreable. But most people don't get the stats of the full journey. They just look at hardware parked in a spot and make a psychological assessment of safety based on physical appearance.

Damn. I assume you're not doing that with one of them fancy carbon bike now are ya?

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Strava

The risk in this mode is not the carbon, or steel, or Al or Ti. It's the drivetrain But the entire bike is assembled. You check the bike in with the chain going from big ring to second biggest cog in the back to have max chain tension both ways. I would take a sponge and tape it around front and rear derailleur and then roll the dice. Never any problems. I have not done this in a bit now since I am 'too rich' to cycle up to an airport and can afford a car and park it. When I could not and bike was my transport, it was not an option so I biked to the airport, checked my bike in and when then when I landed on vacation, I could ride to where I wanted. I figured, rather than own a car, I could see the world with my bike and use the car+gas money seeing the world using my legs for gas. But I'm not wired like most people. But people don't believe this stuff like riding up to a check in on your bike is possible and it is. I doubt there is a single ticket agent who would decline you getting on board if you act poor and say this is your only transport on both sides. I realize this is not the ST user financial profile too. It's not like most people around here are riding up to Toronto Airport to get on a flight to Dubai, connect in Islamabad and ride the Karakoram Highway amidst some dicey war zone over the Pamirs to China, but there are guys doing that type of stuff all the time (and no, my wife won't let me do that anyway, but I can dream on)...by the way this is the route:









Route profile, Islamabad to Kashgar (China)



In any case, not sure what you would do with a hard case bike case on a bike tour. Only option is leave with cardboard and ditch at the airport and when you return try to find a local bike store that gives you a bike case and take taxi to the airport or just ride up and check your bike in....on my bike tours, I did the cardboard box on the way out and just rode up to checkin on the way back.

Don't go fly to IMSA with a soft case, though. The local flight company (CT to Port Elizabeth) handed back a Speed Concept with both seatstays cracked in half.

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ZONE3 - We Last Longer

Depends. The problem - particularly for disk wheels, but also for carbon frames - is getting other luggage stacked / thrown on top of it.

I concur with the luggage stacking issue. I have watched my soft case go to the aircraft on the trolley many times. It is rare that there is ever anything on the top. Because it is shaped weird, it does not lend itself to stacking stuff on top without whatever it on top tipping over and falling off. Or it is vertically placed at one end of the luggage trolley or the other end, again with nothing on top. At the end of the day, baggage handling staff do what is convenient for them, not what is safe for a our bikes. A soft case or just a nude bike (as described above), they do what is easiest for them and generally that means putting it through the system in a manner where risks are actually low.

Well I took Comair/British Airways from Capetown to Port Elizabeth so don't know about that airline, however, did you put that piece of plastic in between rear drop outs to keep bike stays apart? And are you certain that it happened the Cape Town to PE leg and not somewhere along the way?

I took my PikaPackworks (softside) to IMSA last year without incident. In fact, I took it all over for 10 years without incident. To be sure, with the steel rear fork lock in place you could have jumped on the case and probably not broken my seatstays ... which goes to show it's all about the packing.

This year I started using the Thule Roundtrip Pro XT simply because I am getting too old to lug the softside without wheels. The Thule is sort of a hybrid case. I'm not sure if they Hawaiian Air would classify it as soft or hard. The bottom is clearly hard, and the sides have hard plastic shell inserts. I took it to Norway this summer without any issues and spent a total of $38 on bike fees for the roundtrip from the U.S.

Truer words have never been spoken. ;-)

Of course you're welcome back anytime.

100% certain it was on that leg. Happened in a Scicon v3, so mounted to the solid metal mounting base, with ample padding. The damage looked like a sharp edge with a very heavy weight was rested directly against the seatstay area, which on the SC is relatively low.

