Virgin tycoon Sir Richard Branson is criticised for charging musicians to carry instruments Sir Richard Branson made his fortune from selling the music of such rebelllious rock bands as the Sex Pistols. Now, a fully paid-up member of the Establishment, the tycoon has been accused of turning his back on musicians by charging them to carry their instruments on his airlines. "Don't you think it is unbelievable?" says Hugh Cornwell, the lead singer of The Stranglers, the punk rock group best known for such hits as Golden Brown and No More Heroes. Branson, who made his fortune out of Virgin Records, has now, essentially, declared war on musicians by charging them to take their guitars away. Musicians don't fly everywhere first class. When they are starting out, they travel the world with their guitars and very little else. Now, Branson is turning his back on the people that made him rich in the first place. A lot of musicians might stop using them out of principle. Virgin Atlantic insists that it has the same rules on musical instruments as other airlines. "Virgin Atlantic, along with other scheduled carriers, charges for additional baggage above the passenger allowance," says a spokesman. The allowance varies depending on what class the passenger is travelling in. Passengers carrying musical instruments on board can choose to check them in, paying excess baggage where applicable, or take them on board as carry-on hand luggage. If the instrument is too large to be taken on board as hand luggage - the largest instrument allowed is a cello - passengers are able to put the instrument in a seat. For this, Virgin Atlantic charges the applicable published airfare without the taxes. Last year, musicians threatened to boycott Ryanair over its policy of charging even for small instruments that can fit easily into overhead lockers. Julian Lloyd Webber, who has campaigned on the issue, said: "This indiscriminate victimisation of musicians has to stop. As a cellist, I am used to being charged a full fare for my cello, even when the plane is half empty, but to expect a violinist to do the same - when their instrument can safely be stowed in an overhead locker - is just plain greedy.