Incheon Airport expands US baggage transfer service to Detroit and Minneapolis after Atlanta
South Korea has added two more US airports to its program allowing travelers from Seoul's Incheon airport to connect to a transfer flight in the United States without having to claim and recheck baggage for the flight to their final destination, the transport ministry said Wednesday.
The International Remote Baggage Screening program had been available only for passengers transferring at Atlanta, Georgia, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.
The program will be extended to two international airports in Detroit and Minneapolis starting Thursday, it said.
The expansion was made in cooperation with the US Transportation Security Administration, and Customs and Border Protection, with the two sides also agreeing to further improve transfer procedures in the future.
Under the system, X-ray images of baggage checked at Incheon are transmitted in advance to the US, allowing security officials there to screen luggage before the aircraft arrives. If no issues are detected, baggage is transferred directly to connecting flights.
The program was first introduced at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in August last year.
With the expanded service, transit passengers on Incheon-Detroit and Incheon-Minneapolis routes will be able to board connecting flights without reclaiming baggage, reducing transfer times by at least 20 minutes, the ministry said. (Yonhap)