All I'm saying is, the plural of anecdote is not "data". Not all baggage handlers will treat a soft case better, and damage can happen randomly regardless of packing methods. I still fly with a soft case, mostly because I'm not going to disassemble a Speed Concept front end for every flight. I'm pretty mechanically adept and I used to take the Bayonet stem off my old Felt DA and back it in a hardcase, but my next bike will be "mortal" or at least easier to take the bars off. My biggest achievement on that front was squeezing my partner's road bike into a standard suitcase, no surcharge - if only I were 155cm tall...

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ZONE3 - We Last Longer

LOL Slowman has not banned me yet, and it's been 15 years on this website with crossed wiring!!!!

hey when are we riding dolomites and alps?...riding up to checkin on your ti bike is optional (did you see what I just did....I typed in slowman mode)

Delta one time made me sign a waiver for my soft case; the other 20 times or so, they didn't.

Looks like I’m riding in Spain in early summer next year, including the Angliru. Should be fun.

I'm pretty sure my Airport Ninja would fit in a cardboard bicycle box, and I'd have no issues with that if the airport takes the box after I land. The reason I got a soft case is dragging around a hard case or cardboard box in addition to my luggage is a logistical pita.

Fly with Alaska. They'll treat you right.

Soft case??? Never Again.

If you actually talk to those who work for the airlines you will quickly learn they don't give a crap about anyone's belongings. Each item (bike, golf clubs, suitcase, whatever) is literally **thrown** four times onto different conveyer belts/vehicles each one-way flight. If you are switching planes, double that number. The baggage workers are a part of a contract company that move bags for most airlines at your airport. The only thing they care about is making their strict timelines on moving bags from A to B.

This past July, I traveled for the Santa Rosa 70.3. I saw the baggage people **throw** 5 bike softbags on their sides, stacking them on top of each other for transport off the plane to baggage claim.

In an Evoc triathlon soft bag, I've had $2000 worth of damage to my bike on two different flights during one triathlon trip. United blamed me for using a soft case, claimed responsibility for the damage and refused to pay anything. Within 2 weeks a Navy seal had total $10K bike loss on United (soft bag) and they refused to pay him anything. He has a cracked frame. I had a fork broken almost in two. Evoc felt so bad that they refunded me the cost of the $600 bag. If you want to read about it... https://forum.slowtwitch.com/...rum.cgi?post=4702229

You should've taken United to small claims court. Odds are they wouldn't even show up.

My insurance company, USAA, got sick of hearing about United Airlines destroying property. They used to have a clause that said they would cover it unless damaged by a US Air Carrier. After this happened to me and the US Navy Seal, a room full of USAA attorneys called me and said they were going to cover our bike costs, change their coverage contract and they sued United Airlines. This is all in the thread I shared. It opened up to a huge discussion on which insurances cover what for bikes.

Yeah I saw that. But my thought was from the point of convenience.

a) Small claims usually handles up to $5k,
b) It is common / expected for you to represent yourself, and
c) A big company like United would probably ignore this tactic and just pay the judgment

I haven't needed to go this route myself, but I would certainly consider it if I suffered that much damage (and I don't have USAA).

Did the same with a windsurf board once. No boardbag, wrap or anything else. Surprisingly not a ding. I guess they handled it with extreme care since it had no protection. Quite funny

Has anyone actually been turned away with a soft case on Hawaiian recently? I am flying Maui -> Kona -> Maui either side of world championships. No other options for airlines between the islands with bikes. I have a Scicon bag which is certainly my preference to use; but can also access a Thule hard sided box for the trip as well. Given I have a week on Maui before the race, it would be great to not have to dismantle and rebuild my Giant Trinity front end an extra time! Should I chance it with the soft case?

I haven’t tested it out but when I head to Kona in November I’ll be using Aloha Air Cargo to transport the bike between Honolulu and Kona (assuming Hawaiiian refuse to take my Scicon-style bag). It’s an overnight transfer, $50 each way, and I think they service the other islands as well.

Will be interested in hearing others’ experiences of this option.

