Short transfer time - would AerLingus forward baggage for us?

Hi all,
Apologies for long thread. Booked on ebookers.ie for Bali in Nov. Dublin-Heathrow with Aer Lingus, Heathrow-remainder of journey with Malaysia Airlines. Was informed by ebookers we will have check in again with our bags at Heathrow.

I am a bit worried about Heathrow as we have to get from Terminal 1 (from Dublin), collect our bags, make our way to Terminal 3(for Kuala Lumpar), check in again and there is only 1hr and 50 minutes between the flights. Even if there is no delay in the first flight it will be really tight.

I rang ebookers and asked the rep if it would be possible to have our bags forwarded by Aer Lingus to Malaysia Airlines (at least that way we could go straight to Terminal 3 without having to wait for bags) and he said I would have to contact them myself. I rang earlier today and was on hold for so long I gave up. I will try again later but was wondering if anyone here might know in the meantime.

So I was wondering if anyone knows if Aer Lingus provide this service where they transfer luggage from one flight to another? If not we will be very tight on time. I saw the earlier thread here about transferring at Heathrow and am worried that we won't have enough time, but then I also think surely ebookers cannot sell flights without allowing adequate time for transfers? Would appreciate any advice people may have and would be interested to hear from anyone who has been in a similar situation?

Thanks all...

my understanding of baggage transfer is that its dependent on your ticket. So if Ebookers issues 1 ticket to you, so all the flight are on the same ticket, you can book your bag through to the final destination. However if 2 separate tickets are issued it not something they will automatically provide to you (Aer Lingus I mean), but it may be worth asking the check-in staff to do it.
You can check the minimum transfer time recommendation between terminals at [broken link removed].

thank you mell61, there's loads of info on that site, will get reading!

Aer Lingus aren't the most reliable when it comes to transfering baggage, particularly at Heathrow. See this post.

addob said:

Aer Lingus aren't the most reliable when it comes to transfering baggage, particularly at Heathrow. See this post.

Click to expand...

I wouldn't depend on Aer Lingus to transfer your baggage, from previous experience.

Your transfer time looks very tight for getting from T1 to T3. Terminal 3 is usually really busy and you must allow for baggage and security checks. Can u change to an earlier flight from Dublin - well worth paying the bit extra for your own peace of mind. You are not allowing any time for delays.

I am a bit worried about Heathrow as we have to get from Terminal 1 (from Dublin), collect our bags, make our way to Terminal 3(for Kuala Lumpar), check in again and there is only 1hr and 50 minutes between the flights. Even if there is no delay in the first flight it will be really tight.


Just as a point of information I work for an organisation that has to book a lot of flights for its employees and none of them will accept a connection in Heathrow that is less than 2 hours. Most of them prefer to stay away from Heathrow altogether!

B

I don't believe that Aer Lingus has an interline agreement with Malaysian. This means they will not interline your baggage for you. As the delivering carrier they would be liable for any costs incurred by late delivery to Malaysian.

I agree with previous posters that 1'50" seems very short.

British Midland have an interline agreement with Malaysian...

I have flights booked through ebookers from Cork - Heathrow - New York and i had the same problem as you, worried if i'd make my connection.I was advised here to ring ebookers which i did and they changed my connecting flight so i would have more time in between ,so give them a buzz and see what they say.

1hr 50m is far to tight for a transfer from T1 to T3 especially as you have to collect your bags on arrival, get a transfer bus to T3, check in and go through security - what time does the Malaysian check-in desk close at T3 ? Furthermore, there is always a high possibility of the aircraft having to stack (que) on the approach to LHR using up vital minutes that you need on the ground. Aer Lingus does not have an interline agreement with Malaysian and your bags will only be tagged to LHR fro DUB. My advice is to get an earleir flight to LHR - you should request ebookers to waive any change fee under the circumstances.

Hi all,

Thanks for all the replies. I got through to Aer Lingus yesterday and the girl told me that while they do have an interline agreement with Malaysian Airlines they do not guarantee delivery of baggage. She said I would have to wait til the morning of the flight and ask in Dublin when I check in, and it's possible they might still refuse to forward on the bags.

I think the safest thing to do is ring ebookers as you have suggested, and try to change to earlier flight. I'll ring them later today and post back with how I get on. Thanks again everyone..

Claregirl,
I honestly think that's your best option, collect your bags and put them through yourself as that way you know they have the very best chance of making the flight. I won't transfer through Heathrow again if I can avoid it an will now be flying home for christmas this year via Paris as last year they had over 6 hours to get my bags to BA and they didn't.
Good luck changing your flight, if ebookers are unable to make the change your other option is to show up at the airport early and try to get on an earlier Aer Lingus flight.

addob

Hi again,

Got in contact with ebookers and changed my dublin-heathrow flight to an earlier one. Unfortunately I had to pay €95 to do it, the guy I was talking to insisted that there would have been enough time on the original flight, and that ebookers would not sell these tickets if there was not. So basically, if I wanted to make a change it was up to me, but there would be an administration fee. Still for the sake of €95 I'd rather have peace of mind. Glad it's sorted out anyway. Thanks to everyone for replying.

Claregirl