Virgin rolls out bag-tracking tech, Qantas to follow

Be interesting to know if they are adding extra scanning to the current process; I can see some irate baggage handlers if they have to add a task to the process. 

P1 and P's I know at QF don't like putting their scanner tags on their bags, they say the bags go missing but when they put a paper tag on the bag they never have a problem.

I’d be happier if they offered platinum, gold and business class passengers lounges when flying internationally 🤣.

A great innovation by VA at least in the Australian airline space. You'd think Qantas would already be doing this, the way it always talks about being such a technology innovator. Let's face it, Virgin has delivered a lot of good passenger innovations over the years, and this is what competition is all about.

Delta have been doing this for 6-8 years and is extremely effective, no notifications but on the app you can see bag checked in, bag loaded on plane, bag offloaded, bag transferred etc etc…..it’s very helpful particularly on transfers through their hubs, always some relief when you can see that your bag made it to the plane. Both QF and VA are miles behind here but is certainly pleasing to see progress.

Not a baggage handler and I don’t claim I run an airline or Australian airport 

But I doubt the app is going to be accurate beyond being loaded onto a trolley to be loaded on to your departing plane, as the bar code scanners in the airport generally AFAIK scans the luggage to get them to the correct loading dock for the correct plane. I am not aware they are individually scanned as they are being loaded into the plane coming off the conveyor belt at the tarmac, nor when they are being offloaded from the new arrived plane, or before being placed at the baggage carousel for collection (either scanned by hand or airport installed scanner which requires an investment into capital works that I don’t think exists)

So it may seem accurate until someone’s luggage doesn’t turn up when the app says it arrive 

I got a big splash screen notification that baggage tracking was available on my flight Syd-Bri and then Bri-Syd last week.  Was a bit excited as the tracking on several airlines in Europe in Jan/Feb was incredibly informative, handy and accurate with multiple checkpoints along the way.  Sadly Virgins new system seems embryonic at best.  For both trips, some time after watching my bags trundle away on the conveyor, I got a notification something along the lines of 'we're tracking your bag and will net you know when it's arrived'.  Then waiting at the carousel at destination a second message along the lines of 'your bags are available for collection' moments before they trundled out.  Might be handy if you went for a drink on arrival I guess!

For this to work reliably and consistently, much will depend of the thermal luggage tags and labels put on the item.  On international flights, most check-in counter staff will put all 3 of the smaller bar code stickers on at least 3 sides of the item, in addition to the tag itself.  On domestic flights in Oz maybe 1 in 2 will put one (1) additional sticker on the item in addition to the tag itself.  It's these additional stickers that are needed to register a hit at automated scanning points (i.e.not a handheld scanner by a Baggage Handler).  

This is a great idea, just depends heavily on the implementation.  Hope it works as well as the United Airlines system within USA.  

I'll stick with my Tiles and Samsung.  Gives great tracking and visibility, even if some of the bag activities and side trips around the terminal are confusing.

Great initiative but what happens when you connect from QF to another airline such as AY or RJ etc?

I wont  be giving up my air tag just yet.

Any positive effort to improve the experience through better tech has to be a bonus. As per a lot of comments, the link gets broken when the tech is not properly supported throughout all the locations that Qantas (and other carriers) but when it works I'm sure it will be/is a good feature in the APP that customers really grow to value. I'd like to see the paper baggage receipt move to the APP as soon as your checked bag gets swept into the belt.

QANTAS are so far behind when it comes to baggage tracking. United Airlines has had this for ages. I get a text message right after checkin. I can then use the app to confirm my bag was loaded onto the aircraft, was unloaded, and when it's on the way to baggage claim. 

Re the Q tags I have been asked multiple times to remove for international travel with connection to other airlines as only works with Qantas. My latest nightmare of a trip  American Airlines promised me my luggage would be on my flight after a missed connection but as soon as landed in Sydney my AirTag said it was still in LAX so I didn’t wait for it which meant I made my connection to Adelaide whereas if I had waited would have missed. 

This process may have some theoretical value but not true tracking yet.

wonder if this will also be the case if its a QF flight number on a code share flight with for example emirates.

Certainly don't trust Qantas baggage handing capabilities, even as Platinum.  Started using Apple Air Tags a couple of years ago and have been able to monitor my bags at any time on three recent world travels.  Twice QF lost my bags domestically over the last year and continually stalled me by saying they were calling various offices.  I was able to show them exactly where they were located by using my air tags, but still took 48+ hours to recover.  Lesson Learned.

Considering that their codeshare partners as mentioned already do this and the app will now have the functionality. 

Does that mean that the Qatar/United etc.. codeshare flights will also integrate with the bag tracking? Would be useful if it's added in the future at some point.

Good innovation, but VA really playing catch up with the likes of Delta and United who have had this in their own apps for ages. 

Great to see VA catching up on their tech stack (this and self service rebook during disrupts) after years of neglect and COVID-induced voluntary administration.

I had never worried about bag tracking as I had never had an incident of lost or delayed baggage. That changed a couple of weeks ago when my baggage got left behind in both directions transiting through Changi.

I no longer use the Q Bag Tags, after a change connection SYD, BNE, TSV. I was in TSV, my bag was in BNE. However I was re-united some hours later. I take the Q bag tags off for domestic flights and leave them on for International in the  hope that if they do get lost, that somehow they will be identified.

Delta have been doing this for years works well, ill still keep a Samsung SmartTag in each bag though as i dont trust the underpaid help beneath the plane...

I have used it a few times recently but it's pretty basic.

You get an update a minute or so after you check your bag in telling you that it's been checked in.

Then as you see your bag come out on the carousel, another update to advise that it's on the carousel.

Probably helps if you are seriously vision impaired, but if your eyes work fine then it doesn't tell you anything you can't already see.