During air travel, baggage collection and bag drop-off are the two
biggest sources of negative experiences within airlines' control,
according to IATA's 2023 World Passenger Survey.
The survey, based on more than 8,000 responses by air travellers,
found that 14% of respondents were dissatisfied with baggage collection
and 9% were dissatisfied with the baggage drop-off process.
The other top sources of frustration were the border control/immigration process and the security process.
Last year saw an especially poor performance by airlines in terms of
baggage handling, according to the annual Baggage IT Insights report
produced by airport technology company SITA. The global rate for
mishandled baggage jumped to 7.6 bags per thousand passengers, up 75%
from the much quieter 2021 flying year.
Speaking at IATA's World Passenger Symposium, IATA senior vice
president of operations, safety and security Nick Careen said that the
mishandled-baggage rate likely will be lower in 2023 since industry
operations have become more stable.
Still, he and other conference speakers said airlines need to do better, in part by placing more focus on technology.
The World Passenger Survey showed that 67% of flyers would be interested in home pickup and delivery of checked baggage.
"They are getting home delivery now in some cases, just a couple days late," Careen cracked.
The survey also showed that the ability to track baggage in real time would increase the confidence of 59% of respondents.
Some airlines do offer bag tracking via their apps, but Careen said
he does not know of any carriers that have adopted electronic bag tags,
which can be implanted with tracking technology, as a standard
procedure.
In the US, Alaska Airlines has done the most in this regard. The
Seattle-based carrier began offering electronic tags to elite status
Mileage Plan member last December and planned to make the tags available
for purchase to all customers sometime this year.
The tags populate with flight information as part of a digital
at-home check-in process. Alaska expected the tags to reduce the time
customers spend in airport lobbies by 40%.
Absent significant airline adoption of electronic tags, conference
speakers noted that consumers have taken matters into their own hands by
purchasing tracking devices.
"We need to catch up with the consumer," TAP Air Portugal CEO Luis Rodrigues said.