Before 9/11, Neil Deland, a French horn player with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, was sometimes able to put his instrument in the cockpit for safekeeping when he flew.
But those were the good old days, before tightened airline security made it more difficult for passengers, let alone large pieces of brass, to get through the system.
A few years ago, Deland checked in for a flight from Toronto to Newark, N.J., and received the bad news that another horn player had taken the extra storage space in the cabin closet at the front of the plane. Deland was forced to check his horn. He got it back - with a big crease.
"The airline was terrible, and they all but accused me of trying to rip them off by bringing a damaged horn on the plane," said the 45-year-old, who has been with the TSO for just over a year. He wasn't offered any compensation, and he didn't put up a fight. "I was so frustrated that it wasn't worth it to me," he said.
Musicians such as Deland and others travelling with oversized or delicate items may have unique needs, but increasing air traffic, smaller airplanes, tighter schedules and fuller flights have resulted in an increase in baggage woes for ordinary flyers - woes that have helped spawn a number of specialized transportation companies that are profiting from the fallout.
While the percentage of lost baggage seems small, the numbers can be dramatic. Some 30 million bags, or 1 per cent of all bags checked, were lost by airlines worldwide last year, according to consumer watchdog groups and organizations such as SITA, a firm that tracks luggage movement and provides IT solutions to airlines.
American airlines lose an average of about 10,000 bags a day, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. This summer, the Association of European Airlines reported that at least 10 passengers per flight lost their checked baggage, British Airways topping the list of offenders. Canadian numbers are not available because the Canadian Transportation Agency does not require airlines to report incidents of lost or damaged baggage.
"You wouldn't be comparing apples to apples with baggage complaint numbers for Canadian airlines anyway," said Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick. Whereas airlines such as WestJet and Air Transat have mostly point-to-point routes, Air Canada is often handing off baggage to partner airlines on more complicated routes.
"We handle 45 million bags a year," said Fitzpatrick, "and baggage incidents decreased this summer compared to last year. We've been very happy with our performance."
Numbers from the Canadian Transportation Agency seem to confirm improvement. Baggage complaints to the agency that were unresolved between passengers and all airlines flying to, from or within Canada last year numbered 446 compared to 536 in 2005, said spokesman Jadrino Huot.
Still, when all complaints are compared, baggage issues remain in third place after grumps about quality of service and flight disruptions.
Whether real or simply perceived, the vulnerability of checked baggage to loss, delay and pilferage has increased the incidence of carry-on bloat, with business travellers and casual tourists trying to bring as much aboard as possible.
All Canadian airlines must follow carry-on restrictions set by the Canadian Transport Agency: two items per person, one measuring 58 cm x 23 cm x 40 cm and the other no larger than 43 cm x 16 cm x 33 cm with neither weighing more than 10 kilograms. While airline employees are theoretically required to enforce carry-on baggage size and weight restrictions in order to avoid flight delays and ensure the safety of passengers and crew, it is rare to see oversized backpacks and bulging rolling luggage screened at the gate.
This may be changing soon, said Fitzpatrick.
He said Air Canada will begin a push this fall to be more aggressive in enforcing carry-on rules. "For example, we used to not be too strict about counting baby strollers and car seats," he said. "We will soon begin counting these as one of the two allowable carry-ons."
