the ranking of the airlines that lose the most suitcases

We all love to travel. We all have memorable trips in our memories, with experiences that no photography or video can honor. However, embarking on an adventure has some experiences that are not entirely pleasant, such as passing through some airports, immigration control and others. unkind situations.

If there was a traveler stress rankingthere is one situation that would undoubtedly occupy the first places: losing your suitcase after a flight. Or, rather, that an airline loses it or sends it to the wrong destination.

When we get off the plane and stand in front of the baggage carousel, we expect it to appear. But sometimes it doesn’t happen. And the headaches begin.

¿There are some airlines that lose more bags than others.? Which are the best and worst ranked?

Airlines are not inclined to give official data or refer too much to the subject because, logically, it is a thorny issue.

In any case, there is official data on luggage loss and damage globally.

In 2023, less luggage was lost or damaged than in 2022, according to data from SITA, a leader in technological solutions for the air transport industry, in its report “SITA Baggage IT Insights 2024”.

“In 2023, the air transport sector starred in a impressive comeback. Passenger traffic soared, surpassing 2019 levels for the first time in five years. The Incorrect handling rates decreased from 7.6 to 6.9 suitcases per thousand passengerswhich shows good progress,” the report says.

In turn, the investments in technology -mainly the automation of processes at airports- have improved the numbers in recent years. The same report indicates that between 2007 and 2023, there was a 63% drop in the rate of mishandling of suitcases; something notable because in that period passenger traffic increased just over 110%.

The web Luggage Losers (luggagelosers.com), created by the entrepreneur Pieter Levels, carries out a real-time airline rankingdepending on the amount of luggage they lose at the moment.

While they are not official statistics, the figures come from people talking about losing their luggage on social media and websites.

At the time of writing this note, Iberia, Ethiopian Airlines and British Airways occupy the unwanted podium of the biggest baggage losers. The Spanish one occupies first place, with a 5.97% probability of losing or delaying the arrival of your luggage.

In the Luggage Losers report already mentioned, the Asian airlines Air China, ANA (Japan) and Korean Air are the best ranked in baggage handling.

On that list – always keeping in mind that They are not official data-, Argentinian airlines It only appears in 41st place out of 100 companies, with just 0.49% chance.

Among the companies that operate in Argentina, Flybondi told what their work is like in baggage management.

“At Flybondi, we have our own ramp equipment in 80% of the airports we operate in. This allows us to have very positive management indicators. In the last three months (April, May and June), we registered 0.05% of luggage with some breakage, 0.02% of luggage that was lost or flown to other destinations and 0.1% of claims for theft of some object,” said Leonel Dopazo, land operations manager for the low cost company.

It must be clarified that the loss or destruction of luggage, on many occasions, It is not only the responsibility of the transporter but also of the personnel who manage its handling at airports..

In its ranking, the Luggage Losers website rated the worst airports: Gatwick (Londres), Gandhi (Delhi) and Shivaji (Mumbai).

Although there are stressful situations that are difficult to avoid, we can do some things to prevent losses:

• how to remove identification from previous trips from luggage,
• Arriving early to check-in will prevent your luggage from being the last to be checked out and from being loaded on the next flight due to lack of space.
• mark the suitcase with personal information
• Take a photo of it (in the event of loss, it will help the airport staff when making a claim).