AirTags have reportedly saved the day in a related situation involving stolen headphones, as reported by Apple Insider. On a Delta flight that touched down at Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU), Raleigh resident Mat Krantz discovered he was missing a $100 pair of wireless headphones and their case.
He was denied access to the aircraft despite being able to confirm that the headphones and their AirTag were still there using Find My. Instead, he informed RDU and Delta officials before leaving for home.
According to Krantz, Find My showed that the headphones were at RDU for the following six hours. However, he discovered the headphones had relocated the following morning and were now in a Raleigh area.
Krantz made the decision to go to the residence where the AirTag was found, but his wife dissuaded him.
Krantz had the headphones returned after police visited the residence, where they informed him that it belonged to a Delta employee.
No further information has been provided, but according to WRAL-TV, Delta has stated "kind of generically" that a worker involved in the incident is no longer employed by them.
In another North Carolina criminal case, an AirTag was deployed, and it helped police identify a suspect who had a long history of stealing in the neighborhood.
Read also: New York City Gives Free Apple AirTags to Fight Rampant Car Thefts
AirTags Save the Day
In another recent event, Leone Pierce, a travel-related TikToker from Oakland, was already in a tight spot when she had to make a protracted stay in Singapore on her way home. To make matters worse, when she arrived at her layover, her luggage did not travel around the carousel like that of other passengers.
(Photo: by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
This photo illustration taken on February 13, 2023, shows an Apple Air Tag in Washington, DC. -
However, Pierce had hidden an AirTag, a tiny Find My tracker from Apple, in her bag. Her conclusion was that her luggage wasn't detained in Bali, where she had just left off, but rather at Singapore Changi Airport, where she had just arrived.
She needed to persuade a Singapore Airlines employee to assist her, and after an hour of pleading, she found someone who would listen. It wasn't enough for her to show Singapore Airlines staff that she had evidence that her luggage was on the tarmac.
An airport worker had discovered the suitcase and laid it out in the baggage claim area when she returned to check the luggage carousel once more, as reported by SFGate.
Why More People are Choosing AirTags
When it comes to luggage, Pierce is not the only traveler taking matters into her own hands. Social media is flooded with recommendations for AirTags from travel influencers, especially when business travel picks back up after the pandemic's peak.
According to the annual insights report from aviation data company SITA, the incidence of mishandled luggage events climbed from 5.6 per 1,000 passengers in 2019 (pre-pandemic) to 7.6 per 1,000 passengers in 2022. 19.3 baggage per 1,000 passengers was significantly higher for international flights in 2022.
The teeny tracking devices, according to at least one influencer, are the most crucial item you should include in your suitcase. Travelers may tuck one of the tiny gadgets into their luggage and monitor its progress from the check-in conveyor belt to the airplane on their phone.
Because the "precision finding" capability enables users to trace the tag within a foot, passengers can even use it to expedite sifting through luggage off the luggage conveyor belt once they have deplaned.
Related article: US Crime: More and More Criminals Are Using Apple AirTags for Car Theft, Stalking
