NEW ORLEANS — Heading home from the holidays came with extra hiccups at Armstrong International, as the baggage check system became overwhelmed Thursday.
Airport officials said the backups affected every airline.
Lines for dropping off bags stretched to the doors, and dozens of bags piled up around the Southwest ticket counter.
“We didn’t realize there was a problem with the wait and maybe bags not getting there,” said Cynthia McCarvel, traveling home to Kansas.
Although she wasn’t worried about leaving without her bag, she watched for hours as the baggage backups got worse.
Belts came nearly to a standstill.
Some Southwest flights were forced to leave without luggage.
Some employees checking bags said to travelers, “we cannot guarantee any bags will make it to their destination,” but some travelers weren’t informed of the issues until after their bags had already been checked.
The Tabak family, leaving for vacation, repacked their bags near the Southwest counter, just in case something didn’t make it.
“We have four carry ons and an extra bag, so we just took everything out of the extra bag that we didn’t need. We checked that one, and we’re gonna take the four with us just in case,” said Amy Tabak.
Jonathan Tabak added, “They sort of said, ‘we’re doing our best.’ That told us all we need to know.”
While some flights were delayed, buying valuable time, ticket agents said they were not confident all the bags stacked up around the counter would make it to their flights on time.
Some travelers were advised to move essentials into their carry-ons before checking bags.
“They just said that our luggage may not arrive to Miami in time, so get our toiletries and stuff. But I have larger than 3.5 ounces, so I can’t get my toiletries,” said Jennifer Burtch.
Last month, WWL-TV got a look inside the belly of the baggage claim.
MSY uses a centralized system that was billed as more efficient.
But Thursday airport officials wrote in a statement, in part, “The baggage system operators and the airlines along with the contractors who built the baggage handling system are working together to review baggage processing procedures and run diagnostics to identify the specific issues so they can be addressed.”
That doesn’t help those like Gary Jupiter, who is headed out of town for a golf trip right now.
“I’m gonna carry this one on and check my golf clubs and pray for the best,” said Jupiter, holding up a duffel bag he had intended to check.
In a statement to WWL-TV, Southwest Air said:
“We're working with the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport on performance issues with the new airport's checked baggage handling system which is affecting all carriers. We appreciate our Customers’ patience as we work through these issues and ensure Customers and their checked bags reach their destinations as quickly as possible.”
Southwest did answer questions regarding how many flights or bags were affected.
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