Man attaches camera to suitcase so he can ‘find out’ what airport does with luggage

A man has captured the journey his suitcase took through an airport after attaching a camera to the bag before checking it at luggage drop off.

Thomas Miller, who goes by the username @thomasmiller719 on TikTok, uploaded a video of the unique perspective captured by his suitcase last month. In the clip, he began by explaining it was “time to find out what the airport does with my bag”.

After attaching a small camera to the bottom of the suitcase, Miller then captured himself wheeling the bag to the bag dropoff location in the airport.

The video captured by the miniature camera saw the suitcase get placed on a long conveyor belt, which carried it along a number of turns as it made its way into a large room in the airport.

The bag then appeared to exit a machine, which may have been a security screening, before it was then transferred onto a different conveyor belt. It captured a moment that the suitcase passed by an airport employee.

The video of the bag’s journey concluded with footage of the suitcase being placed on a large pile of other suitcases.

Although the video did not show the process, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) notes that luggage undergoes a screening similar to the one travellers go through before the checked baggage is transported by the airline onto your respective flight.

The process of loading the bags onto a plane is often done manually, with a previous video showing the complicated way luggage is loaded into the hold of an aircrafts.

Miller’s video has since been viewed more than 16 million times on TikTok, where viewers have admitted to being entertained by the bag’s journey.

“Why is this so satisfying?” one person asked, while another viewer said: “That was such a fun adventure.”

“Nice to see nothing happened. Thank you!” someone else wrote.

Others revealed that they weren’t impressed by the behind-the-scenes footage, with some suggesting that they expected more “drama”.

“I knew what to expect, yet I wanted more ‘drama,’” one person wrote, while someone else said: “I don’t know what I was expecting but I know I was expecting more.”

The video also prompted numerous comparisons to the scene in Toy Story 2 when Woody and his friends attempt to rescue Jessie inside an airport.

“Yeah I know I’ve seen Toy Story 2,” one person joked.

“Why was I expecting to see Woody?” someone else asked.

Although recording in airports is generally permitted, The Points Guy notes that “recording Border Patrol and Customs agents is not recommended” as the “majority of these interactions are not considered public,” and that, outside of the US, it is “not recommended that you photograph, film or record any government agent or government building without prior permission from that government”.

The travel outlet also notes that some airlines only allow recording of “personal events,” with American Airlines’ policy stating: “Use of still and video cameras, film or digital, is permitted only for recording personal events. Photography or video recording of airline personnel, equipment, or procedures is strictly prohibited.”

The Independent has contacted TSA for comment.