Long story short, I'm in the states on work business and decided to pick up a Mono M80 while I was here since I needed a new gig bag for my bass. The twist is I didn't bring the bass. My original plan was to "fold" the M80 into one of my check-in bags, but upon receiving the gig bag I realized bending it isnt possible. If I check-in the mono M80 I'll get charged $100 as it would be my third checked bag. Reading other threads I've seen people usually take it as carry on but they have their basses inside, does the fact that I'd be taking an empty gigbag as a personal item decrease my chances of being able to carry it with me for free as others have?
It's gotta fit in the overhead bin if it's carry-on. You may get a kind flight attendant that puts it in the pilot's coat closet thing, but I wouldn't count on it.
I've flown with my M80 as a carry on, and the flight attendants never checked to see what was in it. Security might wonder why you don't have a bass in it, but they won't keep you from taking it.
Gate check it right before you board. The gate agent will likely want to do that anyway, considering the size. And there shouldn't be any fee. Yes, it will be stored under the plane with luggage (and handled by that crew), but since there's no instrument inside, there shouldn't be much to worry about. Those cases are built well.
On small planes it won't fit, on larger ones it will. On an international flight I would expect a large enough plane for it to fit overhead. However, it wouldn't be a big deal if it was gate-checked.
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