I'm just looking into Aloha Air Cargo! Thanks for mentioning it - it definitely looks like it would work and they explicitly mention bikes. Would save me so much hassle with the complicated Trinity front end.

I am fairly certain that is the exact policy Hawaiian has had at least since 2005. I am also certain you can call Hawaiian about the policy and find that they consider a soft case the same as a cardboard box.
I am fairly certain there is data that supports damage in hard cases is significantly higher than soft cases. I will see if I can find it, and if so post it
As mentioned by others, packing is 99% of the equation. Before my bike is put into my Pika softcase, it is so well packed it could probably be run over by a car and not be damaged- for obvious reasons I have never tested this :-) it is easy to pick up free and effective packing materials from your LBS, as they are throwing it out every day from bikes they are assembling.
My top suggestions
- use a removable link on your chain and take it off (the removable link is also awesome for cleaning your chain
- remove your rear derailleur- this is super easy to take off and put back and does NOT effect shifting adjustment. I place mine in a light weight styrofoam block, that also provides additional support for the chain and seat stays
- buy the protective “skewers” for front fork and rear drop our
- put water bottles in your cages
- support fork and stays with styrofoam blocks
- strap everything with Velcro straps, (I also use some of the pile of shoelaces I accumulate by using elastic laces)
- My last “packing” is a slightly modified old blanket that covers the entire packed frame
My full disassembly and packing (and reassembly later) is typically 15-20 minutes each
Anything can be broken, but you can tip the odds hugely in your favor by doing some basic preparation
AND- be SMART and use your smart phone to take pictures of your packing masterpiece in the event of a now unlikely circumstance.
One last comment on soft cases- they are MUCH lighter than hard cases, so I can include my wet suit, pump, basic tools and still stay well under 45 lbs- total.
Good luck

I would remove the rear derailleur hanger too.

Hello jimatbeyond and All,

Here are some videos and other instructions from https://www.bikeflights.com/...ck_Bicycle_Guide.pdf

https://www.bikeflights.com/pack 'BikeFlights'

It would be interesting to have more info from BikeFlights as to damage assessment for box vs. hardside vs. softside and recommendations for brand names that have best travel success rates.

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Cheers, Neal

+1 mph Faster

Yeah, all the integrated cabling on the front end of my BMC makes me want to avoid dismantling it as well!

Thanks for the info on the Hawaiian policy. I think current plan is to bring my soft-sided Scicon bag. Best case scenario, Hawaiian doesn't even blink at the case and all goes to plan; otherwise, I will head to the airport early enough that I can run to Aloha Air Cargo and drop it off with them for pickup in Kona the next day. And thanks for the packing tips - I have quite a collection of extra foam and materials for packing in the soft case that I use in addition to what Scicon provides.

Could just buy a P-5x....sorry couldn't resist :P

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"see the world as it is not as you want it to be"

I'd wager I've flown bikes more than most, and almost certainly used more varied packing methods than most. Track record to date is *zero* damage with soft case use, plenty - PLENTY - of damage with hard case.
It's pretty clear that essentially all of the damage I've suffered is/was due to TSA not giving a damn about re-packing the hard case correctly, though, so if you have a hard case that's as easy to inspect as most soft cases, you'll probably be fine. These are relatively few and far between, unfortunately.

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Tech writer/support on this here site. FIST school instructor and certified bike fitter. Formerly at Diamondback Bikes, LeMond Fitness, FSA, TiCycles, etc.
Coaching and bike fit - http://source-e.net/ Cyclocross blog - https://crosssports.net/ BJJ instruction - https://ballardbjj.com/

I just got confirmation from Aloha Air Cargo that they have no problems with taking my bike if Hawaiian decides they don't want to. Fairly standard procedure for them:

i just got this note from a reader: Received an update direct from Hawaiian Airlines operations that soft bike bags will be allowed from Oct 1-31 only. This was after I contacted them about using a soft bag to the Maui Xterra.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Someone at Hawaiian Airlines was sitting there wondering why they are getting hundreds of questions about soft sided bags in October. Do you want any business in October from the thousands of triathletes travelling to Kona & Maui for 2 world championship events?

