Several years ago, I picked up the late Gamble Rogers at Washington National airport. He'd actually checked his guitar on Eastern Airlines, an outfit known for its ability to destroy luggage, and I was amazed that he would intrust a guitar to them. But Gamble's case must have been made of quarter-inch steel plate: the sucker weighed about thirty pounds! He claimed that this case, with the help from socks and underwear for packing, was airline-proof. But then there's Tom Paxton's tune, "Thank You, Republic Airlines (For Breaking the Neck Off My Guitar)", so I'm not convinced any case is airline-proof. Baggage smashing machinery has improved over the years. If I were traveling a lot, I'd get the best hard case I could afford. Otherwise, a medium-priced hard case should do the job.