Frequent travelers will know that most airlines in the U.S. will only start accepting checked bags four hours before a domestic flight and six hours before an international one.
The exact timeframes differ slightly in different parts of the world while some airports also have an early, or “twilight”, bag dropoff that lets travelers with a morning flight to check their baggage the night before and then go straight to security in the morning.
European low-cost airline EasyJet currently allows this type of night-before bag dropoff at Edinburgh Airport while British Airways and Virgin Atlantic have it at London Heathrow and Manchester Airport, respectively.
United Airlines to expand Twilight Bag Drop program
In the U.S., United Airlines has become the first airline to start testing the Twilight Bag Drop program at its hub of Chicago O’Hare Airport (ORD) back in March.
Rather than rolling it out as a new service, the airline has been sending passengers with a flight taking off from Chicago before 9 a.m. an email saying that they have the option of checking their bags curbside the day before. The program was meant to test how many customers would take up the option and whether early dropoff would cause strain on airport workers.
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“Fly through the airport in the morning without stressing about bag drop, just head straight to security,” the email sent to eligible travelers read. The bags needed to be dropped off at a United counter between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. the day before the flight.
In a recent announcement, United said that rollout was very successful with nearly 1,600 bags checked this way between March and July. Reception from customers was “overwhelmingly positive” and the airline is looking to expand Twilight Bag Drop to a longer period and potentially additional airports although the exact ones have not yet been confirmed.
United started actively promoting the option for the weekend around the Fourth of July as a way to bring down the time travelers spend in various lines during the busy morning periods.
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The other changes that United Airlines is making to baggage dropoff in 2026
Earlier in the year, observant travelers also noticed that United may be planning to roll out home baggage pick-up for those who want to see it collected directly from their place.
“Skip bag drop,” a pop-up that some travelers booked out of Chicago reported seeing in June 2026 alongside a prompt to enter their zip code read. “We’ll pick up your bags the day before your flight FOR FREE!”
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United has not officially announced or confirmed the service so it appears that it is another pilot program meant to test it as an option to a small number of travelers in a specific geographical area.
A home pick-up option would be significantly more complicated logistically as it would require separate operators offering ground delivery outside the airport. At the moment, United and several other major airlines offer baggage delivery services in which one can request delivery of checked bags to one’s home or hotel after arrival by the same service that brings bags that were delayed or otherwise separated from their travelers.
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