AirTags Avert Yet Another Potential Baggage Disaster

[kangarooflyer88]

Ever since Apple's AirTags were released, I have been using them with my checked luggage and I must say they have been a worthwhile investment. Seeing where the bags were gave me peace of mind that my bags arrived with me in a destination. Crucially, they have proven to be indefensible over the past 3 trips I took, where the airline has somehow managed to lose the bags I had checked.

Most recently, I was flying from Curitiba, Brazil back to Toronto, Canada an itinerary which involved connecting in São Paulo and Miami. Making matters worse, although the trip was booked directly via American, it included a segment operated by partner Azul. Although Azul has an interline with American, there is always a risk with a non-alliance partner that luggage does not get smoothly transferred over. Checking in at Curitiba, I inquired about whether my luggage would be checked through to Toronto and was advised that it would. Indeed, when I arrived in São Paulo I could see that Azul transferred my luggage over to American as I arrived in Terminal 1 yet my baggage was already in terminal 3 (the international terminal). So far so good. I board my flight to Miami and when I arrive in Miami I check Find My. My baggage shows up as still being in São Paulo:



Well, there's nothing I can do now about that. I end up taking my connecting flight on to Toronto, and once at the baggage claim area I immediately head for the baggage desk to report my missing bag. I get a reference number and am told they'd be in touch (they mention their tracking reports its in Miami). Two days pass by and I notice my bag is still in São Paulo. Frustrated that no action is taken, I call American only to be told that their tracking indicates that the bag arrived with me in Toronto. I tell them I reported the bag missing and am looking at Find My and it's still showing it's in São Paulo. The following day I get contacted by the airline double confirming my luggage and 2 days later I am reunited with my bag.

Moral of the story: consider investing in a tracking device like an AirTag or a Tile. Despite having my bag lost several times, I was never stressed as I always knew where the bag was. I would be curious to learn about whether others use these tracking devices (and what device in particular)? What has your experience been with them? Do you have any tips to share?

Here's one tip I have for AirTags, place them directly inside your bag and skip the AirTag straps that go along the handle of the bag. The reason being is anything attached externally to the suitcase will get chewed up by the baggage equipment at airports.

-RooFlyer88

 

[p--and--t]

Ever since Apple's AirTags were released, I have been using them with my checked luggage and I must say they have been a worthwhile investment. Seeing where the bags were gave me peace of mind that my bags arrived with me in a destination. Crucially, they have proven to be indefensible over the past 3 trips I took, where the airline has somehow managed to lose the bags I had checked.

Most recently, I was flying from Curitiba, Brazil back to Toronto, Canada an itinerary which involved connecting in São Paulo and Miami. Making matters worse, although the trip was booked directly via American, it included a segment operated by partner Azul. Although Azul has an interline with American, there is always a risk with a non-alliance partner that luggage does not get smoothly transferred over. Checking in at Curitiba, I inquired about whether my luggage would be checked through to Toronto and was advised that it would. Indeed, when I arrived in São Paulo I could see that Azul transferred my luggage over to American as I arrived in Terminal 1 yet my baggage was already in terminal 3 (the international terminal). So far so good. I board my flight to Miami and when I arrive in Miami I check Find My. My baggage shows up as still being in São Paulo:

View attachment 439099

Well, there's nothing I can do now about that. I end up taking my connecting flight on to Toronto, and once at the baggage claim area I immediately head for the baggage desk to report my missing bag. I get a reference number and am told they'd be in touch (they mention their tracking reports its in Miami). Two days pass by and I notice my bag is still in São Paulo. Frustrated that no action is taken, I call American only to be told that their tracking indicates that the bag arrived with me in Toronto. I tell them I reported the bag missing and am looking at Find My and it's still showing it's in São Paulo. The following day I get contacted by the airline double confirming my luggage and 2 days later I am reunited with my bag.

Moral of the story: consider investing in a tracking device like an AirTag or a Tile. Despite having my bag lost several times, I was never stressed as I always knew where the bag was. I would be curious to learn about whether others use these tracking devices (and what device in particular)? What has your experience been with them? Do you have any tips to share?

Here's one tip I have for AirTags, place them directly inside your bag and skip the AirTag straps that go along the handle of the bag. The reason being is anything attached externally to the suitcase will get chewed up by the baggage equipment at airports.

-RooFlyer88

Yep. Aeromexico told us (after reporting missing bag on arrival into Vancouver), that it never got loaded in Cuba and they would try and find it. I showed my phone to the operator and said how come it was in the Mexico city baggage handling area half hour ago

 

[wendlle]

been using airtags for a fair while now and find them great. I've used them in luggage, in our stroller at disney world and even on my kids embedded in bracelets.

