seawolf

Don't check bags that much but when I do check, the bags are the first couple to come out. My luggage is a large-size luggage. Not sure if that had anything to do with it. Great Star Alliance priority experience at SIN, NRT, SYD, HKG, DEN, LAX, STL. So so experience at LGA.

And when I look out the window, I do notice the ground staff putting priority tagged bags to the side and loading others on first.

[This message has been edited by seawolf (edited 03-09-2001).]

rmccamy

I've never noticed any difference when "priority" tags were put on my bags. With United, they lost my bag about 10-15% of the time, which seems about average for them. US Airways never lost my baggage, but it never showed up first in the carousel either. Usually in the middle, with all of the other "normal" bags...

I still have US Airways luggage tags on almost all of my bags simply because I happened to accumulate 3 years worth of them, and AA/UA don't send me tags. I've never noticed any sort of special treatment - good or bad - by any airline because of the tags.

ozstamps

For a year or more now UA have got cunning and use a pointy ended flouro "priority" tag that is affixed INSIDE the destination white label. i.e. the old tags with elastic band type ends affixed to handles are no longer used.

The ONLY bag tags UA seem to pay attention to are those with the flouro flag on white routing tape. And as I fly mostly It'l they nearly always are out first 10% of bags.

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~ Glen ~

ChuckDEE

I have CX Marco Polo Silver tags on my bags, and whenever flying CX to/from HKG, they are always one of the first off. Other tags with other airlines never seem to have made a difference.

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preez mine da pratform gahp.

MKB

Last January, I flew 7 economy sectors on Air New Zealand, all but one international. As *A Gold, I had the red "PRIORITY" tags attached by the check-in agent to the regular white bar-code tag. On four flights all bags were amongst the very first off the carousel. On three flights (all arriving and departing at different airports) all of the bags were among the very last to come off the carousel, and the Priority tags had been torn off every bag on two of the flights. I complained to baggage handling each time. They apologised but couldn't explain it. The fact that someone would deliberately tear the Priority tags off four bags on two separate flights I find very sinister. The stub of the tags was still visible inbetween the adhesive strips of the white bar-coded tags.

The in-flight service from NZ was also consistently dire in economy. The VLML meals were particularly bad. Made a mental note never to fly with ANZ again of choice.

Jetboy

as i know one of the baggage handlers in Helsinki, i discussed the issue with him.He works for the company that handles Star Alliance airlines and said if he or any of his co-workers spotted a oneworld, or another non Star elite/priority tag they would just simply tear it off...
so watch out if your non star elite, flying with star to helsinki, with non star elite tags...

cheers jetboy

clanson

One way to avoid the airline rivalry which may be triggered by the bagage tags is to use the elite bagage tags provided by Hilton or Starwood.

siliconengineer

Somehow I forgot about my own experience with elite tags on another airline when I started this topic. I posted this in the Cathay Pacific forum today:

Last year, I was returning from SIN on scheduled BR (EVA) flight via TPE to SFO. The flight from TPE that would be the plane was badly delayed by a typhoon so eventually I was put on the last seat on CX to HKG to SFO. My luggage had already been checked with BR with priority tags due to being a BR Gold member, equivalent to AA Platinum.
I showed my AA card which was Gold then to get the miles, but of course, the luggage was just directly transferred over -- not that there was time to get it out and recheck it anyways.

At SFO, my bag came out around the middle, with not only the BR priority tag still there, but also with the original BR barcoded tag, no CX tag. So for a non-CX, non-One World priority tag, there was no priority in my single experience.

Tango

My bag usaully comes out on the carousel next to the one I am waiting at.

jAAck

AA doesn't give "priority" tags to elite members, just identification tags. When flying F/J, or Y as an elite member, on Flagship flights only the ticket agent affixes an orange priority tag to the destination tag. In my experience, these bags are delivered first about half the time (though almost never at JFK).

CO provides "priority" tags to its elite members, but I've never had much luck with these. My bags seem to come out with all the rest, sometimes near the front and sometimes near the back.

Last week I flew on a First Class award ticket on DL and I noticed that the baggage tags affixed to the suitcases had a very small "Priority" printed on them. When I reached baggage claim in ATL, the bags were already waiting. At baggage claim at DIA, my bags came off second and fourth. And when I returned to LGA, they were first and second on the belt. Very impressive!