Thanks for sharing - that is great news!!

Dan, is there a contact at Hawaiian you can pass on who we can get in touch with about this? Ultraman World Champs in November is also affected.

My bike flew this way once - the airline had said it would provide boxes (this was decades ago) for our collegiate cycling team, but didn't. So we're sitting on the plane and see them rolling the bikes out.

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http://www.jt10000.com/

i sent them an email yesterday, no answer so far. i'll try to talk to them today.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Do you want any business in October from the thousands of triathletes travelling to Kona & Maui for 2 world championship events?


The problem with this is very few people give this any consideration when booking tickets. Most airline tickets are booked/sold these days through 3rd party sellers like Expedia. And most people, as is human nature pick the lowest price that pops up in the selection - giving very little consideration to other factors like connections, baggage charges, the airlines reputation etc . .

I use Expedia regularly - but I always check, the connections, what will the baggage charges be (for bikes in particular), and generally the airlines rep, and then make a decision based on my particular needs. Example - when traveling with bikes, from our home destination (Toronto) we ALWAYS choose one of our Canadian Carriers, either Air Canada or West Jet, because they have a set bike fee of $50. Often, the destination we are trying to reach can be done a bit less if we go with one of the American carriers up front - but then we are paying often $150 or more each way for the bikes, and as is often the case with the US Carriers there are often more connections to get from A to B. I'll gladly pay a bit more for a direct flight or less connections, know with certainty that my bike fee is $50, and support that business with my business!

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Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

I contacted Hawaiian Airlines both by email, and I spoke a supervisor, and no, they will not be accepting soft bike cases. In both cases the answer i got was no.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Most of the experience from locals has been that if you call the office, they will tell you that it is a strict no soft case policy. But people who have recently asked the airline employees at the check in counter when you show up to the airport all say that they have no idea the policy changed. A friend of mine took his soft case and taped a bunch of cardboard around it last weekend to fly interisland. When he checked in, the airline people were like...WTF? He got too and from Kauai/Honolulu no problem through Hawaiian and I think he didn't bother with taping the cardboard on the way back.

Don't take this as proof that the policy isn't enforced...just that it is *my belief* that this is Hawaiian's way of instantly throwing out any soft case damage claims. They probably talked to a lawyer that advised them if they have a no soft case policy in writing but still let you check in your soft case that they are not liable. As compared to the effort for each customer with a soft case to sign a waiver...because you would depend on the check in staff to enforce it. If they forget, or lose the waiver...then you can claim damages. And as already mentioned, if you are on connecting flights from different airlines, Hawaiian can depend on someone like United to get their waiver signed when you check in. Again...this is only my opinion.

why would you fly hawaiian and take your soft case if this is what you're hanging your hat on?

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Is the Armored hen house bag considered a soft case? I was considering purchasing one of these bags because my friend has one, he said it is "Hard casing" but to me it looks like a soft case.
I'm small, so my bikes are 50/51cm, plus I feel confident enough to be able to rebuild my bikes.

https://rustersports.com/...ct/armored-hen-house

Thoughts ?

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Grow with data: Dynamic Sports Data | eBay store

If every airline paid for damages to your bike in transit...no questions asked...then I could see why you would avoid Hawaiian with your soft case. But the fact is that damages to your bike while in airline transit is for the most part a "shit out of luck" battle regardless of the airline or their bike case policy. They often blame you for packing, TSA, or that your bike was already damaged. It's very hard to "prove" the airline at fault unless you are ultra vigilant. So if you already invested $500-600 in a really good soft case which is 90% as protective as a hard case (read...not a scion case), then you may hang your hat on Hawaiian if indeed they will let you check it in but throw out all soft case damage claims immediately. For locals who have Pukalani status and use the Hawaiian Airlines credit card for miles...Hawaiian is often best option ...especially interisland.

