Need some advice

[OC Richard]

I've flown with pipes and kilt across the country quite a few times.

I have big feet, and I travel light, with just one rolling carryon.

Since a pair of size 14 shoes takes up around a third of my suitcase I almost always travel with just the shoes on my feet.

I've had no trouble fitting kilt, sporran, hose, waistcoat, bonnet, and pipes in my suitcase. The bulkiest thing (besides the shoes) is the jacket which I leave behind.

I have plain black Doc Martens which, like Dr Ian Malcolm's black suits, are appropriate for all occasions.

[OC Richard]

The other approach, which makes total sense but which I've not tried, is to wear my Highland outfit on the plane.

I see tons of businessmen wearing their suits on the plane, avoiding squishing them in suitcases.

Personally I think a suit would look better well-folded in a suitcase than crammed into a airplane seat for hours, but with Highland outfits it does allow far more suitcase space for pipes and ordinary clothes for the rest of the trip.

[DCampbell16B]

I've flown twice with pipes. I have a hard case and always carried it on with me. I stuffed the case full with anything else I could. But I did not, and would not, put pipes in checked baggage. I just wouldn't trust the airline to get it where I needed to be. What to wear is secondary to me.

[FossilHunter]

I've flown with pipes and kilt across the country quite a few times.

I have big feet, and I travel light, with just one rolling carryon.

Since a pair of size 14 shoes takes up around a third of my suitcase I almost always travel with just the shoes on my feet.

I've had no trouble fitting kilt, sporran, hose, waistcoat, bonnet, and pipes in my suitcase. The bulkiest thing (besides the shoes) is the jacket which I leave behind.

I have plain black Doc Martens which, like Dr Ian Malcolm's black suits, are appropriate for all occasions.

Good work with the Jurassic Park novel reference!

[stickman]

When I was working I took my pipes with me, always in a hard case. Going through security can sometimes be a hassle. The nearest I came to loosing my pipes was in Hong Kong. I had just arrived and went to the office. There was a problem in a factory in a nearby city in mainland China. So I left my pipes and suitcase at the office while I went to see what the problem was. While I was there a fire broke out at the office. When I got back my pipes were gone my suitcase was there, it was soaking wet. Fortunately one of the office staff had grabbed my pipe case on her way out. So my pipes were safe. By the time I got to my suitcase everything inside was covered in mould and ruined, had to trash everything including the suitcase.9

[DCampbell16B]

I do remember going through security at Heathrow with the hard case. Security saw all these "pipes" inside and asked me to open it to make sure it wasn't a bomb. They were very good natured about it, and got a smile when they saw it was just bagpipes. Good thing I had taken the whale bone out just before though. Long story...