High-Tech Baggage Check

LOST LUGGAGE may soon be a thing of the past if more airports tag on to the trend already in effect at airports in Las Vegas and Hong Kong. They’re using radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags to sort and locate baggage. The minuscule transponder—the same technology behind employee badges, toll-road “fast” passes and equipment inventory systems—helps airport workers easily identify bags. It also helps ease the frustration of luggageless travelers—4 million of whom had to deal with mishandled bags in 2006 alone.

Cost may prevent other airports from jumping on the RFID bandwagon. But the efficiency of the system, which has a read rate of 99 percent (compared to 90 percent for traditional barcoded tags), just may be enough to seduce them onboard. Passenger influence certainly won’t hurt—one less lost bag alone is worth much more than the 15- to 20-cent RFID price tag. In June, the International Air Transport Association, the standard- setting organization for airlines, which already endorsed the use of RFID for luggage, will decide whether or not to phase in the tags in airports worldwide.

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