how does checked luggage get to HKG via MTR intown checkin?
 

i have always been curious about how my checked luggage gets transported to the airport if you use intown check in?

anyone knows for sure?

don't seem to see any luggage carriages on the MTR express. So I'm kinda guessing it goes by ground transport which leaves every X minutes. Probably 40 mins max to the airport on the road. Meaning that a bag checked in 90mins prior to departure, will make it to the airport say 35 mins to departure (assuming the bus leaves max every 15 minutes)?

they go on the train, there's a special carriage for baggage only towards the front of the train. The fact that you don't see staff loading bags onto trains shows how well the operation is designed.

Yup, the first (and/or last?) carriages of the AEL train. That's why they don't have any windows!

Scroll to the bottom for a photo and the write-up for its fully-automated operation (in Chinese only)

https://hkrailway.org/chi/train.html

That link is for the frames page (good old HTML frames). The photo is at the bottom of this page : https://hkrailway.org/chi/body.html

Ah I will try to see how they load the luggage in and out next time!

You can't.... except maybe if you peek between the gaps at the front of the train and hear the roaring of cargo wheels !

Its a super efficient system and totally safe (all the xrays are done prior to loading) since the opening of the Airport Express service - almost 20 years now.

Joined a special guided tour at Hong Kong Station for the system once, quite some time ago, for what FT-ers concern, there are belts like airports use to transport the bags into an area (should be the end of platform for the special carriage), where human workers put the bags into metal boxes, then the boxes are moved into the train like the article describes. Like an extension of airport baggage handling.
Empty boxes will return by trains from the airport.

Just an incredibly well designed system.

Amazing to think it's already 20 years old.

And that few, if any(?) other airports have copied such an innovative and remarkably practical setup.

There's also the KLIA Express to/from KUL. The cargo section is less well-hidden there though: you can often spot the luggage handlers as you come into the airport station there.

Not just that few other airport have copied it, but few airports have successfully copied it. I think the success isn't just in the idea, but also that it's operating for a relatively large and busy airport, and practically open to and used by all airlines operating at HKG. I assume this takes down the cost per bag, compared to other "in-town check in" implementations. Off the top of my head, I believe it is or was in use in at least KUL, BKK, VIE...

Not CX-related - moving to the HKG forum.

cxfan1960

CX CoMod

It's especially amazing considering that the sceduled stop for the AE at Kowloon station is just 2-3 minutes and yet they still manage to load the baggage. Do they use ULDs (containers)?

I have created this thread some time ago, although by no means is it a full list.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trave...own-check.html

If you look closely at the photo linked above you can see that they do.