Baggage handler

Unloading baggage from a bag belt

In the airline industry, a baggage handler is a person who loads and unloads baggage (suitcases or luggage), and other cargo (airfreight, mail, counter-to-counter packages) for transport via aircraft.

Within the airline industry, a baggage handler is often referred to as a "Rampie" or "Ramper": one who handles cargo on the "ramp" (outside the airline industry, the ramp is popularly referred to as the "tarmac", a term popularized by the media). A pejorative term for Rampie/Ramper (used by some Flight Attendants) is "Ramp Rat". Other terms for baggage handlers may include "throwers" and "Ramp Agents".

Baggage handlers also work jobs which are out of view of the flying public. Some of those places are the bag room, operations (or load control) and the air freight warehouse.

When baggage is checked in at the ticket counter or with a sky cap (where it receives a bag tag indicating the passenger's itinerary), it is often placed onto a moving bag belt which carries the baggage to an unseen destination within the airport. That unseen destination is the bag room. This is where numerous checked bags are sorted so that they will be loaded onto the proper flight. The bag tag which was previously affixed to the baggage during check-in is then read by a baggage handler and placed into the proper bag cart (usually a 4-wheeled trailer) or ULD (a machine-loadable container). The bag cart or ULD is then eventually pulled from the bag room by a bag tug and out to the aircraft for loading by baggage handlers.

In addition to "pushing" an aircraft from the terminal gate (with a "push tug" or "tow motor") to position it for engine start and eventual taxi, baggage handlers also may tow aircraft to and from another gate or to a "remote" or RON ("remain over night") parking area . There will be a person in the cockpit to communicate with ATC ground control (for movement clearance) and for operation of the APU ("auxiliary power unit"), brakes, lights, etc, and another person towing the aircraft with a tow motor (and who is on a headset, communicating with the cockpit).

Operations (load control) agent: An aircraft has weight and balance limitations in order to ensure safe operation. There is a limit to how much a loaded aircraft can weigh; therefore the cargo, passenger and fuel load must be distributed so that the aircraft is "in balance" -- in other words, not too nose-heavy or tail-heavy. One of the jobs of the Operations agent is to ensure that the aircraft--as finally loaded--is "legal" (within safe limits) before the aircraft departs the gate. Upon satisfaction of this mandated requirement, that data is used to generate information which the pilot requires in order to ensure the safe operation of the "equipment" (aircraft).

Warehouse agent: The air freight warehouse is where inbound and outbound air freight is processed. It is usually located on or adjacent to airport property and is usually separate from the passenger terminal. This is a secure (sterile) area where only authorized persons are allowed access. If inbound international shipments are involved and have not been cleared by customs, those shipments (and the warehouse) may be "in bond" which requires additional security clearance/authorization of employees.

Various Jobs of Baggage Handlers

Ramp Agent: The people working on the ramp that are typically seen loading bags by passengers and various occupants of the airport are refered to as "Ramp Agents". They are responsible for various things such as ensuring the inbound flights they are working are unloaded in a timely fashion. On outbound flights the ramp agents will load the flight and in some instances be responsible for accounting for what baggage may exist in what compartments to ensure proper weight and balance limits are not exceeded, although this job is often the responsibility of Flight Operations employees.

Transfer Agent: This term is loosely used to refer to any agent who operates a vehicle that is used to transfer bags either connecting from one flight to another or to refer to the agent carrying bags from the "bag room" to the proper flight.

Offloader: The "offloader" is the agent in charge of delivering bags from an inbound aircraft to the baggage claim carousel.

Lavatory Agent: Each aircraft equipped with a bathroom or lavatory needs to expend its waste somehow. This is where the Lavatory or "lav" agent comes in. After an inbound aircraft arrives it is the lav agent's job to flush the lav system. As would be expected this is one of the less sought after jobs on the ramp. Cities in which many aircraft from a single airline arrive lavatory agents will drive large trucks equipped to handle the large ammount of waste that needs to be disposed of. In places where fewer or smaller aircraft are being serviced a "lav cart" (essentially a small lav truck pulled behind a Tug) is used to service the lavatories.

Mail/Freight Agent: As mail and freight arrives at a destination to either terminate at that location or continue on to another destination certified agents are necessary to handle and deliver US Mail or freight. They are responsible for scanning each package and deliver it to its proper aircraft.

Bag Room Agent: As baggage is delivered into the bag room via conveyor it is the room agent's job to sort bags into their proper carts to ensure bags are taken to the correct flight.

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To see the job description of the people who work the ramp at a Fixed Base Operator, see Line Technician