In recent time’s we’ve had people tracking their bags when airlines can’t find them. Now here’s something new: a passenger tracking an item she left on a plane — to an airport employee’s home.

Earlier in March, Alisabeth Hayden, from Washington state in the US, was separated from her AirPods — Apple’s pricey micro headphones — while disembarking from a plane in San Francisco. She swiftly realized that they appeared to have been stolen.

Officials with the San Francisco Airport Police Department have submitted the case to the San Mateo District Attorney’s office, which will decide whether to file charges.

After 12 days, Hayden finally got her AirPods back but this time around it was damaged.

“They look like they’ve been stomped on,” she says. “They were wrapped in a toilet paper-sized piece of bubble wrap. Why bother?”

United Airlines offered Hayden $271.91 to purchase a new pair of AirPods plus 5,000 miles.

Disembarking from the plane at San Francisco International Airport — and a little disoriented after a nine-hour flight from Tokyo — she left her denim jacket on her seat, at the back of the plane. 

“I realized before I was even off the plane,” she says. “I was the third from last off the plane, so I asked the flight attendant if I could go and get it. He said no — I was required by federal law to get off the plane and stand beside it, where the strollers are brought to. I was tired, he said he’d bring it to me, I said OK.”

He did indeed bring it to her — and she boarded her next flight to Seattle.

“A child was screaming next to me and I thought, ‘At least I have my AirPods,'” she remembers. She reached for her jacket — she’d left the two breast pockets buttoned up, one with her earphones, one with some Japanese Yen inside it.

“The pockets were open, and my AirPods were gone,” she says.

CASE STUDY

In cases as this if the airport worker is willing to return the AirPods, she should reach out to them to arrange a pickup or mailing. If the worker is not responsive or uncooperative, she can also contact the airline or the airport’s lost and found department to report the incident and see if they can assist in retrieving the AirPods.

It’s also a good idea for her to keep a record ot any communication or attempts to retrieve the AirPods.

It’s important for travelers to keep their personal belongings safe while traveling.

If Alisabeth believes her Airpods were stolen, she should report the incident to the airline and file a report with the airport authorities as soon as possible.

It’s also a good idea to contact her travel insurance provider to see if they cover lost/damaged items like her Airpods.

Additionally, she can check with Apple’s customer service to see if they have any options for replacing her Airpods.