Lost or misplaced baggages are a common problem for air travellers and they end up cursing the airlines. Many fliers have turned to the Apple AirTag to keep a track of their baggage when flying. Now, Apple has introduced Share Item Location, a new iOS feature that helps users locate and recover misplaced items by easily and securely sharing the location of an AirTag or Find My network accessory with third parties such as airlines.
How does the feature work?
Users can generate a Share Item Location link in the Find My app on their iPhone, iPad, or Mac. Recipients of a link will be able to view a website that shows a location of the item on an interactive map. The website will automatically update when a new location is available and will show a timestamp of the most recent update.
Which airlines are on board with Apple?
Apple said that it has worked directly with partner airlines to put systems in place to privately and securely accept Share Item Location, leveraging the hundreds of thousands of Apple devices many airlines are already using. Access to each link will be limited to a small number of people, and recipients will be required to authenticate in order to view the link through either their Apple Account or partner email address.
Apple said that in the coming months, more than 15 airlines serving millions of people globally — including Aer Lingus, Air Canada, Air New Zealand, Austrian Airlines, British Airways, Brussels Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Eurowings, Iberia, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Lufthansa, Qantas, Singapore Airlines, Swiss International Air Lines, Turkish Airlines, United, Virgin Atlantic, and Vueling — will begin accepting Find My item locations as part of their customer service process for locating mishandled or delayed bags. More airlines will be added over time.
When will the feature be available?
Share Item Location is available now in most regions worldwide as part of the public beta of iOS 18.2. This means unless you have the beta version of iOS 18.2, you won’t see the feature. However, Apple has assured that a public version of iOS 18.2 will soon be available to all users as a free software update for iPhone Xs and later.
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