Unclaimed Baggage at Changi Airport

Mrs Lina Chiam asked  the Minister for Transport from 2009 to 2013 (a) how many passengers do not board their planes after check-in at Changi Airport; (b) what is the number of unclaimed baggages; and (c) what action is taken in respect of unclaimed baggages.

Mdm Speaker, a very small number of passengers do not board their planes after check-in. These are usually because they went to the wrong gate, arrived late at the gate holding room or were delayed by previous connecting flights. There are fewer than 20 such occurrences every day, out of the 117,000 to 192,000 passengers that the airport handles daily.

As Members may have experienced during their own travels, any item checked in by passengers who do not board the flight will be removed from the plane before take-off. This is in line with international practice.

Unclaimed bags for most airlines are managed by the ground handling agents. SATS, which handles more than 80% of passenger services at Changi Airport, recorded about 1,500 pieces of unclaimed baggage in total from 2010 to 2013. The figure for 2009 is unavailable.

The action taken for unclaimed baggage depends on individual airlines' policies. For example, some airlines donate the baggage to the Salvation Army, while others dispose of the baggage after a period of time.

I thank the Senior Minister of State for the answer. It was reported in the media that five people who loaded their luggage did not board the ill-fated MH370. I would like to ask a supplementary question in regard to baggage. At the time when they discovered that they did not board the plane, where are the pieces of

Page: 30

luggage? Have they been put into the cargo cabin of the plane or are they still waiting outside for clearance?

Mdm Speaker, the reports pertaining to MH370 have yet to be verified and so we are unable to comment on this. But if the Member Mrs Chiam is asking a hypothetical situation in Singapore – how it would be handled – in the first place, baggage to be checked in by passengers would have been so before they are issued their boarding passes.

If at the point before an aircraft takes off, a passenger who has been issued a boarding pass did not present himself for boarding, then whatever baggage has been checked in will have to be removed. By that time, it is very possible that the baggage has already gone into the aircraft, in which case, a search has to be made and the baggage removed accordingly but, on some occasions, the baggage may still not be loaded onto the aircraft yet. This baggage is then returned to the ground-handling agents, who will then act on this baggage in accordance with the specific airline's policies.

I should also add that every piece of baggage that has been checked in is subject to security screening. That is a standard operating procedure that is taken on board for every flight.