Delta’s big investment in RFID baggage tracking is starting to pay off for passengers, who can now track their checked bags on a map in real time.
Eventually, ‘push’ notifications will allow the bag itself to notify passengers when it’s loaded, unloaded, or on its way to the carousel. That will be added to Delta’s app later this year.
Earlier this year, Delta made a big point of its $50 million investment in the system, which relays on radio-frequency scanners throughout the baggage system, and on embedding RFID chips in every baggage tag as the bag is checked in.
Delta is counting on all this to drastically reduce instances of lost bags, since the software is capable of scanning bags as they enter a plane, and flagging ones that don’t belong on that plane. Potentially, it could also spot bags that should be on the plane and aren’t, prior to takeoff.
