NCAA set to introduce RFID baggage tracking at Nigerian airports
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority has convened a meeting with domestic airlines, ground handlers, and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria to chart the way forward for the adoption of Radio Frequency Identification baggage tagging, a system it says will overhaul how passenger luggage is handled across the country.
At the gathering, the NCAA’s Director of Public Affairs, Mike Achimugu, said the technology would allow travellers to monitor their bags in real time, from the moment they check in at the counter until they step off the plane at their destination. He described baggage mishandling as the second biggest headache for passengers, right after flight delays, with misrouting and non-arrival of luggage being the most frequent complaints.
The new system works by embedding each bag with a tag that contains a microchip and antenna, transmitting location data via radio waves. Unlike the current barcode-based approach, which requires a manual line-of-sight scan and is easily foiled by torn, twisted, or obscured tags, RFID readers can detect multiple tags simultaneously, even when bags are stacked in containers, moving along conveyor belts, or packed inside cargo holds.
Achimugu explained that the technology would prevent errors before they occur. Scanners installed along sorting belts and loading zones would immediately flag any bag that has been routed incorrectly, drastically reducing the odds of a piece of luggage bound for Kano ending up on a flight to Lagos.
When bags do go missing, the system would cut the resolution time from a drawn-out manual search to near-instant identification. Through a mobile app, passengers could follow their luggage’s journey step by step, from the check-in desk to the sorting belt, onto the aircraft, and finally to the arrival hall.
According to Achimugu, the app would also give passengers more control when problems arise. Instead of lodging a vague complaint and waiting, they would know exactly where their bag was last scanned and could tell the airline precisely where to look.
“If you’ve landed in Lagos, but your bag is in Enugu, you can tell them specifically,” he said.
The initiative has received the green light from the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, who has directed the relevant agencies to evaluate the technology and report back. Achimugu confirmed that stakeholders have broadly agreed to move forward, despite the system being unfamiliar to the Nigerian market.
FAAN is spearheading the technical rollout in partnership with the NCAA, which is simultaneously reviewing existing civil aviation regulations to make RFID tracking mandatory for all airlines operating in Nigeria, rather than leaving it as an optional upgrade.
Integration with airline operating systems is currently underway, and a contract for the project is expected to be awarded in the near future. The NCAA has set a target to begin operations before the end of the year, though it has not yet disclosed a rollout timeline or indicated which airports will be the first to receive the technology.