Aer Lingus refuse tandems?!

[Susan The Math]

Hi,

in the process of planning a cycling tour in Ireland, we were told that Aer Lingus categorically do
not carry tandems on all European flights. Can this possibly be true? In our case it was the
connection Geneva-Dublin. If any of you have experiences or hints to share, please do!

Susan Wakeman

- replace web by my first name if emailing me -

 

[Peter Clinch]

Susan the Math Treasure wrote:

> in the process of planning a cycling tour in Ireland, we were told that Aer Lingus categorically
> do not carry tandems on all European flights. Can this possibly be true?

Don't know the specifics of their small print, but worth checking. For example, ScotRail won't carry
them according to policy, and wouldn't a while ago when a friend needed them to, but it turned out
they would carry a bloody great cardboard box big enough to put a tandem in... one trip to the local
DIY shed later, problem solved!

Might not be that easy though, so you might consider something like S&S Couplings to break it into
two (see http://kinetics.org.uk/html/s_s.html) but they ain't cheap :-(

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch University of Dundee Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Medical Physics, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email protected]
http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

 

[Paul Allen]

On Wed, 23 Apr 2003 10:48:11 +0100, Peter Clinch
<[email protected]> wrote:

>> in the process of planning a cycling tour in Ireland, we were told that Aer Lingus categorically
>> do not carry tandems on all European flights. Can this possibly be true?

I can understand this - they are quite long aren't they? Do they carry normal bikes? Maybe you could
hire a tandem here?

>Don't know the specifics of their small print, but worth checking. For example, ScotRail won't
>carry them according to policy

Again, do they carry bikes? Is it just the length of a tandem that puts em off?

 

[Tony Raven]

Susan the Math Treasure <[email protected]> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> in the process of planning a cycling tour in Ireland, we were told that Aer Lingus categorically
> do not carry tandems on all European flights. Can this possibly be true? In our case it was the
> connection Geneva-Dublin. If any of you have experiences or hints to share, please do!
>

I have flown with two tandems and a BOB trailer with BA and SAS but not Aer Lingus. My advice always
is to write or phone Customer Relations ahead of time and tell them what you want to do. They will
tell you whether or not they carry tandems and how many - sometimes the size or shape of the hold
can be a limit. Make sure if they say it will be OK that you get them to confirm it in writing to
you. This last part is most important - don't expect the check in staff to know the rules about
something as obscure as a tandem. Showing them a letter saying its OK from higher up in the company
usually smoothes away any problems. When you make your booking make sure that you have the agent
enter a note on your booking file saying you will be travelling with a tandem bicycle and get a
print out of it.

Flying with tandems is fine but its worth a little bit of preparation ahead of time because many
check in staff will be dealing with a tandem for the first time ever.

Tony

--
http://www.raven-family.com

"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable man persists in trying to
adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man." -- George
Bernard Shaw

 

[Peter Clinch]

Paul Allen wrote: [ScotRail]
> Again, do they carry bikes? Is it just the length of a tandem that puts em off?

And I quote (with a little snippage for brevity, rather than active distortion): "SCOTRAIL
WELCOMES CYCLISTS

ScotRail welcomes cyclists on all our services and taking the bike is now free. Increased cycle
capacity is available on many routes.

Some services require reservations and these can be made any time (up to 2 hours before your train
departs) in the 8 week period before you travel for daytime services and the 12 week period before
you travel for Sleepers.

Tandems, tricycles, cycle trailers, motorcycles, mopeds, motorised cycles and scooters are not
carried on any of our services."

So perhaps it should read something like "Scotrail welcomes cyclists, but not necessarily if they
have their cycles with them" ;-/ <sigh>

You'll have to ask them why (there is a feedback form at http://www.scotrail.co.uk/ if you want to).
I don't want to ask about my 'bent, in case they come up with the wrong answer and I don't have any
recourse to waving their own documents at them right there and then. Also appears to be the case
(according to a cycle/train commuting friend) that the application of things like capacity and
reservation rules is somewhat dependent on whether the particular train staff are jobsworth
dickheads or Reasonable People.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch University of Dundee Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Medical Physics, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email protected]
http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

 

[GearóId Ó Laoi]

Aer Lingus do carry bikes and USUALLY if you act vague, they don't charge. I've flown bikes with
Aer Lingus more than 20 times. I know nothing about tandems though. What you could do is hire bikes
in Ireland.

 

[Gary Knighton]

On Wed, 23 Apr 2003 10:48:11 +0100, contributor Peter Clinch had scribed:
> Don't know the specifics of their small print, but worth checking. For example, ScotRail won't
> carry them according to policy, and wouldn't a while ago when a friend needed them to, but it
> turned out they would carry a bloody great cardboard box big enough to put a tandem in... one trip
> to the local DIY shed later, problem solved!
>

Do ScotRail trains have the space in the area used for cycle storage. Tandem aren't exactly short.
The only ScotRail trains that I am aware of that are capable of taking tandems are the sleeper
services to London, not much use for a tour around Galloway and Ayrshire.

Gary

--

The email address is for newsgroups purposes only and therefore unlikely to be read.

For contact via email use my real name with an underscore separator at the domain of CompuServe.

 

[Peter Clinch]

Gary Knighton wrote:

> Do ScotRail trains have the space in the area used for cycle storage.

Depends on the trains. Some, especially older models like the Sprinters (sic), do. The one that took
me from Glasgow Central to Prestwick did too, or would've had if it wasn't full of rucksacks and
suitcases bound for Norway. But the more modern "better" trains might give problems.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch University of Dundee Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Medical Physics, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net [email protected]
http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/