An Apple iOS update will let travellers share their AirTags location with airlines, including Air New Zealand.

When Apple introduced its location-tracking device more than three years ago, it quickly became a favourite among travellers for one major reason: the ability to keep tabs on checked luggage. Now, AirTags are about to get a major update that will help fliers get reunited with their missing bags.

Apple announced a new feature Monday called “Share Item Location”, providing users the ability to securely communicate an AirTag’s location to third parties – including airlines.

Once rolled out as part of an upcoming iOS update, it could alter how missing items are found, retrieved and returned to their owners at airports around the world.

To start, Apple plans to work with 15 airlines globally, including Delta Air Lines and United Airlines in the United States. These carriers will integrate the new shared tracking technology directly into their customer service processes in the coming months.

Locating “mishandled” bags – a catch-all industry term for lost, damaged or delayed – will look a lot different than today.

“Having an AirTag was great before, but there was no official policy for getting your bag back even if you could show its location to an airline employee,” said Stella Shon, a consumer travel expert for Upgraded Points. “The sharing functionality is a game-changing feature.”

Outsmarting the airlines

Apple’s latest feature solves a major pain point for travelers with AirTags. Too often, passengers with lost bags know more than the airline does – and can’t get the carrier to take action.

Dan Adam, a 36-year-old technology professional from San Francisco, was traveling with his parents to Germany when Air Canada lost one of their two suitcases.

“I had an AirTag inside and knew that it was at the airport, but the airline wouldn’t let me go behind the counter to get it,” he said.

Adam had to wait until Air Canada processed the missing bag within its internal systems, a painstaking delay of more than a week.

Other travellers have gone to even more extreme measures when faced with a luggage impasse. That’s included tracking a missing suitcase with US$5000 ($5520) worth of valuables to the home of an airline employee – or intercepting a vehicle carrying a checked bag (and an AirTag) while vacationing in Italy.

“I was told by British Airways that my bag was in Venice, but I was tracking it with an AirTag in northern Italy,” said May Lilley, chief marketing officer for Under Canvas. “I got my bag back without the help of the airline, and I had to stop a DHL truck to do it.”

Fewer lost bags

With Apple’s “Share Item Location” feature, airline employees should, in theory, be more empowered to return items to owners.

This would be a major shift, because carriers have been reluctant to adopt third-party tracking devices. German airline Lufthansa even temporarily banned AirTags in 2022 before clarifying its policy and allowing them days later.

In its announcement, Apple said the move will help recover misplaced items “easily and securely”. The shared location feature is disabled when a traveller is reunited with their item and can be stopped by the owner at any time. It’s also set to automatically expire after seven days.

Some questions remain, including details on how airlines will integrate this new tech into their lost baggage procedures.

“In the coming months, Delta Air Lines will begin accepting Find My [Apple’s tracking service] item locations as part of our customer service for locating mishandled or delayed bags,” Delta told the Washington Post. Several major US carriers are missing from Apple’s list, including American Airlines and Southwest.

Beyond working with individual airlines, Apple is also partnering with SITA, the company behind a baggage-tracing system used by over 500 airlines and ground handlers at 2800 airports around the world.

Meanwhile, despite multiple luggage meltdowns that have made headlines in recent years, data from the US Department of Transportation has shown fewer items are getting lost overall. US carriers reduced mishandled baggage by 9% from 2022 to 2023.

Still, that’s not a reassuring stat if you have one of the roughly 270,000 bags that are lost, damaged or delayed every month.

For travellers who anxiously check their suitcases, it’s time to breathe just a bit easier. That is, as long as you have an AirTag.