American’s New Baggage Tracking App Will Tell You Where Your Stuff Is at All Times

One of the most annoying things that can go wrong at the airport is getting all the way to baggage claim and finding out that your bag ended up on the wrong flight. American Airlines is the latest carrier to offer a new way to make travelers feel at ease that their bag is on board.

Last week, the company rolled out its Customer Baggage Notification system, an enhanced tracking and alert feature to notify passengers of the status of their checked baggage if it is not on the same aircraft when they land at their destination.

To use the notification system, travelers can use the American Airlines app, sign up for an AAdvantage account, or provide their preferred contact method when they book or check in.

If you don’t want to, you don’t need to install any extra apps on your phone — the airline will push notifications using whatever contact information you provide.

And there are a variety of alerts that a customer can receive. For example, if your bag arrives at the airport early, you’ll get an alert to visit the baggage services office rather than waiting at the belt for the luggage.

If your bag is delayed, you’ll either receive a notice to file paperwork for misplaced luggage, or, if the bag is just late, to set up a free delivery once the delayed bag arrives.

Runway Girl reports that American hopes revealing tracking data will improve customer service: Most importantly for a traveler missing a bag, requests for home delivery can be done on the app so there's no waiting in a long line at the airport waiting for an update.

And for travelers, knowing where your baggage is at all times can definitely help with peace of mind.