The number of reported bicycle damages caused by air luggage transportation increased by almost 70 percent in 2016 compared to the previous year, according to the airline Swiss. The main reason for this is that baggage staff are overwhelmed by the ever-increasing quantities of bulky bike cases and often handle them very carelessly due to a lack of time. "Damage to luggage can happen from time to time. However, the frequency of such cases with bicycles is enormous, and the amounts of damage that we have to pay out reached almost seven figures in 2016," says Swiss media spokeswoman Karin Müller.

Self-loading bikes as a solution

To counteract this, Swiss is introducing bike self-loading. Passengers with bicycles arrive not 90 but 150 minutes before departure and can then load their bikes themselves under supervision and unload them after landing. Should something break anyway, all liability lies with the passenger. After some adjustments to the infrastructure and check-in systems, the first passengers will be able to use the self-loading option from April 1, 2018, according to Swiss. However, this will only apply to medium and long-haul flights. The baggage regulations and security precautions will also remain unchanged.

With biker jets to three Swiss bike destinations

Swiss is playing a pioneering role in aviation with the self-loading of bicycles. But the airline is also showing plenty of pioneering spirit with its other offers: during the summer season, Swiss' Jumbolino fleet flies to Samedan, Lugano and Sion once a day during the week and twice a day at weekends, especially for mountain bikers. To ensure that the flight to the respective trail destination is worthwhile, it is sufficient to check in just under 40 minutes before departure. The flights are offered at a flat rate of 79 francs.

With these offers, Swiss is responding to capacity bottlenecks in rail traffic and congestion problems on the north-south axis and the A1 highway.