Chinedu Eze
In order to end the incidents of missing luggage or delays both in domestic and international flights, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has announced the introduction of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) baggage tracking technology across Nigerian airports.
The agency said this became necessary because it has received a lot of complaints from passenger about their missing baggage. According to the agency, the automated system will replace the traditional barcode-centric framework, thus granting both airlines and passengers real-time, non-line-of-sight visibility of checked luggage from the point of check-in to final reclaim.
This was disclosed by the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, during stakeholders’ engagement forum in Lagos recently.
Achimugu emphasised that baggage-related complaints remained one of the most frustrating pain points for Nigerian travellers, secondary only to flight delays and cancellations.
“For many years now, one of the biggest complaints in the industry has been that of baggage, it’s either passengers’ bags have been short-landed, missing, lost, or destroyed. After delayed flights, baggage issues are the biggest problem. So, what we’ve decided to do is improve the system by automating it. The technology we are looking to use now is RFID to replace the current technology being used.”
He also explained that traditional barcodes require ground handlers to manually align a laser scanner with a printed paper tag on every luggage. If a tag is twisted, torn, dirty, or obscured, the scanner fails to read it.
But RFID tags, by contrast, embed a tiny microchip and antenna that broadcast location data via radio waves. Scanners can instantly read multiple tags through containers, baggage belts, and cargo holds without needing a direct line-of-sight.
He further explained that RFID reader mounted on conveyor belts and ramp loaders automatically flag misrouted items before they enter the hold, making it virtually impossible to accidentally load a bag bound for Kano onto a Lagos-bound aircraft.
“Standard regulations allow airlines up to seven days to locate and reconcile short-landed baggage with domestic travellers. With RFID tracking, missing or misrouted luggage can be identified and located instantly,” Achimugu explained.