Cebu Pacific has defended its handling of musicians traveling with violins after members of the Manila Symphony Orchestra (MSO) said they were stopped at a boarding gate and told their instrument cases could not be brought into the cabin.
The dispute became public on June 17, 2026, when MSO production manager Rona De Leon posted on Facebook that the budget carrier refused to allow violins as carry-on baggage and required the cases to be checked in instead, a policy she said was presented as “non-negotiable.” According to the Manila Times, nine orchestra members were halted at the gate because their hard-shell violin cases exceeded the airline’s cabin baggage dimensions. De Leon said the orchestra had traveled by Cebu Pacific and other carriers many times without facing the same restriction, describing it as the first such incident the group had encountered.
In its statement, Cebu Pacific said all passengers carrying violins were ultimately able to board and travel as scheduled. Cases that met the hand-carry size limit of 56cm x 36cm x 23cm were allowed onboard, while for instruments that exceeded the limit, the airport team had passengers remove the violins from their cases. The empty cases were checked through free of charge, and the passengers hand-carried the instruments into the cabin.
The airline noted that none of the passengers had booked a musical instrument allowance under its CEB Special Baggage program before the flight. It advised passengers carrying instruments that do not fit as hand-carry items to purchase the allowance, and said instruments checked in must be placed in hard-shell cases, as soft cases or gig bags will not be accepted.
Despite the gate delay, the orchestra confirmed it proceeded to Puerto Princesa, Palawan, where the MSO Symphonic Explorations tour was scheduled to hold a free orchestral workshop and concert on June 18. Founded in 1926, the Manila Symphony Orchestra is among the oldest orchestras in Asia and marked its centennial earlier this year.
The episode drew wide reaction online, with some commenters siding with the musicians over the special handling that fragile, high-value instruments require, and others noting that airlines enforce baggage size and safety limits passengers are expected to follow.
