Juno-nominated band Rum Ragged spent the weekend entertaining audiences in London, but their return flight from the United Kingdom certainly leaves a sour note.

The band’s Air Canada flight from London to Toronto, en route to home, cost them not only a broken guitar but the airline also lost another instrument, a bouzouki, the same one Air Canada’s staff damaged just three months ago.

“On the advice of your company (Air Canada) we always gate check our instruments for safety and security that they won’t be lost,” the band noted in a social media post Monday night. “Please do the right thing and take responsibility for your brutal handling of these instruments. Do better.”

The case used was a MONO M80, one they switched to after their custom hardshell case was punctured and destroyed along with another bozouki in 2018. “The MONO cases were allowed to go through the gate check process, with the possibility of being a carry on and were likely to be handled with more care this way,” the band added, noting MONO Cases are used throughout the industry by many touring artists.

Rum Ragged actually used this same case on five other airlines throughout the UK and EU over the last four months. All airlines gate checked the MONO case and placed the guitar under with baggage. No damage was ever reporter.

The band is asking Air Canada to take responsibility.

The award-winning traditional/folk group was short-listed for a Juno in 2021 for their album, The Thing About Fish. Originally consisting of accordionist Aaron Collis and singer/guitarist Mark Manning, the band released its self-titled debut album in 2016. They followed up with the album The Hard Times and a holiday-themed album titled Rum Ragged at Christmas in 2018, with new supporting members Anthony Chafe on bodhran and Michael Boone on bass and banjo. Chafe and Boone were replaced by fiddler Colin Grant and multi-instrumentalist Zack Nash in early 2019.

In addition to their Juno Award nomination, the band received two Canadian Folk Music nominations, including for New/Emerging Artist of the Year at the 16th Canadian Folk Music Awards. They’ve been nominated for several ECMA’s and won 11 MusicNL awards.