Furthermore, most instances of damage come from TSA opening your case, moving things around and not putting the case back together properly. IMHO, this happens most often with hard clam shell cases because it's possible to just force the thing shut with straps. I have this type of hard case and even for me sometimes I have to take a few extra minutes to shift things around to make sure the case closes properly without anything being smashed. With something like the Thule Pro XT, the zippers make it easy for TSA to open up the case while your frame is locked into the bottom of the case. Then they just zip it back up.

If you ask me, I rather have something like a Thule Pro XT case and a "we'll accept it but no damage claim policy" than my current hard clam shell case that has a "you can claim damages but you'll most likely get two middle fingers" policy. YMMV.

Why would you show up to your flight with your bike in a soft case not knowing whether they’ll accept your bike? That’s what I’m asking.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

I wouldn't. As an old hard case owner, I'm not currently in that position. I'm just saying that people have shown up with soft cases after 8/1 (whether they knew the new policy or not) and none of them to my knowledge have been turned away. The people who did know about the policy change chose Hawaiian because it was their only option. It was either pick take the chance or don't come over for a race at all because the logistics of Aloha Air cargo wouldn't work given the time they needed to get/drop off their bike and the hours they are open.

As Hawaiian suspended their policy and accepted soft cases for the race in 2018 is there any chance/indication they'll do the same next year? Curious as I'm looking to book flights and they seem like a decent option but not if i need to buy a new bag.

What was the protocol otherwise if you had been flying on them? Was there a clear option to ship once in seattle/sfo/wherever?

My reason for asking is that i'm flying in from London and will have an airline change in any of the west coast cities I fly into so want to make sure I understand the parameters...


Thank you

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________________________________________________________
Taylor Rogers

2024: IM Hamburg

"Why would you show up to your flight with your bike in a soft case not knowing whether they’ll accept your bike? That’s what I’m asking."

Dan, because I believe my bike is better protected in my Scicon-style framed soft case than a cardboard box. Last weekend my bike shop boxed up my bike, by mistake, as part of the race tune-up (don't ask, someone didn't read the instructions properly). When I came to pick it up and discovered it all boxed up ready to travel I had two choices. Accept the mistake, and be thankful that it was guaranteed to be accepted by Hawaiian this week, or make them fix the error and unbox and reassemble the bike.

After looking at the box job, I rapidly chose the latter. And that's not to say the bike shop did a bad job. They boxed it up just fine, but when I looked at the bike and compared it to the packing I'll be putting around it in my framed bag, there was no question. I've seen the way American baggage handlers stack bike cases, on their sides, on top of each other, and it's not pretty. (In the Lands Down Under we are way more civilised - bike cases are at least stored vertically....)

Despite all that though, I would much rather run the gauntlet with Hawaiian Airlines (and run the risk of a quick hop around to Aloha Air Cargo) than trust my bike to be protected by a layer of cardboard, potentially lying at the bottom of a pile of bike cases.

After seeing how many bikes end up having their handlebars snapped in a Scicon bag I would never own one and would trust a box a whole lot more...

I'm over here now and have had no problem. Just pay your $35 and they are fine with it. Have done 2 internal flights so far.

Have been traveling also with an evoc bag for 4 years. No damages here. I usually find that either pipe insualation or "foam edge protectors" (google it) secured on with electical tape works really well in stopping any bumps to the frame or stays with very little weight penalty. Just have them all cut for the required sizes so take about 5 minutes to put on once the bike is taken apart.

I had the bike padded. With the damage that was done, I am pretty sure the baggage handlers took the bike, launched it out of the cargo bay and it landed with the front end impacting the ground. It was unbelieveable. I've heard stories from guys like you that have traveled with them for years and no issues and I have heard from tons of people like me that had horrible damage just before races. The airlines will not pay for any damage. By Hawaiian banning the softbags - obviously they are tired of the complaints about expensive bikes being damaged.

TRAVELERS ON HAWAIIAN AIRLINES BE WARNED!!!



