Mike,

It really all depends on the individual airline representative etc. I travelled with a 30.06 for many years without any problems........ but last year, we had a Brit client who called BA a few days before he travelled to confirm he'd be allowed to travel with firearms and they flatly refused to let him take his .308.

I even called the duty Senior Risk Assessor at LHR and even pointed out that just a few weeks before, they had taken the entire UK shooting team with a bunch of 308s on one of their flights.......the bugger still flatly refused to let the rifle travel.

I'd bet a pound to a pinch of the brown stuff that the rule will get forgotten come the Olympics though!