Checking a Stroller -- Odd Experience/Question
 

Flew from LAX to MIA on American today, checked our stroller and a suitcase, and the suitcase, but not the stroller, made the flight (we were plenty early). Exact same thing happened to the family in front of us (stroller delayed, other bags came through). Flight wasn't particularly full. Any idea why? Something to do with strollers not counting as checked bags?

Checking a Stroller -- Odd Experience/Question
 

Just a guess on my part, but I'd bet some other more fragile items didn't make it, Either. They'd probably have been the last things tone loaded, and perhaps that one final luggage cart never made it on for whatever reason.

I doubt they singled out strollers and left them behind simply because they are unpaid cargo. I could be wrong, though.

Please follow this thread in the Travel With Children Forum.
Thanks..
Obscure2k
TravelBuzz Moderator

Strollers, wheelchairs and other gate-checked items are loaded entirely differently than counter-checked bags. The gate-checked things are taken down from the jetway and loaded directly into the hold, vs. being sent on the conveyer belts under the airport.

My guess is that there was some sort of problem at the gate. Perhaps they were running short on time or it was an oversight. Maybe they had a new person working there that day? Logically, the gate-checked stuff has a better chance of making it than things checked at the counter but obviously, that's not always the case.

The only other factor is if it had been a very small plane, sometimes weights come into play. I ran into that on an inter-Caribbean flight. They were just too heavy. Since I was an airline employee, that volunteered my luggage for not making it, prioritizing the bags for paying customers. It arrived the next day.

It's great to see an airline employee putting the paying customer first.

It was my understanding that OP checked the stroller with the luggage, not at the gate.

Hmm... I think you're right but I veered off-course when they said the same happened to the other family. I would assume most people gate-check strollers.

If you're right, than it's just random. One bag makes it, the other gets lost...

Be aware that sometimes odd-shaped/sized items arrive in a different area. You've probably seen that with skis and golf clubs. The might cause a moment of panic and a few minutes of hunting down...

The last time this happened to me, three bags (luckily, returning home) went AWOL and Lufthansa was able to tell me were they were right away (Still in SFO). They arrived in pretty good shape and yes, they were delivered over the border. Poor driver got lost but luckily, my husband speaks German!