April 6, 2010

• Ever Wonder What Happens to your bag at the airport?

  I had an interesting conversation with a former TSA executive that requested she remained nameless.
  So once again. The following conversation may or may not have happened:
  

  Phil: So I really want to know the question that has been plaguing mankind for decades…
  Where the heck is my luggage?
  
  Nameless Lady: The airlines are not only in the business of shipping people.
  Actually, they get a significant amount of their money shipping cargo as a courier service.
  
  Phil: So? What does that have to do with where my bags are?
  
  Nameless Lady: It has everything to do with where your bags are. You might board a flight from LA to Miami, but your bags might be on a flight from LA to Texas and transfer in Texas to Miami later. The reason is that the airlines sell their cargo space as a courier service and so your bags are second in line. So if your airline has an excessive or heavy cargo shipment on one plane, it might throw your bags on a separate plane with a lot more transfers before it gets to the final destination. And if those transfers get delayed, then your bags get delayed too. If you’re flying across country, it’s not uncommon for your bags to go on a completely separate route. We’ve had people who were going on cruises from Miami and they had to board without their luggage because the airline routed their bags through New York where their bags were delayed because of weather until the next day.

  Phil: What kind of Cargo do planes take?

  Nameless lady: Anything and everything. Pets. Lots of pets.
  
  Organs for transplants like hearts and kidneys. Lots of hospital related shipments. If you’re willing to pay for it, you can usually ship it. Nothing illegal of course.

  Phil: Do cargo shipments sometimes affect the passenger load?
  

  Nameless lady: Absolutely. Sometimes the cargo is too heavy and they can’t fly without bumping some of the people. It’s not uncommon for them to bump the whole back row to the next flight in order to comply with weight regulations for their cargo shipments. I don’t like it, because the people have already paid to be on the flight and the airlines are really doing it just for more money from the cargo.

  Phil: Is this an airline I would have taken recently?

  Nameless lady: Most likely, it’s still in business and it’s a huge nation wide airline.

  Phil: So is there some kind of measurement that is unacceptable for lost baggage?

  Nameless Lady: We go by time. So the minute the bag is reported until the bag is delivered to the person.

  Phil: So what is the acceptable time limit?

  Nameless Lady: There is no acceptable time limit.

  Phil: And what about the bags that never get returned?
  
  Nameless Lady: Usually theft. But TSA is really starting to crack down on it. The airlines will pay you for lost luggage, but most people would rather have their luggage returned.

  Phil: Where do all the confiscated items go? I mean, you can’t just give that stuff away right?
  
  Nameless Lady: What is not perishable will be donated to Good will.

  Phil: And all the knives and stuff go to the army?

  Nameless Lady: The salvation army. Not the Military.

  Phil: What is the most common confiscated item?

  Nameless Lady: Lotions and hair products.

  Phil: So what advice if any would you give the average traveller?

  Nameless Lady: Take all your essentials on a carry on bag. Don’t take anything of value.

  • 6:20 pm
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