Taking a bike on a plane
Discussion
Does anybody have any experience of taking a bike on a plane? How did you do it? and how? Bike box or bag?
I want to have my bike sent from London to Austria. I live near Salburg, so Ryanair or British Airways?
What are the costs involved?
ETA: or what's the best way to get it shipped over?
Cheers
ET
I want to have my bike sent from London to Austria. I live near Salburg, so Ryanair or British Airways?
What are the costs involved?
ETA: or what's the best way to get it shipped over?
Cheers
ET
Edited by extraT on Thursday 26th September 14:02
I've flown with my Bike from Gatwick to Geneva and Vancouver a couple of times.
I use my old mouldy Chain Reaction bag, they're not the best, but they frequently come up for sale half-price. They've be better if they were a few inches longer. People use boxes all the time though.
I guess you'd have to be a lot more careful with a Road Bike than a Downhill Bike, you just got to accept 'the throwers' may stand on it, may drop it, kick it about a bit etc, their size and weight are their best defence as they can't throw them far.
Remove anything that hangs lower than the frame - derailleur for example, brace anything that could be crushed fork lowers for example and rear dropouts which usually have hubs bracing them.
If you have disc brakes, pack the wheels with the disc on the inside of the bag.
keep the area around sensitive things like stanchions clear to avoid damage to them. I strap the bars to the top tube to stop things moving about. Put the pedals in a pocket - sneak some tools in there too.
The actual business of flying.
Costs vary, BA used to be free, I think they want £30 each way now, check before you go and pre-book if you can - if there's no facility to do that, print off the section on the airlines T's & C's and take it with you, some airlines staff (Sleazy Jet out of Bristol for example) don't or at least didn't know about special rules in regards to sporting equipment and will try to charge you excess / oversized luggage rates which is eyewateringly expensive.
Arrive earlier at the airport, you're going to be going through baggage drop-off twice, once with your normal luggage and again through the oversized luggage desk - the airlines aren't duty bound to take luggage over their standard allowances unless you pre-book so if you end up on a flight full of cyclists, golfers etc and you're last in the queue your bike may have to follow you on.
Accept that at the other end you're going be doing luggage claim twice, and the oversized stuff anyways comes out last, about half an hour after everything else because of the airline rules regarding Sods Law.
I use my old mouldy Chain Reaction bag, they're not the best, but they frequently come up for sale half-price. They've be better if they were a few inches longer. People use boxes all the time though.
I guess you'd have to be a lot more careful with a Road Bike than a Downhill Bike, you just got to accept 'the throwers' may stand on it, may drop it, kick it about a bit etc, their size and weight are their best defence as they can't throw them far.
Remove anything that hangs lower than the frame - derailleur for example, brace anything that could be crushed fork lowers for example and rear dropouts which usually have hubs bracing them.
If you have disc brakes, pack the wheels with the disc on the inside of the bag.
keep the area around sensitive things like stanchions clear to avoid damage to them. I strap the bars to the top tube to stop things moving about. Put the pedals in a pocket - sneak some tools in there too.
The actual business of flying.
Costs vary, BA used to be free, I think they want £30 each way now, check before you go and pre-book if you can - if there's no facility to do that, print off the section on the airlines T's & C's and take it with you, some airlines staff (Sleazy Jet out of Bristol for example) don't or at least didn't know about special rules in regards to sporting equipment and will try to charge you excess / oversized luggage rates which is eyewateringly expensive.
Arrive earlier at the airport, you're going to be going through baggage drop-off twice, once with your normal luggage and again through the oversized luggage desk - the airlines aren't duty bound to take luggage over their standard allowances unless you pre-book so if you end up on a flight full of cyclists, golfers etc and you're last in the queue your bike may have to follow you on.
Accept that at the other end you're going be doing luggage claim twice, and the oversized stuff anyways comes out last, about half an hour after everything else because of the airline rules regarding Sods Law.
Flown with the bike twice - Alps & Spain - using a box donated by my LBS which I reinforced with gaffer tape. The bike was wedged into the box with my (soft) knee & elbow pads, plus a few other bits of makeshift packaging.
Pretty much As P-Jay says:
Pretty much As P-Jay says:
- removed bars and secrured to top tube
- removed rear mech from hanger and tied to chainstay (to stop it flapping and stretching the cable)
- removed brake discs
- dropped some air from the tyres
I took a bike down to Jo'burg via BA.
Used a cardboard box that my brother's old bike came in. Bought a roll of bubble wrap from Rymans so it didn't rattle around. Filled up space with tools/helmet/pump/etc.
The only issue I encountered was the lack of security at the other end, they just left the oversized luggage in a corner of the baggage hall (lots of golf clubs and bikes) and you helped yourself, no checking of tags against ID, but that is probably a TIA* problem rather than a general airline issue.
Used a cardboard box that my brother's old bike came in. Bought a roll of bubble wrap from Rymans so it didn't rattle around. Filled up space with tools/helmet/pump/etc.
The only issue I encountered was the lack of security at the other end, they just left the oversized luggage in a corner of the baggage hall (lots of golf clubs and bikes) and you helped yourself, no checking of tags against ID, but that is probably a TIA* problem rather than a general airline issue.
