Recommendations? 58cm Trek Checkpoint. Mostly flying Southwest Airlines in western states.
ToPeak PackGo X has been flawless for us!
Probably around 40 flights so far, got two of them. Packs integrated and non integrated just fine (SL7 + new SuperSix Evo)
Got inbuilt stand, semi rigid so bike is safe but wont crack if dropped, wheeled standing up so itās easy to move around at the airport, fits easily into cars 
I replaced mine with a Scicon Aerocomfort this year. Both are fine but I started travelling with bikes that have integrated cable routing through the headtube and didnāt want to deal with trying to get the bars in sideways anymore.
I think I originally went with EVOC because I was worried about how wide the Scicon would be, but I find the Scicon much more manageable because itās a lot shorter nose to tail. Iāve never had a situation where I couldnāt fit the Scicon into a space that I felt like the Evoc could have (rental cars, taxis, doorways, hotels, etc etc.) The 4x swivel casters make Scicon a lot easier to manouvre through airports too (I always ended up putting Evoc on a baggage cart sideways so I could fit other cases on at the same time, but then the cart wonāt fit through the spacing between anti-car bollards).
Evocās wheels would probably be more robust if you needed to wheel it along a gravel track or rough tarmac for an extended period of time though.
Scicon packs down better for storage than Evoc if youāre putting it in a room with other storage stuff. Evoc probably better if you need to store it under a bed (folds marginally flatter but is longer).
I feel more comfortable packing Scicon with less additional padding than I did with Evoc - I think itās overall a much simpler and quicker packing and unpacking process. Not just because you leave the bars on but also because thereās just less finessing involved in making it feel secure and locked down.
Iām on a much smaller bike (54cm Tarmac and similar size gravel bikes, 713mm saddle height) so the following might be pretty different in your experience:
I think I have to lower my saddle in Evoc but not Scicon (canāt recall for sure). Definitely donāt need to remove it in either.
In the EVOC bag my short wheelbase means the rear axle support slides really far forward and leaves a lot of the bagās support frame unsupported at the back of the bag. After a few trips the aluminum beam in that frame had been bent pretty badly. I wrote to EVOC and they sent me a replacement piece for free. Iāve since planed down a piece of wood to stick inside that bit of the aluminum to add some extra support there. Oh and I bought a plastic box aluminum end plug to stick in the open end of that beam - the edge was sharp enough that it had started cutting into the fabric of the bag a bit. Pretty sure EVOC have changed the design of that support frame entirely since then anyway, so maybe not relevant to a new buyer.
In the Scicon bag you stash your extras in a bag that fits between the fork and BB. This can make the thing really front heavy if youāre not careful and the bag will tip forward pretty easily. With my wheelbase the tip of the fork legs just so happens to land in the very tiny gap between the front of the rubberised skid plate from the bagās base and the bottom of the padding insert for the soft material bit of the bag. On a recent trip baggage handlers clearly tipped the bag forward and then dragged it, grinding a tiny hole in the fabric and taking the paint off the tip of one of my fork legs. Am still in the process of getting them to pay for the repair. Iāll maybe look for a way to modify/reinforce that particular bit of the bag in the future though.
Itās been on my list to sell the EVOC but thereās part of me that wants to keep it in case I decide to fly with an MTB at some point - pretty sure smaller size MTBs will go in the Evoc but I canāt imagine it would work too well in the Scicon.
Also: My EVOC is the standard non-pro version and then I bought the internal axle mounting frame thing at a later date. This makes it the same as the Pro in every way EXCEPT for the swivel wheel on the front. I have to lift the front of the bag to wheel it and actually thatās enough of a pain that I wish Iād bought the pro version to begin with. I wouldnāt trust the bag without the internal frame thing anyway, so Iād say definitely donāt waste your time trying to save money by going to the base model of EVOC.
Oh, another small frame/short wheelbase issue: in the Evoc bag the hubs of your wheels are meant to locate roughly in the middle of the rear triangle, but on most of my bikes they end up aligning almost directly on the seat stays. Itās never been an issue for me yet but I imagine if the bag were ever to be laid on its side and then have too much weight stacked (or dropped) on top of it the resulting damage would be crushed seatstays before anything else.
How do you plan to get around Southwestās baggage policy?
The items listed below will be accepted as checked baggage for a $75 each-way charge. In addition to the items specifically described below, we also accept fragile items; previously damaged items; improperly or overpacked baggage; items packed in soft-sided cases; and unprotected/unpacked items only with a limited release of liability. Customers are not entitled to reimbursement or compensation for any and all damage in situations where a limited release of liability applies.
