Air Canada launches real-time baggage tracking in Canada

Sunday, December 3, 2023

Air Canada has unveiled a new functionality on its mobile app, allowing customers traveling within Canada to monitor the status of their baggage and mobility aid in real-time at key junctures throughout their journey. This innovative tracking feature aims to enhance travelers’ confidence and elevate overall customer experience by providing greater convenience.

Air Canada customers can now effortlessly trace the whereabouts of their baggage and mobility aids while journeying across Canada. Tom Stevens, the Vice President of Customer Experience and Operations Strategy at Air Canada, emphasized the airline’s commitment to prioritizing the swift delivery of baggage and mobility aids, recognizing it as a primary concern for customers. While Air Canada already boasts a high reliability rate, the introduction of this tracking feature intends to offer real-time information, assuring customers of their belongings’ movement during their trip, thereby enhancing convenience.

Operable through the Air Canada mobile app, customers can track their checked items and mobility aids on domestic flights, utilizing the same tag scanning information employed by Air Canada staff at each stage of handling. Initially available for customers traveling within Canada during the final development phase, the tracking feature is slated for expansion to U.S. flights next year and, eventually, to select international destinations.

Users of the Air Canada mobile app will have the capability to monitor their items’ progress from check-in through airport processes, onto the aircraft, and throughout connections and arrival, offering reassurance at every step of the journey. For those checking mobility aids, the tracking feature ensures they can verify, in adherence to Air Canada’s enhanced accessibility protocols, that their aid is securely loaded before the aircraft departs.

The app’s “What’s Next” feature informs customers of the upcoming steps for their belongings, providing details on where to retrieve their bag, such as an airport baggage carousel number, whether at a transfer point or journey’s end. In the rare event of baggage delay, aside from existing notifications, the app allows customers to promptly file a delayed baggage report from their smartphone, facilitating arrangements for delivery and saving time spent waiting at the carousel or assistance counter. Customers receive confirmation of the report’s receipt, along with a file number and a link for updates.

Integrated into the Air Canada mobile app, the tracking feature enhances the app’s multifunctionality, offering customers a comprehensive tool for managing their travel. Alongside travel booking and check-in capabilities, the app delivers self-service options, real-time flight status and gate change notifications, airport maps, and other valuable information. The Air Canada mobile app is available for free download on Apple’s App Store or Google Play.