A total of 7.8 million lost and mishandled...

"This is a sum the industry can"t afford to lose in the current economic climate. The International Air Transport Agency (IATA) estimated total airline losses of $9.4 billion in 2009," SITA said in its annual 2010 Baggage Report.

The number of bags, lost and mishandled by air carriers worldwide, last year decreased 24% from 2008. The improvement saved the industry $460 million year-on-year.

However, the decrease is seen mainly as a result of fewer people travelling and fewer people checking in bags to avoid transport fees.

While the industry continues to encourage passengers to travel with fewer bags, many European and North American airlines continue to benefit from additional revenues related to luggage charges. According to AirlineForecasts, air carriers received almost $2.5 billion in profit from baggage fees globally from September 2008 to September 2009.

MOSCOW, March 25 (RIA Novosti)