Why Do 26 Million Checked Bags Go Missing Every Year?

http://www.cntraveler.com/travel-tips/flying/2012/07/airlines-baggage-luggage-checked-fees-missing-bags

by bdz • 14 years ago

60 65 14 years ago

The pilot, who’s been apprised of these developments, must now make the crucial call of whether to wait for the errant valises and risk a late departure

I'm actually surprised that it comes down to the pilot's call - you'd think that their job is to just worry about flying the plane, not whether baggage has made it or not.

autophil• 14 years ago

And the fact pilots (in the U.S. anyway) make only slightly more money than a McDonalds employee.

blhack• 14 years ago

I'm sorry, but no, this is bullshit.

SOME pilots on regional flights make a really low salary, but that's because they experience requirements for them are incredibly low.

Working those jobs is like a continuation of school, except you get paid just enough to buy food, instead of paying for the right to fly.

stevencorona2• 14 years ago

Wow- didn't think this was true, but googling found this:

"On the low end, first-year pilots at US Airways would, theoretically, earn a minimum $21,600 a year. For that, they would work 72 hours a month at the controls of a plane (lots more hours are involved in flight preparations, overnights and sitting around waiting)."

bdunbar3• 14 years ago

pilots (in the U.S. anyway) make only slightly more money than a McDonalds employee.

Really?

Pilots http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Airline_Pilot%2c_Cop...

McDonalds http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Industry=Fast_Food_Resta...

zalew2• 14 years ago

it's about the captain (while there can be many pilots, the captain is one), he's in control of the aircraft and the last word is always his.

Yet I've heard they can get orders to wait f.x. for premium clients.

rprasad2• 14 years ago

Premium clients can singlehandedly make a flight profitable (and in some cases, pay more for their last minute reservations than all of coach combined), so there's a damn good reason to wait for them.

mikeash2• 14 years ago

If it wasn't his call, that would mean that somebody else would be telling him to wait for bags, or to go right away. That seems worse, not better.

creativename2• 14 years ago

I guess I always imagined it was something like:

   Pilot(s) - *Doing pilot pre-flight things*

   Gate Agent - "Alright, gate's closed, you're all clear!"

   Ground Crew - "Alright, baggage is done, you're all clear!"

   Pilot(s) - *Done doing pre-flight things*
              "Okay, let's get permission from air traffic control to start taxi."

I imagined that whether or not all the bags (or even passengers) made it was of little concern to the pilots.

stevencorona2• 14 years ago

It's amazing to me that they even make it at all. There are so many bags coming in that have to be unloaded, scanned, sorted, transfered (sometimes cross-airline), and reloaded in such a short period of time with so much possibility of human error.

I make some pretty tight connections and my bags always seem to make it (knock on wood).

jack-r-abbit3• 14 years ago

Well... I don't find it any more amazing than the fact that they can keep most of their planes in the air. Why? Because that is the job they have agreed to do for the money I have agreed to pay. Sadly, they fail at their job... apparently 26 million times a year.

Sometimes I wonder if my luggage is even on the same flight as me. We have to check in so early these days, it would not surprise me if they chucked my bag onto any next flight that will get it to my final destination before I do. Probably not... but maybe.

mgkimsal• 14 years ago

Some UK friends of mine were shocked several years ago when we found out our bags were not on the same plane as us. Don't know if it's still a requirement in the UK or not (they seemed to indicate it was several years ago, re: terrorism).

greyboy2• 14 years ago

26 million of what, though? I don't recall seeing that mentioned in the article. Are we talking 5%, 10%, 35%? What is an acceptable failure rate? Us programmers aren't perfect, either. Or course, it's not justification, but it would sure help put things in perspective.

A family member of mine worked for an airline on the ground post 9/11 and, barring a major issue at the departing airport, there weren't very many problems. The worst circumstances were short layovers (which usually arrived on the next flight and sent to their address) or reroutes to the wrong destination (which this person took the fall for, obviously, as it was all in their control).

rprasad2• 14 years ago

You know what I don't find amazing? When websites and SAAS's don't operate on 100% availability time, even though that's what I'm paying them to handle.

I mean, seriously, this is the whole point of their job, and yet websites keep going down. Sadly, they fail at their job.

The physical world is much more difficult than the digital world. If the best and brightest can't maintain 100% uptime on a website, don't expect 100% success with something infinitely more complicated.

stephengillie• 14 years ago

Mueller confirms that airlines see the TSA as a big part of the problem: “After the TSA took over back in 2001, my pilferage claims quadrupled,” he says. Before the TSA came into the game, passengers’ bags could be opened by another party only if a law-enforcement officer was present. His counterparts at other carriers have reported similar findings, he says, and in a 2002 meeting in Washington, D.C., they demanded that the TSA crack down on rogue employees. It is not clear what the agency has done since that time to solve the problem, but it has agreed to investigate and settle any claims that arise.

