embark
Making It Happen
Behind the Scenes of Your Flight
The Big Bag Journey
By Tara Titcombe
Wonder what happens to your luggage once it’s checked? We followed a bag at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport to find out.
You check your bags at the US Airways ticketing counter, head through security screening, and make your way to your gate. Two stories below ground, your luggage is going through a very similar process. The US Airways luggage belt system is designed to work 24/7. Using a computer system that tracks the flow of every belt line (green lines are displayed if flowing properly, red if not), a central control room is alerted if a jam or broken belt occurs. Four belt lines along two separate tracks ensure that luggage can be rerouted Check your bag and continue to its final destination.
Tag with bar code and final destination is placed on bag Bar code is scanned successfully
★
Bag is placed on conveyor belt and passes through a scanner
Scanner determines correct belt for bag, depending on gate number and final destination
Unable to read bar code Bag passes through a security screening system
Continues running along belt system to gate destination
Employee loads bag onto luggage cart designated for appropriate flight
Bag is moved to a default belt, where employee affixes new bar code sticker
Bag may need to be inspected
Employee is notified to drive cart to plane and begin loading bags
PHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER BARR
BAGS BY NUMBERS
The belt system at Sky Harbor boasts some impressive stats. ■ The belt system can handle 200–250 bags at one time.
■ Without
an inspection, each bag takes an average of 11–12 minutes to get through the entire system. With an inspec-
tion, each bag takes 19–25 minutes. ■ The bar code scanners have a 98 percent accuracy rate.
14
JUNE 2012
usairwaysmag.com
http://www.usairwaysmag.com
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of US Airways - June 2012