Airline pays out rock star after guitar breaks in transit

Virgin has compensated a member of the band Dragon after his guitar broke in transit.

Guitarist Bruce Reid travelled with Virgin on December 22, only to find his instrument wrecked.

Bruce told Justin Smith he values the guitar — a Gretsch 6120 — at $5000, and Virgin eventually agreed to compensate him in full.

“As of yesterday (they weren’t going to) but this morning, yes,” he said.

“I really think it was social media concern that made Virgin re-think what they were going to do.”

Bruce said it was “one of the nicest guitars you can play”.

“It was a particularly beautiful-looking guitar,” he said.

“Everywhere I went people would stop me when they saw the guitar and go ‘mate, that’s a beautiful guitar’.”

Dragon, whose hits include Rain and Are You Old Enough, are touring Australia and New Zealand in early 2019.

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