The Bag That Won't Go Missing

7NEWS

4 days ago

If you've ever stood at the carousel wondering if your bag even made the flight, you're not alone.
Lost luggage is one of the biggest headaches in travel.
Now a new Aussie partnership claims it's solved it, letting you track your suitcase live from check-in all the way to your hotel.
What's new?
From August 4, Qantas and homegrown luggage brand July are rolling out the first airline-branded smart suitcase with built-in global tracking.
No AirTags to remember, no Bluetooth fobs you must charge, just a sleek, hard-shell case that can tell you exactly where it is, anywhere in the world, straight from your phone.
There are two versions of the Qantas x July case:
A standard Qantas Edition in midnight black with red leather accents.
A Frequent Flyer Edition in dark blue with Napa leather and tan details, exclusive to Gold, Platinum, and Platinum One members.
Both come in carry-on and checked luggage sizes, complete with a neat Qantas luggage tag holder built in.
'You never want to lose your suitcase. It's a sad thing that happens, not often, but when it does, you never know where it is, and you wish you'd put tracking in from Day One!' July co-founder Athan Didaskalou said.
How does it work?
Inside the TSA-approved lock sits a tiny chip that talks to millions of Apple and Android devices around the globe.
Open Apple's Find My app on an iPhone, or Google's Find My Device on Android, and you can see your bag's live location — whether it's still at the gate, on the carousel, or accidentally loaded into the wrong taxi.
The tech runs on a long-lasting, low-energy battery designed to keep tracking for months without a recharge.
It's basically set-and-forget.
The idea is simple: once your bag leaves your hands, you don't have to cross your fingers — you can actually see where it is.
How's this different from what we've already got?
Plenty of travellers already chuck an AirTag or a Bluetooth tracker in their bag, but those only work properly if you're in the Apple ecosystem or within short range.
This is the first time a major airline has built dual-network tracking directly into a suitcase, meaning it works out of the box on both iPhone and Android, anywhere in the world. No extra setup, no separate gadgets to buy or forget.
'AirTags are great, but you don't always put them in your bag,' Didaskalou said.
'Sometimes you forget or swap them between bags.
'When it's built in, you set it and forget it.'
Part of a bigger shift
This launch is more than just about saving you from a missing suitcase nightmare.
It's another step toward end-to-end digital travel, where the whole journey is trackable and stress-free.
SmartGates now let you skip manual passport checks with facial recognition.
Digital declarations are replacing the old paper arrival cards, with Brisbane leading the rollout and Sydney next.
Soon, smart boarding passes on iPhone will give live updates, from gate changes to delays, without even opening an app.
And now, with this July collaboration, your bag finally joins the digital chain too.
PRICES:
Black carry on: $375
Black checked: $425
Blue carry on: $425
Blue checked: $475