Something baffled me today!
A friend flew a full Ryanair flight from DUB to LGW the other day, and as one of the final boarders had to “gate check” her bag by the aircraft stairs. Apparently quite a few others had to do the same. This is fairly common on FR and I have had to do it too, plenty of times.
However, on arrival at LGW she was told the bag had “gone missing”. She was the only passenger affected.
My question is, how does this even happen when the bag is left with all the others right next to the steps? It has since been “found” and can be delivered in a few days time...
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Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
Vasu wrote:
My question is, how does this even happen when the bag is left with all the others right next to the steps?
There are a lot of ways this could have gone wrong. Most common I suppose is that the bag fell off the cart at the destination airport and therefor never made it to the baggage reclaim belt.
Martijn
Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
Because some people are just stupid.
Nothing more. Nothing less.
Nothing more. Nothing less.
Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
A human being missed it.
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- INFINITI329
- Posts: 3013
- Joined:
Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
stlgph wrote:Because some people are just stupid.
Nothing more. Nothing less.
The are a variety of reasons why, stupid isnt one of them.
Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
INFINITI329 wrote:stlgph wrote:Because some people are just stupid.
Nothing more. Nothing less.
The are a variety of reasons why, stupid isnt one of them.
Yes. Yes it is.
If you're a person whose job it is to load bags and can't take a bag 50 feet and put it on the right airplane right in front of you, you're just stupid.
Nothing more. Nothing less.
Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
I once had it happen. I was flying LGA-DCA-CLT-DAB and I had to gate check in DCA through to DAB. I knew something was going to go wrong when the agent asked what the code for Daytona Beach was. I told her DAB and when I got there, my bag was still in CLT.
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- PatrickZ80
- Posts: 5801
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Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
This is exactly the reason I hate gate-checking bags. I fly Ryanair quite often and I always buy priority boarding. Not because I want to be the first on board, but because it allows you to take your large hand luggage with you into the cabin. That way I can make sure it doesn't go missing.
Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
stlgph wrote:INFINITI329 wrote:stlgph wrote:Because some people are just stupid.
Nothing more. Nothing less.
The are a variety of reasons why, stupid isnt one of them.
Yes. Yes it is.
If you're a person whose job it is to load bags and can't take a bag 50 feet and put it on the right airplane right in front of you, you're just stupid.
Nothing more. Nothing less.
Smart people can make stupid mistakes. I'm sure at least once in awhile you forget to do the obvious or miss something right in front of you. But I agree some people are just stupid and stupidity is a reason this could have happened.
Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
I took a flight recently (EVV-ATL) and there was a passenger waiting in the middle of the jet bridge where the gate checked bags were being collected, I was the last one off and saw him waiting and assumed that he was waiting for the bags only to find that as soon as I collected mine he moved on. I'm not saying he was waiting to steal one but I don't know why he was there.
Fred
Fred
Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
What happens somewhat frequently on my fleet, is that bags are forgotten in the hold. 95% of flights we only use the aft baggage compartment for passenger baggage, the forward hold usually only holds the crew baggage. Every now and then, passenger baggage also has to be loaded in the forward hold due to the amount of baggage and/or trim trim reasons. If we now fly into an airport where our aircraft type isn't very common, or the ground crew is quite new (generally or to the aircraft type), they might not even check the forward hold, because it usually only holds crew bags. Now, every turn around we try to check the hold ourselves in order to check nothing was forgotten and most importantly: the loaders didn't unload our crew bags (happen quite often). But sometimes also we forget and then the bags in the front don't get unloaded at all.
Or: they check the hold, but only a few passenger bags were loaded there. And the ground-crew at the departure airport put them exactly on the shelf where the crew bags usually are. So now at the destination the loaders open the hold, take a look, see three bags on the "crew shelf" and think: 'alright crew baggage' and close it up. Sometimes we find it later, but if it's the end of our shift and the ramp-agent as well as the loaders have already disappeared, there is hardly anything you can do. You will not delay your own finishing time just for a single passenger bag. So in good weather you simply leave it on the apron and hope it gets found quickly, in bad weather you have to leave it in the hold, which means it might be quite long before it's found...
Or: they check the hold, but only a few passenger bags were loaded there. And the ground-crew at the departure airport put them exactly on the shelf where the crew bags usually are. So now at the destination the loaders open the hold, take a look, see three bags on the "crew shelf" and think: 'alright crew baggage' and close it up. Sometimes we find it later, but if it's the end of our shift and the ramp-agent as well as the loaders have already disappeared, there is hardly anything you can do. You will not delay your own finishing time just for a single passenger bag. So in good weather you simply leave it on the apron and hope it gets found quickly, in bad weather you have to leave it in the hold, which means it might be quite long before it's found...
Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
flipdewaf wrote:I took a flight recently (EVV-ATL) and there was a passenger waiting in the middle of the jet bridge where the gate checked bags were being collected, I was the last one off and saw him waiting and assumed that he was waiting for the bags only to find that as soon as I collected mine he moved on. I'm not saying he was waiting to steal one but I don't know why he was there.
He might have just been confused about where to pick up his bag. Here in BNA, which sees a healthy mix of regional jets and mainline aircraft, lots of infrqeuent travelers get confused between valet-checked bags, which are returned planeside, and gate-checked bags, which are returned in baggage claim.
Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
On the departure end, plenty of gate checks get slid down the jetway chute, get left there, and never make it to the hold.
Re: How does a gate checked bag ‘go missing’?
Thanks all for the replies!
Seems like the most likely scenario is "fell off the cart at LGW".
Either way, the bag was returned eventually! Silly situation...
Seems like the most likely scenario is "fell off the cart at LGW".
Either way, the bag was returned eventually! Silly situation...
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