Just was on a flight yesterday Kona->Honolulu. Agent at the gate asked me if it was a bike inside (Ritchey breakaway semi soft case). I said sports equipment, clothes, tools, etc, all true. She said she needs to check with her boss. Boss comes out, says can you open it. I open revealing a wheel visible and some clothes stuffed around it. Boss begins telling me how they "don't accept bikes in soft bags anymore so I can't check it. She was very much 100% uninterested g having any sort of meaningful discussion about it, the fact that it fit dimensions (modified to take off 2in), was under weight limit for normal bag, or even to acknowledge that it was reinforced on 4 of 6 sides. The last one blew my mind, said hard plastic is still a soft case.. her argument once opened was "I see a bike wheel, therefore it's a bike not just bike parts".

Anyway, the result was having to pay an additional $35/bag (2travelers) on top of the $15/per I paid online before AND basically the worst treatment I have ever received ever from an airline industry rep.

Here I was thinking Hawaiian airlines was trying to separate themselves from the other big airlines with better customer service. Very much avoiding them in the future.

You're mad because you got called out for trying to play games? It was a bike in a soft case. Your argument doesn't even rise to being semantical.

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Favorite Gear: Dimond | Cadex | Desoto Sport | Hoka One One

I'm simply putting out there that I've flown said case with probably over 30 airlines now and not one has ever asked me to open my bag at check in or argued that a case that meets their dimensions and weight as a normal bag is not allowed.

At the end of the day it's small fry with double fees but I felt worth sharing my story here as many people on this forum have similar setups so they know what to expect.

For reference also they let it through no problem Honolulu->Kona 5 days earlier. And ever flown it in Hawaiian maybe 4-5 other times in the past never an issue. What I would like to know is would putting hard plastic on the zipper side of the case warrant it being a 'hard case'. She was not interested in discussing this with me and it will be interesting to see which cases get denied and accepted in the future as many are 'semi-hard' or so.

So, let's make sure we understand the situation here:

1. Per Hawaiian Airlines they do not accept bikes in soft cases.
2. You showed up at airport with a bike in a soft case.
3. Agent asked you if you had a bike.
4. You tried to "fudge" the situation and claim you only had sports equipment.
5. Agent and manager call you on your fudging.

At this point Hawaiian is well within their rights to totally and completely refuse your bike. Period. End of story.

6. However, they allow you to fly with you bike in a soft case.
7. They only charge you minor amount to fly with you bike.
8. You're upset.

Got it. Seems perfectly reasonable...

I'm simply trying to outline this for other reference.

Yes I'm a bit flustered because this policy came into place after I booked my flights much earlier in the year and after I'd flown before with no issue and so I had no reason to believe it would not have any issue. So yes showing up to my flight and being told I can't board because of a policy I was uninformed of, that came into place after I booked was not a fun situation.

I understant it is within their right to turn it away as per their policy and I'm glad she let me sign a liability waiver (totally reasonable for any luggage IMO), I'm just trying let others know (as many are vocal here about their tactics) that Hawaiian not only updated their policy, but also are taking a very hard line on it so be warned those who have plans on Hawaiian and have anything that resembles a soft bike case.

The bundled Biknd Helium case qualifies as a hard case?

The BIKND is still a soft case.

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Favorite Gear: Dimond | Cadex | Desoto Sport | Hoka One One

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...

Southwest just received FAA approval to fly to Hawaii. Hopefully their schedules will start before October. Watch competitor prices drop with the introduction of new competition. And the bike case policy may change if Hawaiian Airlines feels the bite.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/flights/2019/02/27/southwest-airlines-faa-approval-hawaii-flights/3007658002/

2'nd time I flew with my BMC TMO1 in a soft case it came home with a severely cracked frame.....

I agree they do look vulnerable. But with a 60cm frame, I have to take the handlebars off anyhow.

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My race site: https://racesandplaces.wixsite.com/racesandplaces

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.