I always hide them pretty well in the luggage, that way if someone actually steals it, they won't find it easily to throw it away.

 

[DC3]

Ever since Apple's AirTags were released, I have been using them with my checked luggage and I must say they have been a worthwhile investment.

Yes, they work.

 

[antycbr]

Yep. Aeromexico told us (after reporting missing bag on arrival into Vancouver), that it never got loaded in Cuba and they would try and find it. I showed my phone to the operator and said how come it was in the Mexico city baggage handling area half hour ago

It’s things like this that must make baggage services staff very nervous. The IATA systems for bag tracing are so out of date.

 

[Human]

Yes, they work.

They work almost all the time. It's good to be aware of their limitations -- they need to be in range of an internet-connected Apple device or (I think) a known network in order to update their location.

The first time I used AirTags was on a Europe trip a few years ago which involved a short flight betweeen Copenhagen and Paris. We landed at CDG, walked to the luggage carousel, and I checked "Find My" for the location of the luggage: it was still showing as being in CPH. Find My continued to show my luggage as being in CPH even as I saw it on the carousel in CDG.

Yes, I should have checked the timestamp which no doubt would have said something like "2 hours ago". And I have to admit that nothing like that has happened on my umpteen trips in the 3+years since then.

But the lesson is: before you panic about your luggage being left behind, check the timestamp!

 

[anat0l]

There's two blessings here: one is the AirTag that helped you astutely keep tabs on your bag at all times, much better than any bag tracing system could.

The second is that your bag didn't get raided / plundered as it passed through Brazil.

I've considered an AirTag, but I'm an Android user. Tile looks great but its network will never match that of Apple's due to the latter's sheer number of devices in the Find My network. I'm almost tempted to get a separate, cheap iPhone solely to facilitate using an AirTag.

 

[DC3]

… they need to be in range of an internet-connected Apple device or (I think) a known network in order to update their location.

Good point. We assume that people know how they work, but I guess some may be a bit naive. Just a matter of being patient for connections to occur, but they are working.

 

[Flyfrequently]

We have Air tags as Mr Flyfrequently is Apple.
One goes in his guitar case, other for suitcase, invaluable when luggage was somewhere in Lisbon.

I am Samsung so for the Android users out there, just purchased this


with Telstra points (22,700) from Telstra Rewards site - had to use them by end of April
Will be using it later this week for MEL-BNE-VLI.

 

[kangarooflyer88]

It’s things like this that must make baggage services staff very nervous. The IATA systems for bag tracing are so out of date.

Unsure about nervous. It certainly takes the edge off travellers since they know exactly where the bag is and for baggage handlers it makes their job easier since you can share the bag's location with them.

There's two blessings here: one is the AirTag that helped you astutely keep tabs on your bag at all times, much better than any bag tracing system could.

I would argue that's not much of a blessing. I've always had very good luck getting the precise location of my bags (no doubt all those iPhones people use "pinging" my bag helps.

The second is that your bag didn't get raided / plundered as it passed through Brazil.

That was a bit of a surprise too. However, if something was stolen, I could have filed a report with the airline and had them reimburse for the costs under Article 19 of the Montreal Convention.

I've considered an AirTag, but I'm an Android user. Tile looks great but its network will never match that of Apple's due to the latter's sheer number of devices in the Find My network. I'm almost tempted to get a separate, cheap iPhone solely to facilitate using an AirTag.

One thing to keep in mind with AirTags is you don't need to have an iPhone to use them. Another iDevice, like an iPad will do the trick.

 

[aspro2]

I've considered an AirTag, but I'm an Android user. Tile looks great but its network will never match that of Apple's due to the latter's sheer number of devices in the Find My network.

I have two Tiles. I got them cheapish, which is the saving grace. They work tolerably, but not well enough to be reliably reassuring. If a bag went missing, I would feel confident that I would eventually know which airport it was at, but not necessarily much better than that.

 

[Quickstatus]

The IATA systems for bag tracing are so out of date.

I don't believe IATA has a bag tracking /management system - meaning product. These are primarily provided by likes of SITA, Amadeus etc. IATA might provide certification - whether mandatory or not I don't know.

I think some airlines are trialling the integration of "Find my Item" into their systems. I heard QF involved.

Apple/Airlines /airports could simply ensure airport terminals have access to the Apple network via mobile signal rather than relying on personal Apple phones.

 

[Flyfrequently]

Thinking about it, I might just put my new Samsung tag in the guitar case along with Mr Flyfrequently's Airtag and see how they compare later this week.

 

[Human]

Thinking about it, I might just put my new Samsung tag in the guitar case along with Mr Flyfrequently's Airtag and see how they compare later this week.

Please let us know what you discover! It'll be an interesting data point.