It’s a ubiquitous airline nightmare to arrive at your destination without any of your packed clothes because the carrier lost your luggage. Apple is preparing an update for AirTags to allow users to share the device’s location starting next month and the tech giant collaborated with multiple airlines to create a system where disgruntled passengers can share their lost bags’ locations.
Apple’s initial idea for the AirTag as a key finder has drastically expanded since its launch in 2021. The location tag helped thieves steal cars and victims find their stolen vehicles. An AirTag even uncovered an airport baggage handler who stole over $15,000 in items from passengers’ belongings in 2022. Law enforcement cross-referenced the unknowingly stolen AirTag’s location with a list of employees’ addresses and quickly made an arrest.
With the upcoming implementation of the “Share Item Location” functionality, all parties involved knew that airlines would be flooded with coordinates of lost bags. Apple partnered with Delta Air Lines and United Airlines, along with a laundry list of foreign carriers, so carriers could prepare for this firehose of information aimed directly at their customer support departments. TechRadar got in touch with United:
David Kinzelman, United’s chief customer officer, said in a statement, “We know many of our customers are already traveling with AirTag in their checked bags, and this feature will soon make it easier for them to share location information with us safely and securely, helping our customer service agents work more efficiently and giving our customers added peace of mind. We plan to accept Find My item locations in select airports initially, with the goal of introducing the service systemwide in early 2025.”
It’s great that United is taking the time to integrate “Share Item Location” and the data it will bring into its systems. When this launches in early 2025 for the carrier, they’ll likely be inundated with questions. Delta is similarly excited about the new solution and hopes that it can close the gap.
The tiny tracker’s rise to prominence seems like a missed opportunity for airlines. Major carriers could have designed their own in-house GPS bag tracking system and charged passengers for the privilege of using it. It’s not an outlandish line of reasoning when carriers are spending millions to fund electric flying taxi development and placing orders for unfinished sustainably-fueled supersonic jets.