I know exactly how you feel.
When I flew (to Provence too coincidentally) last year, I was debating whether to take the carbon 'best bike' or the alu one.
I was thinking I'd much prefer riding the carbon one, but if one was to be wrecked by the baggage-manglers I'd rather it was the alu one so perhaps I ought to take that one...?
I decided to think positive (which would be nicer to ride ?) rather than negative (which would I rather they damaged ?) and took the carbon one - but with lots of bubble-wrap and pipe-lag in the bike bag, and my fingers-crossed !
At Nice airport two bikes came-out first on the conveyor. Another guy's bike simply in a big plastic bag with the pedals and bars turned round, plus mine in its bag. Both look like they'd been placed carefully on the conveyor rather than dumped on it, and there was then a bit of a delay before the suitcases started coming round.
Coming back to Liverpool however, the bike bag came-out in the middle of a big pile of holdalls and suitcases, all dusty and scuffed.
The bike was fine though, both ways.
(although we did meet an Australian couple in the bike shop in France trying to hire a bike for the girl, her alu bike looked like someone had tried to tie a knot in the top-tube, it was bent and curled and twisted not just dented, and Air France were not being very helpful...)