Traveling With Your Crossbow

Every opportunity that presents itself to hunt is not always going to be close to home. There may be some times where you will need to travel with your hunting gear. I feel that I am similar to most people, in that I want to ensure that the crossbow that I spent my hard earned money on is going to be safe. Since crossbows are weapons, there are certain things that you have to do as you are preparing for your flight.

Check airplane guidelines before bringing your crossbow

The first thing you need to do is check the guidelines for the airline that you will be flying on. They will all vary to some degree, but every time I have flown with my gear, there has been an added fee for my hunting equipment. I attribute this to the fact that I do not break apart my crossbow, so the overall size is usually bigger then the sizes that some airlines let fly for free.  If size is your concern, you might want to break apart your crossbow. I have heard of hunters that break their crossbows down and put in into separate gun cases with no problems whatsoever. I usually do one of two things. Since I purchased a crossbow case a while back, most of the time I just bite my tongue and bring it along with me. Before I had my crossbow carrying case, I would just break my crossbow down and ship it in parts to my destination. This was a lot more work, but substantially cheaper that flying it out with me. I didn't want to deal with the potential for mishaps from the shipping company so I typically bring it with me.

Most hunting equipment is treated like a firearm

This means that they are most likely going to inspect it. I have not been on a flight yet, that has not required inspection. It is best that you have all of your gear organized so this process goes quickly and smoothly. I have a PVC pipe arrow tube that I made to hold my arrows to make this process go a lot smoother.Placing my arrows in this tube keeps the fletching safe, and it allows me to throw them in the case with the crossbow. If you are going to get a crossbow case, make sure that it is the best crossbow case that you can afford.  During the flight, your crossbow will most likely get thrown around by the loading staff. That is why you do not want to skimp on the crossbow case. There are countless stories from hunters who have had broken stocks, scopes, etc. If this happens, your hunting trip will most likely be ruined. If you invest in a quality crossbow case you can keep it safe from damage. If you follow these rules then your life will prove to be easier and much more enjoyable, and your hunting trip an experience to remember.