Ridiculous Questions They Ask About Your Check-in Luggage Or Are They?

Some Questions they ask you when you are checking in for your flight, very ridiculous or are they?
When I started working in the airline industry over 10 years ago, I was instructed to ask some questions religiously before accepting customers to check in for a flight. I thought some of those questions were ridiculous, I got to be asked same question more or less the same every time I checked in for my flight at the airport. From face value, you will agree with me they are ridiculous or unnecessary. Let us go through some of the questions together.

Is this your Luggage?
Give me a break, why would you ask me if this is my Luggage, who else would it belong to? And what if it is not mine, what do you care? It could be for my friend or brother, all the same it is mine now, I am the one checking it in.You are right about one thing, once you check it in, it is your bag and you assume full responsibility. It is a familiar reaction for first time travelers and for frequent travelers it could be an annoying question you get to hear now and again. Is it really necessary? My personal opinion, yes it is. I have come to appreciate this question more and more as I travel and sometimes I wish the same could apply to road transport systems. The airline industry is very volatile and security concerns has been on the rise. For your safety and mine, airlines have put measures to ensure that you are aware of the luggage you are checking in, checking in a bag that does not belong to you with no knowledge of its contents may put your safety as well as of other travelers at risk. Go easy on the check-in agent and politely answer the question as honest as possible.

Did you pack this Luggage yourself

Oh my goodness, why on earth would the airline want to know if I packed my bag myself? From the face value it sure does not make sense at all and I would have agreed with you 100% over ten years ago on this. I would be in a hurry and ask my spouse to pack my bag for me or a house help would do the work as I get myself ready. Packing a travel bag is not my favorite part either, however I ensure I do it myself or supervise the packing, this way, I am in a position to ensure I do not carry staff that are forbidden for check in, stuff that can be dangerous mid air or worse still God forbid someone packing something in your bag that can put you on the wrong side with the law. One thing I hate about travelling is when I have to remove some stuff from my travel bag at the airport or worse still having to answer some questions to the custom authorities about things in my bag that I did not pack myself or was not aware about. Trust me it is not a good experience, if you have been in this kind of situation you know what I am talking about. If you did not pack your luggage, checked in or carry on at least know every item that is in your luggage, the airline is concerned about your safety.

Did you Leave your luggage unattended at any time?
Unattended luggage includes the one you left for that guy beside you when you felt a need to visit the toilets or get your ticket from the sale shops. Your bag was with someone else not you, it was unattended. We are trustful most of the time, but not everybody is trustworthy, anyone can put anything in your travel bag at any time. Dangerous or not, you need to be aware of what you are carrying in your luggage at all times. I highly recommend that you stay with your luggage at all times, if you have to leave it behind, let it be with someone you trust like a family member and only if they are travelling with you. It is also good to inquire if they have put anything extra in your bag in case they have and what it is, more especially if they are not frequent travelers. Recheck you bag in case you have left it behind with someone else. It is highly recommended.

Are you aware of the contents of your luggage?
Well I have carried a package for a friend to deliver to his cousin abroad, an extra box for the guy behind me on the line who has busted his weight limit, but does it really matter? I have known my friends for long and the guy behind me is travelling with me on the same plane. Hello! who told you he is going to board the flight at the gate or take responsibility at custom clearance? You should be 100% aware of all the contents in your luggage. When I say 100% I do not mean 99.9%. It does not matter who packed your travel luggage, you are the carrier of your luggage and you take 100% responsibility of its contents from the time you check in, to the time you clear with customs at the port of entry. You can not convince the authorities that it was your spouse who packed your luggage or the possibility of your 10 year old putting something in your travel luggage which you were not aware about. Be alert at all times, keeping your luggage safe is prioritizing your safety more than you think.

Thank you for going through this with me, if you have some ridiculous questions they ask about your travel luggage at check in, share with us and we will go through it together to see if it is really necessary. I hope you are now more enlightened about your travel bag contents and how they affect your safety.