Swiss Air Lines Flight Departs Without 111 Passengers' Checked Luggage on Board
A recent flight traveled from Switzerland to Spain with all 111 of its passengers aboard, but none of their luggage.
On Saturday night, customers on a SWISS Air Lines flight waited more than two hours at a baggage carousel in Bilbao before being told their suitcases were still in Zurich. SWISS spokesman Kavin Ampalam confirmed the incident to AFP (via Insider), saying that a shortage of ground crew led to a tough decision.
The pilots were to fly another route from Bilbao that evening and had to return those passengers before Zurich’s airport closed for the night. After "one hour and 16 minutes, the situation was still unchanged,” Ampalam reported, “and for operational reasons, we decided to fly to Bilbao without the baggage.”
According to German outlet Blick (via Yahoo News), there were no SWISS staff members on the ground in Spain. Passengers waited several hours at the abandoned baggage claim before employees of local airline Iberia revealed the chilling plot twist. Upon reflection, several people recalled the pilot apologizing profusely for the late departure due to “a lack of qualified personnel," but no one recalled him mentioning leaving their luggage behind.
"We understand the situation is not favorable for the people involved, and of course, we regret the inconvenience," Ampalam said. He was unable to confirm what the pilot told passengers, or if they had any forewarning about the fiasco. "We are still analyzing the situation to find out what happened exactly and how we can improve," he told AFP. "This shouldn't happen."
SWISS said they were flying the passenger’s bags to Bilbao, though they couldn’t say when they’d arrive. It arrived as cold comfort to the many passengers left without clothes and basic necessities on their trip. “Our vacation is ruined," passenger Carsten Redlich said to Blick.
