Apple’s Share Item Location helps airlines track lost luggage securely and improve baggage recovery efficiency

Credit: Apple

Apple has introduced Share Item Location, a new iOS feature that enables users to securely share the location of an AirTag or Find My network accessory with third parties such as airlines. This feature is available as part of the iOS 18.2 public beta and will soon be included in a free software update for iPhone Xs and later.

Enhancing Baggage Recovery

Find My has been designed with privacy and security at its core. Shared locations will automatically expire after seven days, can be stopped at any time by the owner, and will be disabled once the item is reunited with its owner.

“Find My is an essential tool for users around the world to keep track of and find their belongings,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Services. “The Find My network and AirTag have proven to be a powerful combination for users while travelling, providing invaluable location information when bags have been misplaced or mishandled. With Share Item Location, we’re excited to give users a new way to easily share this information directly with third parties like airlines, all while protecting their privacy.”

Travellers can generate a Share Item Location link in the Find My app on their iPhone, iPad, or Mac. When shared with airlines, this allows staff to view the item’s location on an interactive map, which updates with new location data and includes a timestamp of the most recent update.

Airlines Embrace the Technology

Over the coming months, more than 15 airlines will begin accepting Find My item locations as part of their baggage recovery process. These include Aer Lingus, Air Canada, Air New Zealand, Austrian Airlines, British Airways, Brussels Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Eurowings, Iberia, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Lufthansa, Qantas, Singapore Airlines, Swiss International Air Lines, Turkish Airlines, United, Virgin Atlantic, and Vueling, with more airlines expected to follow.

Virgin Atlantic has already integrated the feature into its baggage tracking process. Corneel Koster, Chief Customer and Operating Officer at Virgin Atlantic, stated: “We’re always looking for innovative solutions to ensure our customers enjoy the best possible experience. On the rare occasion when operational issues or misconnecting flights may require bags to be located, our teams now have this shared source of information.”

Passengers can create a Share Item Location link and provide it to the airline’s baggage tracing teams when reporting a missing bag. Airport staff can then view live location updates to speed up the recovery process. For security and privacy, location sharing ends automatically when the bag is returned, and users can manually stop it at any time.

United Airlines and Delta Air Lines See Benefits

United Airlines is among the first to work closely with Apple to integrate this feature into its operations. David Kinzelman, United’s Chief Customer Officer, said: “We know many of our customers are already travelling 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.”

Delta Air Lines also sees this as a major advancement. Erik Snell, Delta’s Senior Vice President of Airport Customer Service, explained: “While more than 99 percent of checked items make it to their destination as planned, we know how stressful it can be for customers when they don’t. That’s why we’re excited to support Share Item Location beginning later this year. It will provide our team with extra visibility to reunite those items with their owners.”

Expanding Baggage Tracking Capabilities

The parent company of British Airways, Iberia, Vueling, and Aer Lingus, IAG, is also adopting the feature. Annalisa Gigante, IAG’s Head of Innovation, said: “By accepting Find My item locations, we’ll be able to offer additional peace of mind to customers who travel with AirTag in their luggage.”

To further support this rollout, SITA, a global leader in air transport technology, will integrate Share Item Location into WorldTracer, the baggage-tracing system used by over 500 airlines and ground handlers across 2,800 airports.

Nicole Hogg, SITA’s Director of Baggage, said: “With global passenger traffic set to double by 2040, airports and airlines worldwide will face important challenges. This collaboration with Apple will make it easy for airlines that use our industry-leading WorldTracer solution to implement Share Item Location for more efficient baggage management.”

Privacy & Security

Built on the Find My network, Share Item Location leverages a crowdsourced network of over one billion Apple devices that use Bluetooth wireless technology to detect missing items. The entire process is end-to-end encrypted and anonymous, meaning no one, not even Apple or Find My network accessory manufacturers, can access a user’s data.

With widespread airline adoption and integration into leading baggage-tracking systems, Share Item Location has the potential to revolutionise baggage recovery, giving passengers and airlines an efficient, secure, and seamless way to track and reunite lost luggage.