Originally Posted by
yangmusa
Results/Conclusion: Flying with the Brompton is pretty hassle free. Once we were in Japan it was a pleasure to have our bikes there, and the Bromptons were way less hassle to travel with and bring on the train than our friend who brought a Bike Friday and towed the suitcase as a trailer (though obviously if we were doing self supported touring with camping, or just day rides, then the BF probably would have had the edge). My bike got a couple of scratches through to the metal, but otherwise no damage. I'll get some touch up paint and all will be well..
I'm glad people are having luck with gate checking, although I wouldn't, personally, describe your experience as "hassle-free": at the gate at SFO, *four* different officials were involved; at Narita the bikes couldn't be gate checked at all; and at the end of the trip, the bike had several deep scratches. There also seemed to be a certain amount of stress associated with each stage of the check in process (although people do have different tolerances for stress, and mine may be low...).
I'm not sure what the logistics of your trip were, but it seems like it would have been easier to have put the bike in a hard case and checked it. (Which does leave the issue of what to do with the case once you arrived; I know it used to be common for hotels to store luggage, but I'm not sure how common that is anymore, and I don't know whether long term lockers at airports/bus stations/ train stations are still available).