A musician attempting to bring their guitar on a Southwest Airlines flight out of Sacramento International Airport (SMF) was denied boarding and confronted by police officers over a luggage dispute. Samantha Henson says she has used the same instrument bag for five years without issue in a video shared on her Instagram.
After summoning the police, the gate agent then approached Henson and aggressively told her to “be ashamed,” and there was no way that she was getting the bag on the next flight either. This is directly in contradiction of official Southwest policy, which states that Henson is allowed to bring the instrument and store it overhead as long as a base is available, as the Sacramento Bee confirmed.
No Ryme Or Reason: Denied Boarding Without Cause
A simple search of the Southwest website will produce a page in ‘The Help Center’ that is specifically written to provide instructions for traveling with a musical instrument. The second line of the page states that even if an instrument is larger than the prescribed carry-on dimensions, it may still be brought on board into the cabin if space is available in the overhead bins or under the seats to stow it safely.
SWA defines the limit of a carry-on bag with these dimensions: 24 inches long by 16 inches wide by 10 inches tall. The airline’s policy goes on to say that an instrument checked is subject to standard check bag fees, and customers also have the option of purchasing a seat for an instrument if they so desire.
The gate agent can be seen in a clearly agitated state in the video posted by Henson on Instagram. The agent makes it very clear that she will prevent Henson from boarding the next flight if she does not relinquish the guitar. The agent then goes on to say that Henson will be rescheduled for later and later flights at one point, asking if she wants her to fly 24+ hours later on the “day after tomorrow.”
Below are direct quotes from the SWA agent in the video:
“You should be ashamed of yourself. We want you to go on the next flight… If this happens again tonight, you won’t be able to fly for 24 more hours… You’re not getting that on.”
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A Musician’s Travel Nightmare In Sacramento
The tense standoff in the video is actually from Henson’s second attempt to fly that day. The Sacramento Bee reported that Henson spoke to SWA customer service after being denied boarding on her first flight and received reassurance that she would receive a voucher and compensation after the completion of her flight to Portland International Airport (PDX). However, this was not the end of the travel nightmare for the musician as she was intercepted by the worked-up gate agent.
After waiting for a few hours, Henson recounted that she was standing in line for the latter flight when the SWA agent ‘ran up’ to her and said, “You’re not going to get on that flight. You know that, right?” It was after that the Sacramento County Sheriff’s deputies arrived, and Henson was informed that the agent had apparently claimed she had prevented other passengers from boarding, which Henson denied.
Struggling to make it on time to her friend’s wedding the next day, Henson decided to stay the night in the airport and try again on Friday morning. It wasn’t until the day after her first attempt that she would finally be able to get on an airplane flying to Portland.
Despite the viral popularity of the video, Henson stated that SWA still has not reached out to provide a resolution and compensation for the incredibly difficult experience that she had, solely due to the actions of a single agent that go against the airline’s own policy.
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The carrier has reportedly refused to take responsibility for the incident.
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As a result of the platform that the viral video has given Henson, she has stated that the terrible experience she had is unfortunately not unique for many musicians who fly with their instruments. She personally said that she has not had a past problem bringing her guitar with her on a flight, but also said that such a run-in is “not unique to me.“
Henson is booked on a return flight with SWA later this week, but is now reconsidering. Henson has even been a Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards credit card holder since 2021, but is reassessing after her treatment by the SMF agent last week. Although SWA is her preferred carrier, she is now “worried and nervous” for the return journey after the wrongful boarding denial she suffered in SMF.
