Maykita

I am flying ORD-SEA-ANC (one ticket) on Alaska with a 9 hour overnight layover in SEA. Based on the info on the Alaska webisite, I thought it would be simple to check my bags through to ANC. It was instead a major struggle, with agents initially (and repeatedly) saying it was impossible, and finally doing it, but being quite unhappy about it. They told me they had to code it as a "voluntary separation" and "hard force" it through to ANC, and indicated this was highly unusual, that I would have to pick it up at the luggage office in ANC, and that if it got lost it would not be delivered, I would have to go back to ANC to claim it. Just wondering if this is normal. Did I do the wrong thing asking for this? They did put ANC tags on them and I have claim tickets. Thanks for any thoughts.

GrjApp

Sounds like uninformed agents. AS policy states they’ll check through for a layover of less than 18 hours.

https://www.alaskaair.com/content/tr...e/checked-bags

“Travel that includes multiple flights

If your trip includes more than one flight on Alaska Airlines and/or one of our airline partners, we will check your bags to the final destination on your ticket as long as there are fewer than 18 hours between flights.

If you will be in the connecting city for 18 hours or longer, you will need to claim and re-check your baggage. Additional baggage fees may apply.”

I have done this multiple times with overnight layovers. For what it’s worth, I believe a kiosk will by default print the tags all the way through to final destination. I also have definitely encountered agents who claimed max check-through layover is anything from 4 hours to 12 hours.

ashill

It used to be (c 2013) that the language on the web site was 12 hours (both according to agents and the web site). I tried it a few times; I never had trouble with layovers of 11:59 or less, but never succeeded with layovers just over 12 hours. Weird that agents are objecting to 9 hours, which AFAIK has always been OK. (Also nice that AS now allows up to 18 hours; we have an upcoming trip where it would be nice to have AS hold onto our normally-carryon bags for a 13 hour layover, so I'll take advantage of that and hope the agents know the rules.)

Maykita

Thanks! I will try the kiosk next time for sure. The gate agent this morning in SEA was able to confirm my bags are going on the flight to ANC, so it all seemed to have worked fine. Odd that the ORD agents seemed so put out by my request.