IZUMISANO: Kansai International Airport in Japan can’t be held responsible for the less superlative performance of airlines or other stops on a traveller’s journey, but it claims its handlers never lose a bag.

In 30 years of operation, the airport serving the region around Osaka and Kyoto says it has never lost a suitcase, a set of golf clubs, a stroller or anything in fact — a feat its employees humbly shrug off as nothing special.

“We just follow the work processes and rules and do what we have to do,” Tsuyoshi Habuta, supervisor at CKTS, one of the handling companies at Kansai, said. There is no “special training” but Habuta and his teams handle more than 3,000 pieces of luggage every day with attention to detail.

“We carefully handle suitcases to avoid shocks. Suitcase handles are aligned in a direction that is easy for customers to pick up,” Habuta said. “We hand fragile items, strollers, surfboards and skis directly to passengers,” he said.

Published in Dawn, November 2nd, 2024