SUPs on Planes

I always fly garuda to indonesia, except for the food and the one time I swear the pilots got lost, they're great, you can take as many boards as you want and can haggle over excess baggage fees in true indo style...

... anyways, am heading over the again in a week, this time I got given a ticket and its with JetStar... I just called to confirm and make sure I can take my SUP, cause this time thats all i'm taking, and the call centre chick I spoke to said there is a 1.9 metre length limit on surfboards..! WTF, thats like 6'3"!

surely that can't be right... the longest board you can take to indo via jet star is a 6'3"..?

does this airline only cater to package deal bogans who surf kuta beach for the one hour a day they're not drinking, running around screaming 'oi,oi,oi' or getting special massages..?

I'm over trying to deal with the call centre monkies, anyone here got any experience taking SUPs or Mals with these guys...?

No idea man... but good to know Garuda take SUPs!!

Jetstar cram all luggage into cargo containers hence the size limit. Everyone else free loads the cargo into the planes belly.

No entirely correct:

Maximum 2.77 metres (9.1 feet) for A330 aircraft-so you're good!

www.jetstar.com/au/en/help/articles/airports-and-terminals

I think you'll find you're on an A330 to DPS from SYD.

Suckstar-shoulda' stuck with Garuda-it's worth the extra $ for less stress etc.

^^ its was a free ticket with accom's bar one and a bit weeks paid for, who am i to look a gift horse in the mouth...?

finally got through to an english speaking person at the jetstar call centre, max length is 2.77 mtrs, so yes looks like all is good...

then measured board, its 2.79 mtrs, so going to take a hacksaw blade and some 5min epoxy just in case they make an issue of the .02mtr

Qantas and Hawaiian were great 10' 4" board bag stuffed full no dramas.

Did they charge you excess? We are thinking about a trip there next year.

I'm flying jetstar to Hawaii in April, had no probs last year with surfboard, was considering bringing back a SUP if I saw anything that turned me on, just have to keep it to below 9 foot with the size restrictions

We took 2 x 12' SUPs to the Maldives last August and Singapore Airlines could not have cared less at checkin....
HOWEVER
we hung around at Changi to watch our plane being unloaded for the trip to Male and I swear you could read the body language of the luggage handlers loud and clear. When they saw our monsters coming down the conveyor belt, its like they were saying...."What the $#%@&*!!!"
I got my camera ready and actually took photos of them throwing our boards around without caring 1 iota. As soon as they saw us up in the terminal with camera in hand, eyeballing them, body language changed immediately.
Nevertheless, one board dinged on the trip over and both boards seriously dinged on the way back...so I would recommend whatever you do....
pad and protect the rails, nose and tail really really really well.
Otherwise, Singapore Airlines were fabulous.

Just wack it in a cover and address it to Shapel Coby,it will make it over there!!!
robbooooooo00000ooooooooobo

I am in the furniture business and one of my suppliers ships his boardroom table tops with thick molded foam sections shapped to the table edge to protect them in transit. They are perfect for board rails. You could hit them with a hammer and it would be fine, yet they are light weight.Travelled allot this year, Metawais, maldives and around oz and not one mark. If you call any of the large joinery companies in your city they should have some lying around.

Roof racks? Or wind down the window and stick all but 6'3 out there?

Hilly, did you fly from a domestic airport?- im flying sydney domestic via brisbane to Honiara and hopefully taking a 10'4" bag and an 8" + paddle and rod on a city flyer interconnections tobrisb/solomans-
im worried about running into "a its your problem" clerk at 6 in the morning and having no one else around to take boards if there not accepted

Thanks Hilly,
i just rang qantas cargo and they reckon getting to brisbane would be ok but cause soloman air only takes A320 planes it wouldnt fit in there hold,
Looks like the spanking jimmy lewis stays home this time!

Has anyone ever got longer than 7 foot on an airbus?

ps go Virgin domestic no problem no excess boycott Jetstar Qantas protest let em know

Crikey
Good tip for anyone taking SUPs on planes hang around a window if you can see the baggage handlers in action ready with the camera.
I had the 9'0" reasonably padded and the surfboard well padded. The 11'2" Tuffskin was nude in the cover with 3 paddles strapped to it on the way back.
Must have been lucky no damage at all.