- Bicycles (defined as non-motorized and having a single seat) properly packed in a bicycle box or hard case from 51 to 100 pounds in weight or 63 to 80 inches in total dimensions. Pedals and handlebars must be removed and packaged in protective materials so as not to be damaged by or cause damage to other baggage. Bicycles packaged in cardboard or soft-sided cases will be transported as limited release items. Bicycles over 100 pounds in weight and/or 80 inches in total dimensions cannot be checked as baggage and can only be shipped as Cargo if the Customer is a Known Shipper.
Iām not aware of any bike bag that is under 80"
A icon bags were 50% off last weekā¦.you might want to check and see if that deal is still going.
My buddy has an EVOC bag and loves it. No issues.
For a more affordable option, I got a Speed Hound bag last year. Maybe not quite as nice as EVOC or SCICON, but it has been great. It has made 4 international trips and other domestic ones and I have never had an issue.
My sonās XXL (62 cm) Canyon Aeroad and Inflite have worked well with the EVOC. He mostly flies United to and from Colorado Springs or Denver
I will add one more 
for the SciCon Aerocomfort 3.0.
I donāt care? Got a Southwest business card and personal card. By March 2024 (3 months) I will have earned a companion pass good until December 2025. Plan to do some traveling and bringing my bike on some trips. Paying $150 round trip is cheaper than what I paid to rent a gravel bike for 2 days at BWR Arizona this year.
Any pics to share?
The Scicon Aerocomfort 3.0 is on sale (50% off) right now.
But it states they will not accept any bag over 80 inches(which is every bike bag that Iām aware of). See Below.
Bicycles over 100 pounds in weight and/or 80 inches in total dimensions cannot be checked as baggage and can only be shipped as Cargo if the Customer is a Known Shipper.
The Scion is almost 94"
The EVOC Pro is over 105"
Short of full disassembly, removed fork/seatpost, I donāt see how you could get a bike bag/case under 80"
Guess Iām calling Southwest and clarifying, and asking about shipping as cargo. In my early days in technical sales (early 90s), I used to ship a computer and monitor as cargo. And I traveled a lot and gave demos, remember the old routine well.
Southwest was particularly rough about bike bags since it does not fit under their size. I would not want to get somewhere and be told I couldnāt fly my bike home.
American, Delta, and United are the only three Iāll consider now when flying with a bike.
Please share what you find, This has been my limiting factor in ever considering using Southwest. Iād also suggest getting what ever info in writing and carrying it with you. IME, regardless of airline, Gate Agents/baggage agents, donāt know their own companies policies and will make stuff up.
Iāve also had great experiences with Alaska Airlines(I think they were the first one to not charge a ābike feeā)
30 years ago shipping cargo did not involve gate agents or baggage agents.
Maybe Iām back to renting bikes, or buying a cheap used bike and leaving it at my brother-in-laws in Phoenix. Might take my Giant Escape and do that in January.
Those SW dimensions are odd, because of course if they are linear inches nothing would work. It would seem odd to say that you can ship a bike, but then publish a size limit that no bike box would meet. I wonder if they might mean max length/width dimensions?
I have an older Scicon hard case, that I use for my 58cm trek Emonda (with seat mast, which is the tightest factor). Iāve done a dry run with my 58 checkpoint, and it looks like it wonāt be an issue even though the frame is a bit longer, but the seat post is fully removable.
I would love a way not to remove the bars, but I would rather deal with that than go with a soft sided case. I think if I got a new one Iād look hard at the Pakgo as well, it looks good. But I would definitely stick with a hard sided case.
And I speak as someone who works around planes all the time, and did my time as a baggage handler many years ago.
I flew SW with an Aerocomfort 3.0 earlier this year. They didnāt measure and didnāt seem the least bit bothered. Didnāt even charge me the $75 one of the directions of my round-trip.
Itās always 50% off.
Probikekit used to have it even cheaper, but they stopped carrying them.
Slight correction: itās always 40% off. This is actually a seasonal sale right now for 50%.
Also it wasnāt easy to navigate to the correct page but somehow I found a bunch of bundle discounts. I got mine with the ārain bagā (really just a small duffel for shoes, gloves, gilets, etc.) which has been really useful for going to local races and such. It also came with a bunch of other small accessories like packing bricks and a shoe bag. Pretty sure it was the same cost as the bike bag and rain bag (at 40% off), so it wasnāt any cheaper than buying the two items separately but included the accessories for free.