SITA Reports Continued Reduction in Mishandled Baggage by Air Transport Industry

Dark/Light Mode (18/06/24)  According to SITA's Baggage IT Insights 2024 report, the number of bags mishandled by the industry fell from 7.6 to 6.9 per 1,000 passengers in 2023, despite passenger numbers rising above 2019 levels for the first time in five years, growing to 5.2 billion.

The long-term trend underlines the positive impact of investments in related technology. A steep 63% drop in the mishandling rate from 2007 to 2023 happened as passenger traffic rose by 111%. Despite that success, the industry still faces challenges, particularly as baggage volumes continue to surge.

SITA's Passenger IT Insights and Air Transport IT Insights 2023 reports show that two-thirds of airlines now offer unassisted bag drop, and 85% of airports offer self-service bag drop.

Baggage being loaded onto an aircraft. Picture by Steven Howard of TravelNewsAsia.com

The reports also highlight how passengers want to use their mobile phones as they travel, including at bag collection.

Today, 32% of passengers rely on bag collection information sent straight to their mobile, giving passengers more confidence, understanding and control over their journey.

While airlines and airports share baggage data, there’s still room for improvement. At baggage collection, for example, only 58% of airlines share data. At the same time, 66% of airports share baggage delivery data with airlines.

SITA’s Baggage IT Insights survey cites IATA’s call for full baggage tracking and real-time status data as part of its Resolution 753 initiative, with data sharing across the bag journey.

The survey also points to Airports Council International’s call for self-service, real-time communication, and visibility for passengers to reduce stress and anxiety.

“The improved mishandled baggage rate in 2023 is great news for passengers and for aviation. It’s especially impressive as global passenger traffic grew strongly in 2023 and is set to double by 2040,” said David Lavorel, SITA CEO. “We clearly see from the SITA Baggage IT Insights results that baggage automation is the way forward, with more collaboration, more communication with passengers, and investments in new technologies such as AI and computer vision to make the journey smoother. From my own travel experiences, I can say this will be really welcome. Technologies like these are essential because they help us gather, integrate, and share data effectively. This means we can uncover important insights that make decision- making easier and more automated.”

Looking at the Asia Pacific region, the SITA Baggage IT Insights report shows a steady long term baggage mishandling rate at 3.1 per 1,000 passengers in 2007 and 3.0 in 2023 - the best rate globally in terms of mishandled baggage.

The report comments on the commendable and consistent levels in the region despite the challenges of recovery and highlights the success of investments in digitalizing the baggage handling process.

See also: Lost Bags and Airline Baggage Tracking - HD Video Interview with Peter Drummond, SITA (2019).

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