Welcome to FT. Yes the priority tags are hit or miss.

priority tags on your luggage really are only meant to make you feel important... and let other passengers around the
luggage belt ..that you are very special

When traveling internationally, connecting to other OneWorld partner flights to the destination, priority tag bags always came out first before non-priority bags. When connecting to other OneWorld partner flight I make sure priority tags are on my checked baggage.

Flying within AA operated flight, priority tags may be useless. But again, flying on AA to HND/NRT priority bags always came out first as recently as last month at NRT. Once when I flew BOS-(AA)-ORD-(JL)-NRT, an agent at BOS did not put a priority tag on my checked baggage. I thought nothing of it. But at NRT my bag did not came out first. At NRT an agent at the baggage area announce that priority bags will come out first. When all priority bags came out, before other baggage come out, an agent announce priority baggage customers who have not got the baggage to come forward. I had very tight connection out of HND on that flight, so I was not happy that my bag did not come out first.

Does AA still make the "real" hard plastic luggage tags for Elite Members....?

If not, can these be requested somewhere...?

Thanks !!

I believe they now send one hard plastic luggage tag for PPro and EXP only, not GLD or PLT

the rest of the world seems to pay attention to those priority tags. In the US, we joke that priority tags are intentionally put at the end (not always but ti sure seems like it when you are in a hurry). Only exception is at the small regional airports. They seem to still get our bags out first.

​​​​​​ There's a big difference between the yellow/ orange paper tags that are attached to checked luggage for priority passengers and these hard plastic "elite" tags. The latter are completely useless for priority baggage delivery.

Agree. Never would occur to me that the luggage tag would do anything other than act as an additional ID. No way to know if it even reflects current status

AA appears to continue having ticket agents affix the “priority tags” to luggage for upper elites, but at the same time appears to not insist that baggage handlers make an effort to get them out first. Anyone have any idea why the company has staff always affix the tags, but apparently does not insist hat staff execute the intent of them?