Shivetya2• 14 years ago

I guess we could not criminalize until you federalize.

Play on "You can't professionalize unless you federalize," agreed Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D.

jbooth• 14 years ago

Let's leave the 1-dimensional partisan politics out of this please, there are plenty of real-world reasons why the TSA sucks. The air traffic controllers are federalized and they do a great job.

onwardly• 14 years ago

The article also notes another reason why the arrival of the TSA coincided with an increase:

"The arrival of the TSA, which should have heightened security throughout airports, actually created an opportunity for petty thievery, he says. “When you have the TSA and local law enforcement watching for terrorists, this takes the priority off of thieves stealing luggage from the carousel.”

tolos• 14 years ago

Benefits of losing baggage: http://unclaimedbaggage.com/p/store/about_store

I live just close enough to make infrequent trips. I'm sure if I had to fly more I'd feel differently about the matter.

MattSayar• 14 years ago

I like how the article don't mention the final destination for all the unclaimed bags. I got a great pair of sunglasses from this place once. Then I lost them.

MarlonPro• 14 years ago

Just so we can keep watching "Baggage Battles"?

mindslight• 14 years ago

I think people can understand that mishaps occur, and can forgive their property going missing/damaged/delayed. What is unforgivable is how airlines delay and refuse reimbursing the traveler for losses incurred instead of simply accepting their responsibility and making the disruption as painless as possible.

alexqgb2• 14 years ago

Jet Fucking Blue

I recently landed at SFO, near midnight, and found that their handlers had completely sheered a wheel of my suitcase. The pull handle was also busted. And this was a bag tough enough to survive 15 years of use without trouble.

Exhausted, I went home, thinking I could deal with it in the morning. JetBlue told me that they weren't taking responsibility for anything reported more than four hours after the fact "to reduce fraud", they said.

Here's the thing. They know how many bags they ruin. They also know that the likelihood of a person buying an airline ticket in order to get a "free" suitcase is vanishingly small. So they can tell that while it's possible I'm hustling them, it's also very unlikely. Chances are good that they simply destroyed my bag. But instead of paying for it, they added insult to injury by stating "we have no idea whether or not you're a criminal" before telling me the four hour rule was written in stone.

That's got nothing to do with avoiding fraud, and everything to do with avoiding responsibility. I suspect I'd have gotten the same treatment (or worse) elsewhere, but still, Jet Fucking Blue.

trapexit• 14 years ago

Replace it with a Briggs and Riley bag. It won't be cheap, but they will repair it for free, for life, even if the damage was the airline's fault.

tzs• 14 years ago

From the numbers given for US carriers, it looks like US carriers lose about 0.5% of baggage.

That's equal or higher to FedEx's loss rate, based on numbers I've seen inferred from their insurance rates and the assumption that the insurance rates are set to at least cover their costs.

Given that checked bags cost money now, why not send your bags by FedEx to your hotel? You'll likely reduce your risk of losing them, and you won't have to deal with carrying them to and from the airport.

eurleif• 14 years ago

>Given that checked bags cost money now

Not as much as FedEx. Checking a 50-pound bag with United from SFO to AUS costs $25. Shipping a 50-pound package via FedEx costs twice as much, and that's assuming you can afford to be without the things in your bag for up to 4 business days. If you can't, overnight shipping is $288.

personlurking2• 14 years ago

I often wish I could travel without a second suitcase. I recently paid a popular Brazilian airline R$230 (US$115) for a half-full second suitcase weighing 15kg. That price was also the price of the flight I was taking, btw.

josefresco• 14 years ago

Would rates be at all competitive? Most checked baggage is quite heavy, and the cost to ship something overnight, or even 1-2 day would most likely be quite higher than the fee your airline charges per bag (which unlike FedEx it travels with you). Maybe for a planned well in advance trip where you ship items you won't need for a couple days it might make sense but I can't see it working for the short 3-4 hour business trip.

nickbarnwell• 14 years ago

The "large 50lb box" he's referring to is your baggage, and the rates of $25/$50 (int'l) the fares most carriers charge.

bradleyland• 14 years ago

Timing, cost, and marginal return on investment of effort.

Timing: When you check your bag, it travels with you. As a result, it arrives at the same time as you. It also spends the minimum amount of time outside your possession. These two traits are desirable to travelers.

Cost: If you were to ship your bag, most travelers would need overnight service, because travelers simply don't pack two or three days ahead. The cost of shipping your travel supplies overnight isn't going to offer a cost advantage to the $25 (estimated) it costs to check your bag.

Marginal return: Yes, it would be possible to plan ahead and ship your bag through a parcel carrier's ground service, but depending upon where you're traveling to, that can take 5 days. That's a lot of planning, and the marginal increase in risk (of lost baggage) doesn't offset the time and effort required to "optimize" against this risk.