Austrian trials Materna IPS bag tag solution

Austrian Airlines is trialling a Materna IPS solution that enables passengers to drop off their baggage on trains from Linz and Salzburg to Vienna Airport.

The AIRail baggage drop programme, which also involves Austrian rail operator ÖBB, is running from August 23 to October 31, 2021. Passengers’ boarding passes are scanned by a smartphone, and baggage tags are printed using a mobile bag tag printer. The luggage is then transported to the airport for the passenger, enabling them to avoid check-in queues.   

“The mobile bag tag printing on our AIRail connections illustrates the progress we have made in terms of digital processes,” said Austrian Airlines CCO Michael Trestl. “We are delighted to have Materna IPS as our partner in this endeavour.”  

Normally passengers can check-in at one of 60 counters at Vienna before dropping off their luggage at one of the Austrian hub’s 46 self-bag-drop facilities. The trial offers passengers arriving by AIRail a faster, more modern way to check in their bags, in addition to encouraging them to travel to the airport by train. 

Introducing the bag drop programme on Austrian Airlines’ AIRail connections is just the latest stage in Materna IPS’ self-service offerings for passengers flying from Vienna Airport. In 2016, the German IT provider installed the first self-service units on-site, adding more in the years since.