Passengers flying through LA, Seattle can now skip baggage claim at US transit

Passengers transiting through Los Angeles or Seattle after departing from Incheon International Airport will see their connection process dramatically simplified starting Tuesday.

South Korea's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced Tuesday that it is expanding its International Remote Baggage Screening, or IRBS, service to Los Angeles and Seattle airports. The service, developed in cooperation with US aviation security authorities since last year, previously covered Atlanta, Detroit and Minneapolis.

The system works by transmitting X-ray security images of checked baggage taken at Incheon to US authorities in real time. While the aircraft crosses the Pacific, staff at the US arrival airport remotely pre-screen the images. Bags that clear inspection are loaded directly onto the connecting flight without the passenger having to retrieve them.

Until now, passengers connecting to US domestic flights or other carriers at Los Angeles or Seattle faced significant inconvenience because their baggage was not automatically transferred. After arriving, travelers had to collect their bags, clear customs and a physical inspection, and then check the luggage in again at the connecting airline's counter.

The expansion enables what the ministry calls "baggage-free transit" — passengers on the two routes can board their connecting flights without stopping at baggage claim. Transit time, which typically runs about 90 minutes, is expected to drop to 70 minutes, a reduction of at least 20 minutes, or roughly 22 percent. The benefit is expected to be especially pronounced at Seattle, where the airport's layout requires passengers to collect baggage before clearing immigration and customs, meaning the elimination of that step will save considerably more time.

The service applies to passengers flying Korean Air and Delta Air Lines who meet standards set by US Customs and Border Protection, including data-privacy requirements and X-ray image quality criteria. It covers not only passengers departing directly from Incheon but also those transiting through Incheon from third countries on their way to the United States. Of the 421,000 total passengers who used the two routes last year, transit passengers accounted for 30.1 percent, or 127,000 people, all of whom stand to benefit directly. Streamlining the customs process for transit passengers is also expected to speed up baggage delivery for regular arriving passengers.

Lee Sang-heon, the ministry's airport policy director, said the expansion "is expected to contribute greatly not only to enhanced security through advanced technology but also to improved passenger convenience and the global competitiveness of Incheon Airport."

Meanwhile, the ministry said it plans to extend the service to other major US airports beyond Los Angeles and Seattle and to gradually increase the number of participating airlines.