Iberia Airlines lets passengers print their luggage tags at home

With Madrid-based Iberia Airlines, you can now bag it and tag it yourself.

The airline claims it is the only carrier to let passengers print out luggage tags at home.

Seattle-based Alaska Airlines tested the idea of home tagging for passengers flying from Seattle to Hawaii last year but has not continued the program. Alaska, along with several other carriers, lets passengers print out luggage tags from airport kiosks.

Iberia passengers can print their luggage tags at home and download their boarding passes onto their smartphones. Once at the airport, the travelers hand their luggage to a counter attendant and head for their screening gate, where they flash the boarding pass on their smartphone screen.

Iberia is testing the luggage tag system on domestic flights in Spain before expanding the system to international flights in a few weeks.

“As you can imagine, the time it saves varies very much depending on the airport, the day and the moment the passenger goes to the check-in area, but at peak moments it can save up to 30 minutes,� Iberia spokesman Santiago de Juan Martinez said.

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