Are garment bags allowed as carry-ons
 

Airlines used to allow garment bags as carry-ons. However, now most airlines have specific dimensions that carry-ons must meet. Southwestern's are 10x16x24; American's is 46 total linear inches. Our current garment bag, when folded and lightly packed, is 8x20x24, exceeding both airlines' limits.
Have you noticed if airlines bend their own rules to still allow folded garment bags as carry-ons these days? I'm particularly interested in Southwest, but information about all airlines would be useful.

At this time, and other current circumstances, I wouldn't press my luck.

I haven't seen people with carry on garment bags lately, but I don't travel Southwestern.

I just flew Southwest and someone had a garment bag carryon, but that was a REAL garment bag (short one), not one of those suitcases that calls itself a garment bag but is really a suitcase.

This was a garment bag that covered a suitjacket, fancy suit or something like that, and just basically formed a protective cover over it. I imagine the person had some kind of special occasion and one special garment they didn't want to get messed up. I think she then just laid the garment bag in an overhead bin on top of the other bags.

What you want to take on board isn't really like that, but a suitcase, basically.

Check in it and don't press your luck or assume SW is going to bend rules for you. You already know that it exceeds the size limits.

I am talking about a bag just big enough for one suit and one dress.

I take one often, last time two weeks ago on Delta. Can't say I've brought one on SWA but my wife brought a dress on SWA and they even let her hang it in the closet. Just tell them it's for a wedding if they fuss...

As a matter of fact, it's for her son's wedding.

I just took my wedding dress on a Continental flight at the beginning of August. They stored it in the first class closet, and except for carrying that heavy thing through the airport it was no problem.

I'm not sure if rules have changed after last weeks airport fiasco, but as long as your bag isn't huge I can't see them giving you a hard time.

Is there a legitimate reason why you can not check your garment bag?

As I mentioned, the garment bag will contain my girlfriend's mother-of-the-groom dress (and my suit), and she does not trust the airline to not crush, damage or lose the bag.

I noticed a garment bag on the Internet that folds in three, instead of only in half. It would fit small enough to qualify as carry on. Has anyone tried one of these?

I requested a "legitimate reason."

Airlines lose less than .01% of checked luggage, and a small garment bag is more likely to get man-handled in an over-crowded overhead bin anyway.

But a sturdy, quality garment bag and check it. Your clothes will thank you for it.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/biztra...ags-usat_x.htm

Based on a USA Today article, the rate of lost luggage is 40 times or more as great as an earlier respondent guessed.
Maybe he is referring to the percentage that are permanently lost.
However, what good is a special occasion dress after the occasion? We know someone whose wedding suit was lost. He had to buy a suit (at full price) and get it altered in a day and a half.