Airlines deliver best ever baggage performance
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The global aviation industry recorded its best ever baggage handling performance in 2015.
According to a new report by SITA, the rate of mishandled baggage in 2015 was 6.5 bags per thousand passengers, down 10.5% from the previous year and the lowest level ever recorded.
This means that the mishandled baggage rate has been halved since 2003, despite the industry having to cope with an 85% rise in passenger numbers over the same period.
But despite the record figures in 2015, SITA’s CEO, Francesco Violante, said there is still room for improvement.
“The baggage statistics for 2015 are very encouraging, however in total, mishandled bags still cost the industry US$2.3 billion last year,” Violante revealed. “While this is a 3.75% reduction from 2014 it is clear that this must remain an area of focus for the industry. Passenger experience is paramount and improving baggage handling will deliver improvements for passengers along with cost savings.”
Once again, by far the largest proportion (45%) of mishandled baggage incidents in 2015 occurred during transfers between flights. In real terms, 8.43 million bags were mishandled during the transfer process last year. Failure to load the baggage accounted for a further 19% and ticketing errors/baggage switches accounted for 16%.
And the vast majority of mishandled baggage (79%) in 2015 was only delayed, and eventually reunited with the passenger. A further 15% of the bags were damaged and only 6% were lost or stolen. On average it took 1.76 days to reunite passengers with their bags.
And incidents of mishandled baggage are likely to be further reduced in future; a new IATA initiative, Resolution 753, will mean that every bag will have to be automatically tracked along every stage of its journey by 2018.
“Over the next three years, bag tracking will be in the spotlight as airlines ready themselves to implement IATA’s Resolution 753. This increase in visibility will provide more control and drive further improvements in bag handling,” said Violante. “It also means that passengers will be able track their bag, just like a parcel, which will reduce anxiety and allow them to take fast action if flights are disrupted and their bags are delayed.”
In terms of new technology, around 40% of airlines and airports now provide self-printing of baggage tags at kiosks and more than three quarters are expected to do so by 2018. Almost a third of passengers expect to be using baggage-drop facilities in 2016.
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