Travelers Can Now Share AirTag Locations with Airlines to Track Lost Luggage

One of the most recommended travel hacks is getting a boost. Apple announced on Monday that it is adding a feature to its Find My network, allowing travelers to share an item’s location with third parties, such as airlines.

This new feature means that travelers who attach an AirTag to their luggage—a popular travel hack—will now be able to share the AirTag’s location directly with the airline, helping them more easily locate a piece of potentially lost luggage.

Apple says more than 15 airlines have agreed to start accepting Find My item locations from their passengers, including Air Canada, British Airways, Delta, United, and Virgin Atlantic, with more airlines expected to be added over time.

Users simply need to open the Find My app on their Apple device, generate a Share Item Location link, and send it to the airline’s baggage or customer service department. The location, updated in real-time via the network of Apple devices, is shown on an interactive map with timestamps for each update.

Access to the shared link will be limited to a small number of people, and recipients will need to authenticate to view it through either their Apple account or partner email address. Once the luggage is found, the shared location can be disabled by the owner. It will also automatically expire after seven days.

According to the 2023 SITA Baggage IT Insights report, airlines mishandled 24.8 million bags globally in 2022, which is approximately 5.57 bags for every thousand passengers.