Myth or Reality: Is Red Luggage Loaded onto Airplanes First?

A popular TikTok video from @airportlife_ featured an airline employee loading about a dozen red suitcases into the cargo hold of a plane before touching any other colored bags.

The brief video raised the question, “Do you know why red bags are prioritized?” Some viewers speculated that the bright color acts as a visual signal for baggage handlers to indicate they're nearing the end of unloading. Others suggested that brightly colored bags, placed at the back of the cargo area, are less likely to be overlooked. Ultimately, this method could mean that red bags are the last to show up at baggage claim.

But is this video accurate, or are the 81.1 million viewers (and counting) being misled? To get to the bottom of it, we reached out to several airlines for clarity on their baggage loading practices. Here’s what we found out.

“Having begun my career at Delta as a ramp agent responsible for loading and unloading bags (among various other tasks) for incoming and outgoing flights, I can assure you there’s no validity to this red luggage theory circulating on TikTok,” stated Drake Castañeda, who now works as a communications manager at Delta, in an interview with Dinogo.

In a response video also shared on TikTok, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines dismissed the red luggage claim as “nonsense,” stating that the color of your bag is irrelevant when flying.

Regarding loading procedures, Castañeda explained that Delta prioritizes bags belonging to travelers with elite status on Delta or within the SkyTeam alliance. This status is marked by a special yellow tag during check-in, ensuring those bags reach baggage claim first. Next, handlers differentiate between connecting and “local” bags (i.e., bags remaining at the destination) to speed up their delivery to the conveyor belt. After that, bags are loaded in the order they were stored in the holding area, without further sorting.

Cameron Greenberg, a spokesperson for Alaska Airlines, informed Dinogo that their approach is similar, with the added focus on prioritizing mobility aids and assistive devices for guests with disabilities. These items are loaded last but offloaded first to ensure they are returned to guests as close to the aircraft as possible, in compliance with Part 382 of the Air Carrier Access Act.

For those with red luggage, having this myth dispelled is likely a relief; it means they won't face longer waits than other passengers to reclaim their bags.