With more and more travelers using Apple (AAPL) 's AirTags to keep track of their bags, several airlines are jumping the gun and integrating them into their checked luggage systems.
On Dec. 12, United Airlines (UAL) announced that it would integrate Apple's new Share Item Location into the carrier’s app to allow passengers with lost luggage to share an item's location with the airline. While this will only work for those who have put an AirTag into their suitcase (the airline will not provide them), it can help skip back-and-forth communications with an airline representative.
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"Customers can now securely share the location of an AirTag or Find My network accessory with United customer service agents through the United app for faster bag recovery and an even better overall travel experience," the Chicago-based carrier said in a press release.
The feature, which can already be used by those who have a lost bag through the United app, is designed to deactivate location sharing once the lost bag is marked as delivered to the owner. If for some reason it is not, the location sharing will automatically expire after seven days.
On the northern side of the border, flagship carrier Air Canada (ACDVF) integrated Share My Location into its baggage handling processes back in November. As with United, the feature is only available for those who have their phones updated to the current iOS 18.2 and have an AirTag that is being tracked logged on the device.
"It will allow customers to securely share the location of their baggage containing AirTags directly with our baggage service team in the rare event their bags are delayed or misplaced," Air Canada said in a statement at the time.
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Apple has also announced that multiple other airlines will soon be following suit with similar rollouts. These include Air New Zealand (ANZFF) , Singapore Airlines (SINGF) , British Airways, Air France and KLM (AFRAF) , Qantas Airways (QUBSF) and Delta Air Lines (DAL) .
United beat out its U.S.-based competitors by becoming the first airline in the country to officially integrate the technology.
Prior to its integration, there have been several high-profile stories in which the airline was taking several days to locate a lost item while a passenger who had placed an AirTag inside the suitcase could already see where it was through the Find My app.
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"In the event a bag doesn't arrive to its final destination, customers can file a delayed baggage report in the United app, and those who travel with an AirTag or Find My network accessory can additionally now create a Share Item Location link in the Find My app ... and add that to the delayed baggage report in the United app," the airline says further in explaining how the new feature works.
"Once the report has been submitted, authorized United customer service agents will receive the Share Item Location link and be able to view the location of the item on an interactive map.”
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