US Airline Bans Violins On Flight, So Musos Stage Performance On Tarmac

US classical three-piece Time For Three put on an impromptu protest on the tarmac of a Charlotte airport this week after they were told their violins were not allowed on-board their US Airways flight.

So, band members Nicholas Kendall and Zach De Pue did what any rationally minded people would do: one started playing away madly on the tarmac while the other filmed.

Although the audio is admittedly pretty terrible (to be fair, they're playing next to a giant plane), it's the images - of the baseball cap-wearing De Pue fiddling away like a nutbar while an airport employee nonchalantly hangs out nearby - that make this really stick out. Oh, and the injustice, etc.

The two-thirds of Time For Three were on their way to Nature Festival in Fayetteville, Arkansas, when they faced the setback. "The captain and crew told us that our violins were not allowed on the flight! They literally left us alone on the tarmac without any direction. Amazing!" Kendall wrote on YouTube. "Are violins dangerous? It's hard enough to make it as a classical musician. Cut us some slack, PLEASE!!!"

According to The Daily Mail, the airline says its company policy is to allow instruments either as checked luggage or carry-on, but it is ultimately a choice for the flight crew, who - despite the demonstration from the musicians - felt there was not enough room to fit violins as carry-on luggage.

The band members were eventually able to make their way to their destination.

You can watch the video below, which features the heartbreaking physical comedy of a US Airways employee coming out to retrieve a piece of luggage and straight-up cold-shouldering the performers right in front of him. So, you know, how people usually treat buskers.