Southwest Airlines UPDATE
Southwest does, in fact, accept cellos on flights. After talking to Southwest corporate customer service, they clarified their cello policy for me. The only cellos that are not allowed are ones that exceed size limits for seat baggage. Pretty much any normal cello case is fine. Unless you’re trying to buy a seat for a bam flight case or something, feel free to continue booking seats for cellos. I flew with my cello on Southwest yesterday and there was no problem at all.
Posted Mar 27, 2019, 7:56 PM UTC
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Good luck, but keep in mind, it's happened several times (no idea about Southwest specifically, but both American Airlines and Jet Blue) that despite talking to a human and being assured that my cello can fly on the seat, once I get to the gate all the rules change.
Very much so. It happens in any line of work, that there can be a discrepancy between a company policy and the service rep's understanding of the policy at the counter.
If the phone service rep gives you an ok, it's wise to anticipate an issue beforehand and have them send you the policy in writing, an email you can screenshot should usually suffice. Have them include direct-line contact information to expedite clarification in case a misunderstanding should arise.
I talked to 5 or 6 customer service reps and they all told me the same thing. Cellos are fine as long as they fit.
I have literally spent an hour with a gate representative, forcing them to call their own customer service to convince them that it's okay to bring a cello onboard. So I agree with you, OP, but I also agree with the commenter above that the rules do change, based on who you're talking to (and what they know in a vacuum).