KOCHI: Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) is exploring the feasibility of a concept where flyers’ luggage will be picked up from their homes before they travel to the airport.
The airport operator has permitted an agency to conduct a trial and is working out the modalities for a wider rollout, top sources with CIAL said.
The proposed service is being considered in two phases. In the first phase, an agency would collect passengers’ baggage from their homes, transport it to a warehouse, and then move it to a designated facility outside the terminal.
“The entire movement can be tracked from the time the baggage is collected until it reaches the airport. Passengers can collect the luggage from the designated facility and take it inside the terminal themselves, as security regulations do not allow baggage entry inside
the terminal without the passenger,” a source said. The service is being considered particularly for fliers — including families and elderly passengers — travelling with multiple or heavy bags.
The airport is looking at a operational area extending beyond Ernakulam, with a reach of up to about 200km from
the airport and potentially covering different parts of the state. The final service area, however, will depend on the outcome of the feasibility assessment.
The proposed service would also cover arriving passengers. For instance, a passenger returning from Mumbai could hand over baggage outside the airport terminal to the agency for delivery to a person or destination in another part of the state.
The booking system would be web-based. Passengers will be able to book the service through the agency’s website, and the charges are expected to be based on slabs determined by the weight of the baggage and the distance involved.
‘Service will cater to pax using different airlines’
Both larger bags of around 23kg and smaller 7kg ones may be handled. CIAL is yet to finalise the pricing structure.
Sources said the first phase would operate independently of the airline ecosystem and would cater to passengers using different airlines.
A second phase could integrate the home baggage service with existing airport-side services such as meet-and-greet and baggage assistance. This could eventually allow passengers to get assistance with their baggage from the designated facility up to the check-in counter.
Sources, however, said this integration would be taken up only after the first phase is worked out.
The airport operator is also examining how the service can function within existing security regulations. Even if baggage is collected from a passenger several hours before a flight, it cannot be taken into the terminal in the passenger’s absence. The baggage would be kept at facility until the passenger arrives at the airport and is ready to enter the terminal.
CIAL is yet to decide when and if the service will be formally launched. Ongoing trial and discussions are expected to determine its operational and commercial viability.
