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12 December 2024

United Airlines Teams Up With Apple To Track Lost Luggage

AirTag integration promises faster recovery of misplaced bags through easy location sharing.

United Airlines and Apple have joined forces to revolutionize the way travelers track their luggage with the introduction of the new Share Item Location feature for AirTags. This enhancement is set against the backdrop of the busy holiday travel season, when lost luggage is a primary concern for many passengers. The integration offers customers the ability to seamlessly share the location of their lost bags directly with United’s customer service, leveraging Apple's extensive Find My network.

Launched as part of the iOS 18.2 update, the Share Item Location feature allows travelers equipped with AirTags or other Find My network accessories to provide real-time luggage locations to the airline. This is particularly useful when bags are mishandled or delayed. David Kinzelman, United’s Chief Customer Officer, expressed enthusiasm about this integration, stating, "Apple’s new Share Item Location feature will help customers travel with even more confidence, knowing they have another way to access their bag’s precise location with AirTag or their Find My accessory of choice."

The necessity for such innovations becomes especially clear considering the backdrop of travel issues experienced during recent years, particularly during high-traffic periods such as holidays. According to United, over 99% of their bags reach their owners. Nevertheless, the airline has been proactive about addressing the concerns of the minority of passengers who do experience lost luggage. With the implementation of this latest technology, customers can take immediate action if their bag doesn’t arrive at their destination.

Here's how the system works: if your bag goes missing, you can file a delayed baggage report through the United app as soon as you notice the delay. Alongside this report, users can generate and share the link corresponding to the location of their AirTag via the Find My app. This link enables authorized United personnel to pinpoint the bag’s location on an interactive map, complete with location updates and timestamps. By utilizing this collaborative approach, United aims to expedite the process of reuniting lost bags with their owners.

For customers' peace of mind, the location-sharing capability is built with privacy measures; after the bag is found, the shared location will be disabled automatically. Users can also revoke access whenever they choose, ensuring total control over their information. App users will need to make sure their devices run on the latest iOS or iPadOS to access this feature, which is now operational.

The partnership between Apple and United Airlines doesn't just stop at luggage tracking. This feature stands as part of United's broader strategy to channel technological advancements to improve customer experience. For example, the airline has already implemented numerous features, such as live flight notifications, real-time weather updates, and automatic rebooking during significant flight disruptions, all aimed at streamlining passenger travel.

While this integration is currently exclusive to United Airlines, it is worth mentioning Apple’s wider plans to partner with various other airlines. Airlines such as Air Canada, Delta Air Lines, and many international carriers are stepping aboard this initiative, allowing travelers across the globe to benefit from enhanced luggage tracking. These partnerships are expected to proliferate as more airlines adopt the system which, if successful, could potentially transform how bags are tracked and managed across the industry.

Travelers have recently turned to AirTags and similar devices after highly publicized incidents of lost luggage during airline meltdowns—such as the chaos experienced by Southwest Airlines passengers during the 2022 holiday travel season. These past experiences have spurred demand for solutions like Apple’s AirTags, which provide peace of mind to travelers. With the launch of the Share Item Location feature during this pivotal travel time, Apple and United Airlines are catering to the heightened interest and concern surrounding lost luggage.

By capitalizing on the capabilities of Apple's Find My network—comprising more than one billion devices globally—United Airlines is set to leverage this tech to not only mitigate customer dissatisfaction over lost bags but also to optimize overall operational efficiency. Kinzelman concluded, "This game-changing technology empowers every interaction we have to give our customers the kind of experience like never before. United Airlines is driven by the same commitment as the world’s leading tech companies to offer customers world-class products."
Together, this novel technological initiative promises to reshape the traveler experience and establish new benchmarks for customer service within the airline industry.

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