Apple Joins Forces with Airlines to Track Lost Luggage Using AirTags
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Along with the promised next phase of Apple Intelligence features, last week’s second iOS 18.2 beta brought an unexpected enhancement to allow AirTags to be shared using public links.
Apple didn’t have much to say about the feature at the time, which is par for the course for betas. However, the information screens shown in the Find My app indicated it could be used to share an item’s location with “an airline or a trusted person.” Enabling sharing would generate a long and complicated link, although those links didn’t go anywhere when the beta was initially released last week.
However, not only have those links started working today — they now use a “beta” prefix that links to a proper page rather than the generic Find My page — but Apple has also taken the unusual step of pre-announcing the beta feature and further explaining its plans.
In a newsroom post this morning, Apple not only revealed the feature is “now available in beta with iOS 18.2” but added that it will be partnering with major airlines around the world to help customers find their lost luggage:
In the coming months, more than 15 airlines serving millions of people globally — including Aer Lingus, Air Canada, Air New Zealand, Austrian Airlines, British Airways, Brussels Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Eurowings, Iberia, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Lufthansa, Qantas, Singapore Airlines, Swiss International Air Lines, Turkish Airlines, United, Virgin Atlantic, and Vueling — will begin accepting Find My item locations as part of their customer service process for locating mishandled or delayed bags. More airlines will be added over time.
While the luggage will need a tracking device installed for this to work, it doesn’t have to be an AirTag. Any Find My Network-compatible tracking tag will work, and there are now over 30 accessory markers on board, including Chipolo, Eufy, Pebblebee, Targus, Orbit, and Swissdigital Design. Since AirPods and Belkin’s Soundform earbuds also support Find My, you can find your luggage even if you only have those packed inside.
Now that the shared links are functioning, it’s also clear that they won’t be entirely public. Accessing a link requires the recipient to sign in with an Apple Account (formerly an Apple ID) or create one if they don’t already have one. Alternatively, an “Apple Partner” sign-in will allow trusted airlines and other partners to open these links using their systems. Apple notes that it’s “worked directly with partner airlines to put systems in place to private and securely accept Share Item Location” links.
Apple’s announcement includes positive feedback from airline executives, including United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and IAG, the parent company of British Airways and several other airlines.
“We’ve worked closely with Apple to incorporate Share Item Location into our baggage recovery process and are excited to make this feature available to our customers soon. We know many of our customers are already traveling with AirTag in their checked bags, and this feature will soon make it easier for them to share location information with us safely and securely, helping our customer service agents work more efficiently and giving our customers added peace of mind. We plan to accept Find My item locations in select airports initially, with the goal of introducing the service systemwide in early 2025.David Kinzelman, United Airlines’ chief customer officer
Beyond the airlines, Apple has also partnered with SITA, the air transport technology company behind the WorldTracer baggage-tracing system used by over 500 airlines and staff at more than 2,800 airports worldwide. This should help improve support for tracking down lost luggage, even if it’s moved beyond the direct control of the participating airlines in other airport handling systems.
Find My is an essential tool for users around the world to keep track of and find their belongings. The Find My network and AirTag have proven to be a powerful combination for users while traveling, providing invaluable location information when bags have been misplaced or mishandled. With Share Item Location, we’re excited to give users a new way to easily share this information directly with third parties like airlines, all while protecting their privacy.Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Services
Significantly, Apple’s solution in iOS 18.2 remains entirely under the control of the tracking tag owner. The owner must explicitly share an item’s location from the Find My app on their iPhone to generate a link, which the owner must then manually send to airline staff or whoever else they’d like to share the item’s location with. Before they can view any information about the item, the person receiving the link must sign in with an Apple Account or an account from a trusted partner airline. Links will expire after 14 days and can be disabled manually by the owner at any time before that — such as when their luggage has been located and successfully returned to them.
