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So I'm taking a relatively long flight and will be traveling with one of my 40k armies, and because I am changing planes at a certain point, I'd like to keep as much of the army in my carry-on as possible. The problem is that the force is chaos and is very vehicle-heavy, and so, for example, the foam in my citadel battle case will have to be be modified considerably before forgefiends etc fit, and even then I can envision some serious damage to the spikes so ubiquitous on chaos models (not to mention the fact that GW's figure cases look pretty much *exactly* like what people in the USA use to transport handguns... camera and fishing equipment too, but you know what I'm saying). I'm thinking about rigging up a small suitcase I have with elaborately cut foam inserts, bubble wrap, rigid plastic/ cardboard, and lots of paper towels to make a sort of careful Tetris-like arrangement in which everything fits one way or another, but was wondering if anybody had any advice regarding making the most of carry on luggage when it comes to transporting specifically oddly shaped GW vehicles (a bunch of rhinos and landraiders would be easy, but I'm taking 8+ chaos vehicles plus a few squads). I'd also be open to purchasing a new case, it's just that I haven't seen anything in person or online that would work well as a carry-on while accommodating all of my models.

Thanks in advance.

If you check your bags, do not- and I repeat DO NOT use United.

Every time I've had to use a United flight, my stuff has been smashed. And I don't mean 'expected small damage'- even with FRAGILE markings on my stuff, it appears that it was deliberately broken.

Bunch of spiky stuff is going to be difficult.

Imho id say check the airlines you plan on using and check their carry on bag size guide. get a cardboard box that will fit make some dividers for each of your tanks. like this


and use pluck foam to keep each tank secure inside it.

then load up your normal dudes in normal pluck foam tray and have it as the top layer.

tape it up like there is no tomorrow and so long as you carry on it should be fine me thinks.

if you have to check in then you are boned.
you may have some luck with those lockable hard cases that battle foam sells but they are pricy AF for a pelican case.

Some options:

Depending on how worried you are about stuff getting smashed, try an aluminium case of some flavor with lots of pick and pluck foam.

You could ship your army ahead of you, using a real package carrier

Put all of the really fiddley models in the carry on, and the normal dudes in the normal luggage.

Bring lots of superglue

My shameless plug for KR Muticase - https://www.krmulticase.com/, although depending on your timeframe,this may take too long.

Ok...
warning one, do not take hallow models if possible. I have seen a model smashed open by airport security. Five of us went through not an issue last guy in the group got pulled over they handed him back pieces of model. The model had won 3 painting awards, their response, "that is nice, open it, or we will".

Warning two, they generally hate magnets. So expect the case to be looked through by a ham fisted knuckle dragger. I have had to do repairs on 6 of my 10 trips after airport security.

I use a pelican 1510 case, take as carry on, magnetized trays, with base cut outs. Never had a model shifting or breaking. Keep in mind the case was/is FAA carry on compliant but double check the airline. Also bring a cheap notebook with a change of clothing stuffed in the bag.

Easy situation to handle, just stick your models in the baggage compartment. 40k models in boxes are fairly bulky, but don't weigh all that much so they shouldn't be too disruptive to your weight and balance calculations unless you're already flying right at the margin. If you're worried about stuff shifting in flight you could wrap the whole pile in a blanket or something, just to give the pile a little more stability. But standard gaming cases should be fine for protection unless you plan on crashing, at which point you've probably got bigger things to worry about.

Oh wait, you mean flying on the airlines, not on your own plane? You're screwed. See if you can rent an army at your destination?

I recently flew my models with a Battlefoam Air case as a carry on. Had no issues and nothing broke. I had some flimsy finecast weapons too and they were fine.

I flew my primaris to Guam last month. Put them in my old GW case inside a suitcase. Had zero issues.

You can skip out on the ultra-rough handling that airline baggage receives and instead get standard abuse that normal shipped items receive by just shipping it. It lets you avoid potential BS from security - like Clownshoes mentioned too.

I'd suggest bubble-wrapping the models individually - roll them in bubble wrap, tape it shut. Stick them in a box - ship it to your destination. Make sure it's a solid box that can withstand something heavy being tossed on top of it. If your models don't fill up the box, add wadded up newspaper. Bouncing around is what causes the most damage - usually due to rough handling.

Don't bother labeling anything as fragile. It just makes the package a target for disgruntled workers.

I recently sold a fairly large well painted pewter and resin collection of minis - some quite fragile - and only 1 model lost an arm. Faster shipping methods have fewer switches (less handling) so are less likely to be damaged.

I've found that first-class packages survive more frequently too, but there's a weight requirement - under 1 lb. The first-class packages travel together I assume. Since they're al <1lb, they really dont damage each other.

Once you get > 1 lb, your package can go Priority 2 day mail, but your package may be stuck with 70lb boxes of rocks and such.