Violinist Tor Frømyhr was allowed to take his violin on board the Frankfurt-Abu Dhabi flight only after four young musicians intervened

A stand-off between staff of Etihad Airways and an Australian string quartet has resulted in a victory for musicians who want to bring instruments on board flights.

Earlier this week in Frankfurt, violinist and lecturer at ANU School of Music Tor Frømyhr was told while boarding that he could not bring his violin on board an Etihad flight to Abu Dhabi.

“As my boarding pass went through the scanner, a message appeared on the screen that said: ‘Carrying violin, not approved to travel’ and I was asked to wait to one side after being told that my violin did not fit requirements,” says Frømyhr.

Frømyhr says he had assumed he was safe with Etihad after receiving assurance from the airline that small violin cases were indeed allowed. “I can only contemplate that I was on the system because I had sought prior approval, which was probably a foolish thing to do.”

After an hour of wrangling with Etihad staff, Frømyhr convinced them to allow the violin on board, but only after all four members of the Childers Street Quartet – students of...