- - This Is Africa
Same as above, I've been to the Alps a couple of times and took my mountain bike in a cardboard box kindly donated by my LBS.
Just pad the hell out of it (body armour/knee pads were good for this), protect derailleur, and brace the axles with spacer.
Also check with the airline if there are any weight limits. We had a limit of 20kg IIRC, which is possible with a cardboard box, but not with a huge plastic one (eg Bike Box Alan). A few people in front of us exceeded the limit and had to pay extra.
There are some airlines without limits.
Just pad the hell out of it (body armour/knee pads were good for this), protect derailleur, and brace the axles with spacer.
Also check with the airline if there are any weight limits. We had a limit of 20kg IIRC, which is possible with a cardboard box, but not with a huge plastic one (eg Bike Box Alan). A few people in front of us exceeded the limit and had to pay extra.
There are some airlines without limits.
I always take my road bike in a Bike Box Alan. There are several places that hire them out (well near me anyway, for some reason South West London is littered with them) so just a short drive to pick up.
With BA it can be free if it's your only piece of checked luggage. I usually put bike, shoes, helmet, wetsuit and trainers in there, and it comes in under the 23kg limit.
With BA it can be free if it's your only piece of checked luggage. I usually put bike, shoes, helmet, wetsuit and trainers in there, and it comes in under the 23kg limit.
Bike Bag - £50
2 rolls of loft insulation ( wool type ) - £30
Bubble rap ( big bubbles ) - £10
Removed the wheels, bars, derailieur, chain and the seat. Wedged the chainstays and forks open with home made wood things.
Packed it neatly with plenty of wool in the right areas and each wheel tucked either side. Folded the bubble wrap so it was a sheet the size of the bag and about 2 inches thick and placed that on the outside of the bag. Bike dropped in the middle of it all, very neat.
Threw it down the stairs, perfect. Took it to Spain via Jet2, cost £30 each way. Perfect. No problems at all.
I actually think it was segregated from the other cases as I handed it to a bloke at a seperate desk and he walked away with it rather than drop it on the conveyor, then at the other end it was at a seperate shelf/desk again.
Would do it again without a thought.
2 rolls of loft insulation ( wool type ) - £30
Bubble rap ( big bubbles ) - £10
Removed the wheels, bars, derailieur, chain and the seat. Wedged the chainstays and forks open with home made wood things.
Packed it neatly with plenty of wool in the right areas and each wheel tucked either side. Folded the bubble wrap so it was a sheet the size of the bag and about 2 inches thick and placed that on the outside of the bag. Bike dropped in the middle of it all, very neat.
Threw it down the stairs, perfect. Took it to Spain via Jet2, cost £30 each way. Perfect. No problems at all.
I actually think it was segregated from the other cases as I handed it to a bloke at a seperate desk and he walked away with it rather than drop it on the conveyor, then at the other end it was at a seperate shelf/desk again.
Would do it again without a thought.
The worst thing is when, as you baord, you can see your bike(s).
These are our this year, about to be loaded in Bilbao. Mine's the stealth cardboard box.
As for theft/security, I also have a theory about cardboard boxes vs. posh bike bag/boxes - if you were a thief (anatomically normal, with only one pair of hands) and had to chose one 'mystery' bike, which would you go for?
These are our this year, about to be loaded in Bilbao. Mine's the stealth cardboard box.
As for theft/security, I also have a theory about cardboard boxes vs. posh bike bag/boxes - if you were a thief (anatomically normal, with only one pair of hands) and had to chose one 'mystery' bike, which would you go for?
Digga said:
The worst thing is when, as you baord, you can see your bike(s).
These are our this year, about to be loaded in Bilbao. Mine's the stealth cardboard box.
As for theft/security, I also have a theory about cardboard boxes vs. posh bike bag/boxes - if you were a thief (anatomically normal, with only one pair of hands) and had to chose one 'mystery' bike, which would you go for?
True, and this is why my bag is mouldy from the shed and possibly still containing some long forgotten dirty riding kit from the last time I flew out - in 2011, and not because I'm a lazy swine. These are our this year, about to be loaded in Bilbao. Mine's the stealth cardboard box.
As for theft/security, I also have a theory about cardboard boxes vs. posh bike bag/boxes - if you were a thief (anatomically normal, with only one pair of hands) and had to chose one 'mystery' bike, which would you go for?
P-Jay said:
Digga said:
The worst thing is when, as you baord, you can see your bike(s).
These are our this year, about to be loaded in Bilbao. Mine's the stealth cardboard box.
As for theft/security, I also have a theory about cardboard boxes vs. posh bike bag/boxes - if you were a thief (anatomically normal, with only one pair of hands) and had to chose one 'mystery' bike, which would you go for?
True, and this is why my bag is mouldy from the shed and possibly still containing some long forgotten dirty riding kit from the last time I flew out - in 2011, and not because I'm a lazy swine. These are our this year, about to be loaded in Bilbao. Mine's the stealth cardboard box.
As for theft/security, I also have a theory about cardboard boxes vs. posh bike bag/boxes - if you were a thief (anatomically normal, with only one pair of hands) and had to chose one 'mystery' bike, which would you go for?
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