The second largest airport in Denmark, Billund Airport, is the first in the world to launch a new service that allows passengers to print their baggage tags at home together with their boarding card.
Billund Airport launched the new baggage tag after a six-month development and test period. The new tag means passengers avoid having to queue when checking in their baggage and the scheme has so far exceeded all expectations.
Anders Nielsen, the airport’s Vice President Project & Development Manager, said: “So far, the feedback we have received has been 100% positive. Passengers save time at check-in, and no problems have been reported for printing the tags. Around 15% of our charter passengers have used the system since it was launched, and we want to get that figure up to 35-40% in the future.”
The tags are printed on to a standard A4 sheet of paper, and then folded according to the instructions and inserted in a plastic cover (available free of charge at the airport), which is then secured to the bag. The passenger can then use the dedicated ‘Express drop’ desks to check in their baggage at the airport’s departure area without queuing up at the traditional bag drop.
Development of the new service took place in close collaboration with IATA and the airport’s software provider, Unisys. The project was made possible because Billund Airport also acts as a handling agent, with its own check in software. The system was tested on charter passengers in collaboration with Thomas Cook Airlines.
Anders Nielsen also reports a high level of interest from abroad: “We have already demonstrated the system to airport managers and airlines from all over the world at the Passenger Terminal EXPO conference in Vienna, and at the IATA Passenger Experience Regional Workshop for Latin America in Miami. There has been considerable interest all over the world in how the system has been designed.”
