Air France’s baggage tracking will soon be improved by RFID technology

Air France has announced that starting in 2020, baggage checked at its Paris Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport counters will be tagged with an RFID chip that will help track each bag all along its journey. The project is a collaboration between the airline and Paris Aéroport.

Starting in 2020, some eight million bags checked in at Air France counters will be equipped with a tag containing an RFID (radio frequency identification) chip. The technology will be able to remotely associate each piece of luggage with its owner’s information. This new technology, intended to reassure passengers fearful of losing their luggage, will soon be implemented across all Roissy terminals. The airline reports that other airports along the way will also progressively be equipped with the technology.

With this announcement, Air France is effectively following the International Air Transport Association’s Resolution 753 guidelines, effective June 2018.

At the beginning of this year, China Eastern was the first airline to implement RFID tracking, which is integrated in the WeChat app to allow travelers to pinpoint the location of their luggage. In Europe, Bristish Airways went even further by making a reusable Bluetooth-enabled digital tag available for preorder. The tag contains an RFID and allows users to preregister via a smartphone app.

According to a 2018 IATA report, 4.6 billion pieces of luggage are checked-in every year, and the increase in air traffic will double this figure in the next year. – AFP Relaxnews

Source: TheStar