European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - December 19, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Daily Agazine Volt to Krak Lcarl a. Clai to How to keep your bags from going astray by Paul Grimes new York times he scenario though not typical is common enough to have happened to Many air travellers Al least once. Unexpectedly delayed in raffle you Rush id the Check in counter 10 minutes before you plane is id take Oil your suitcase is too Large to carry  you have it checked. At you destination ii is missing. A Day later you learn by Telephone the the suitcase hat finally arrived but by then you Are 200 Miles from the Airport. If you want it. An airline official says. You must come for ii the company won t deliver it Tufa & on of Many irksome problems for travellers As Domestic airlines sacrificing income As they engage i Fin wave. Strive to trim costs. In Many cases this has Ltd to cuts h experienced personnel to Deal with passengers on the ground to Acme extent computers Are performing better then Humana in tracing Tost Baggie for example but bated on reports from people who Fly frequently of Fidel cheerful service is now hard to find. Vow.  in pro Rule that Canyon baggage must fit under your a in an overhead Compert Menin Chat supposedly restricted to soft bags containing Only clothing. That could Fen from overhead the abuse May min Wmk. Marry traveler prize their atty Nowalk  not Only that nothing has been lost tactic Natsy won t be delayed in baggage claim in Telephone interviews thai they would Check baggage up to 15 minutes before departure. Eastern and trans world said that within 15 minutes of departure you would get late Check in tags relieving them of responsibility to get the baggage on the same flight. Richard Roemer of Twa Laid it would be your responsibility to collect the bags after they arrived which could result in a Long wait at the Airport or even return trip to me Airport. Ii you Check in at least 15 minutes before departure and your baggage misses the flight Al Tinea usually assume the responsibility and the Cost of delivering your bags a representative of Easl Arn said thai ii a late Check in delayed baggage until the following flight the airline would deliver it but at your expense. If it arrived several flights later he Sald Eastern would pay Lor delivery. A Continental representative said that u you checked in less then 10 minutes before departure you would have to sign a disclaimer stating that the airline is not responsible for lost baggage. Some airlines such As United said they would not Check baggage at Ell within 15 minutes of departure. Connection. Domestic airlines Boliow the Book the minimum connecting times listed in the official airline guide usually available Lor reference at ticket offices and Many travel agencies in determining whether they will Check bags through from Point of origin to destination when a change of plane is involved. Al most airports minimum connecting times Are usually Shorter if you stay with the same airline than if you Transfer from one to another. At Chicago of Hare Lor example based on a recent copy of the guide the minimum in 1s minutes Between two flights of Continental and 25 minutes Between two flights of Delta or Northwest for most Domestic interline connections at o Hare. The minimum is 30 minutes for Domestic to International it is an hour and 15 minutes and from International to Domestic it is an hour and a half. The minimum for a Transfer from o Hare to Chicago s Midway Airport is 2 hours and 40 minutes. Many seasoned travellers advise however that you allow much More than the the minimum connecting time in fact some suggest that you Don l Check baggage through to your final destination but rather claim it Al a connecting Point and then recheck it. It you Check it through and it goes astray it is usually the responsibility of the last airline on which you have flown to Lind it and deliver it to you. Claim. If a checked bag does t arrive on your flight file a claim with the airline at once. Vou will probably have to show your ticket and baggage Check and briefly describe the bag end its contents. A computer search will usually locate the bag within 24 hours if three Days pass with no Success chances of recovery Are slim. The search will usually be pursued for 30 More Days by a Central office which will ask you to Ille a detailed claim itemizing everything you Tost and its estimated value photocopies of receipts will help. Immediate Relief. Most travellers keep toiletries prescription drugs and a change of undergarments in a carry on bag but if such items have been checked and become lost ask the airline for Relief. Practices vary but often if you Are in transit the Carrier will provide an overnight toilet kit or funds for essential toiletries. If you Ere at your Home Airport when the loss is discovered Don t expect much immediate help but away from Home you can often obtain Money for essential clothing or a Promise of reimbursement for it if you Send receipts to the airline. You will be reimbursed Only for what you can convince the airline was absolutely necessary. I Blotty. When everyone agrees hat your bag is gone forever and a aim should be paid Don t expect enough to replace everything that you have lost. The airline will deduct for depreciation which can vary. According to Roemer of Twa a suitcase has a he expectancy of seven years clothes will be reimbursed at full Cost he said if they Are less than six months of. Domestic airlines have a maximum habby of $1,250 for each ticketed passenger unless you buy excess coverage at the Lima you Check in typically at $1 per 100 or Emmet Laws More if valuables Are involved. Therefore before you Fly with Catuy belong int Cheek your Homeowner s insurance or any floaters to see what in transit coverage you May have. Friday. December 19, 1686 the stars and stripes Page 13 areas. Here is a guide to handling baggage on Domestic flights in the United states. Precautions. Ii you chock baggage As most airlines suggest you should it often in t quite As easy As a b c. Prevention against losing it begins with what you can do yourself. If a suitcase is of a popular Brand and Model be sure it has something on the outside a strip of masking tape Tor example to distinguish it from others in the claim area. Also affix some sort of identification tag to the outside perhaps your name and phone number you May not want to include your address because that could tip Oil burglars that your Home May be unoccupied. On the inside of your bag put a card tag or Sheet of paper with your name phone number Home address end where on an outbound trip you can be reached. When you Check bags be sure they Are tagged properly ii the Airport code mystifies you ask about it Many travellers Lor example do not know that Ord stands for Chicago of Hare or that eur stands for Newark be sure that lha flight number on the baggage tags agrees with the number on your ticker be sure thai the clerk or skycap puts the right tags on the right bags and that you have the proper number of checks no matter How much of a hurry you May be in do not leave a bag without getting a claim Check if you do and your bag is lost you will have no proof that you checked it Cheek in times every airline suggests Early arrival usually Between 30 minutes and an hour before departure especially if you plan to Check baggage. Procedures differ however if you arrive later than the suggested time. Because of frequent and often unpredictable traffic problems on Airport approach roads Many people arrive later than suggested or even miss their flight despite their Best intentions. Representatives of most major Domestic airlines said