[HonestCrew]

BA crew bags are loaded with the first class bags. Two reasons, we are the last to check in and the first class baggage holder should be the last to be loaded so the priority bags are offloaded first.
That’s why you may see the crew bags coming out before other customer’s bags.
If priority bags do not come off first in the UK this will likely be due to the order of loading at the airport of departure. In which case it should be noted by the baggage dept in the UK and the outstations notified. Whether they do or not?….. that’s not my department, but please mention it to BA. It will not be fixed unless complaints are made.
Cheers.

[Ricardo]

I have flown BA, Virgin and AA in First, Business, Premium Economy and Economy (not at the same time!). I can honestly say that it made no difference to when bags arrived. In fact the only occasion when my bag was the first to appear was on an economy flight LHR to MIA. As with previous posts I have had to wait for 2nd or 3rd ‘wave’ of bags when travelling First. So yes I do feel it is a bit of a lottery. Also I have not found the US any better than UK at ‘Priority Baggage’. In fairness though, I do think T5 is overall far better than old T4 days. To be honest I’d rather have the guarantee that the bag is going to turn up!

I also have found that ‘Fast Track’ security at LHR is luck of the draw. There have been several times when once past the front desk and into the screening area the Fast Track lane is more crowded than the ‘rest’. Unfortunately you can’t see which is the best lane to go for from ‘landside’. You just have to go for it and hope for the best.

Ciao.

[stevescoots]

my cw bags were out on the first batch at T5 yesterday

[RichHI1]

Regarding secuirty (which is off topic) I find it annoying when only 1 scanner is working at T3 fast track (we don’t have the staff) in other words BAA cutting to make profits. I would like to see a legal regulation that they should post current wait times at all Terminals for Regular and Fast Track as inidicaitve (TSA keep records and Disney can do it for their rides and there is a lot that is Mickey Mouse at LHR)

[MartynSinclair]

Do not think it is sensible posting websites to buy items to be used for purposes other than intended. I can imagine the scene, first 5 rows of CW filled with business men / women wearing pilot uniforms all with their heads down reading BT and trying to ‘blend’ ! Those wearing 4 bars get row 1, those with 2 bars get row 5.

[stevescoots]

I knew someone that used to have a fold up walking stick and use it to take advantage of immigration counters that were reserved for disabled when crossing from Hk into china!

[azidane]

Last Saturday I was on BA049 from LHR to Seattle and was booked in Club and due to the flight being oversold I was bumped up to 1st Class and upon arrival at SEA was first off a packed 747, through immigration in about 10mins (extra screening as my trip originated in Cairo) and then down to baggage reclaim where it took approx a further 10-15mins for the carousel to start up and first bags to arrive were the crew bags and then economy started coming off and I waited along with quiet a large number of 1st and CW passengers approx a further 20-25mins before priority started appearing during which time I approached a member of BA ground staff (in BA uniform) and enquired why it was taking so long and the response I got in a rude and condascending tone was if I have a complaint to contact them (i.e BA) through the website and then she walked off to air kiss and hug a member of the flight crew. I eventually got my bag and proceeded to customs where I was selected for extra screening by the most friendly and polite customs officer I have come across anywhere in the world and he explained I had been selected not because of my name but due to the fact I originated in Cairo and after some questioning and a cursory search I was on my way in 10mins. The moral of the story….. If I as a passenger originating in the Middle East can clear the notorious US Immigration and Customs procedure in a total of approx 20mins and it takes BA considerably longer to deliver priority baggage there is something seriously wrong in their baggage handling/loading procedures

[SimonS1]

In 20 years of business travel airlines have promised this and that but I have never detected a pattern to baggage handling.

I do remember an amusing incident at JHB (I think it was) where a man and his female companion were travelling first class, him in a blazer and her dressed up to the nines with Gucci carry on bags. I as a pauper was travelling economy on that occasion. As usual the bags arrived in reverse order and he was giving it large to some unsuspecting ground staffer with the full ‘don’t you know who I am’ routine. The more this went on the more we all started to snigger and the more irate he became creating a thoroughly enjoyable spectacle.

Whilst it is never funny when it happens to you, I must say there is sometimes great pleasure to be had watching people humbled in this way. I suspect the airport staff enjoy it as well, which perhaps is sometimes why it happens….

[MartynSinclair]

Talking of baggage delivery/handling, the one area of the delivery process that has still not been addresses is the collection of the right or wrong bag.

In all my years of travelling, I have only had my bags checked that I am the rightful owner and that was in LA over 25 years ago.

With advancements of baggage tracking and bar codes etc and without trying to delay arriving passengers even more, is there not a way for bags to be checked against the rightful owner within the arrivals area.

[RichHI1]

When I was commuting to Mexico City in 2008 they checked every time you went to customs that your tags matched. LIhue in Hawaii used to do it all the time but that stopped when TSA was set up.

[stevescoots]

They check in a lot of China airports and also in hanoi

[Bullfrog]

I have brief recollection as a child in the 70s, luggage being verified against stubs before leaving the carousel area.

It is disappointing that BA can not provide the priority bag service for premium passengers, especially at T5.

[IanFromHKG]

Sometimes happens in Manila, and always happens in India (fortunately, the first time I went there I didn’t rip off the luggage tags as I so often do)

On a separate note, I was advised some time ago by a friend that it was advisable to remove priority tags in India, because it equates to a sign saying “Please steal me”…

[MarcusUK]

Regardless of Airline, the way bags are received at LHR is always less competent, then other airports when arriving.
To / from many destinations worldwide, on many different Airlines, the ground services often let the Airline down at LHR.
It happens with KLM / Skyteam into T4 often , but leaving it is always fine the other end.
Same with Virgin, Etihad, Emirates, SAA, SQ, LHR is the problem.

[pomerol]

Have just completed a return BOD- LGW return trip, and would have to say, It is definitely a problem having a ‘Priority Baggage’ label on your luggage.

I would also like to point out, whilst I accept that their is going to be a certain amount of disruption during the improvements at LGW, at both the North and South terminals, they have now managed to descend into major disaster areas, has anyone any idea of the timescale for the completion of these improvements.

[Author]

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