Is "priority baggage delivery" really a benefit?

The question I ask you today is, is “priority baggage delivery” really an elite benefit? Do they even make it a priority to deliver your bag? It seems like more often than not this “benefit” fails to meet its desired outcome.

I can say with 100% certainty that on both Delta and American my bags rarely come priority. On my flights down to Miami (AA) my bag hardly comes before non-priority bags, yet, passengers whose bag does not have a priority sticker usually get their bags first. I’ve had the same issue on international flights (outbound/inbound), I guess on international flights I can expect it more because they are usually all outsourced or have little knowledge of US-based airline commodities.

Even though its more convenient for me to check a bag at the airport so that I don’t have to carry it around all day, I’ve recently started to avoid checking it in because of the extra 45 minutes I spend at the airport between checking it in and then waiting for it at the baggage claim carousel. If I don’t have to take any big liquids or gels with me, I’ll usually just carry it on nowadays.

To be honest, as much as I love American (compared to DL/UA) they are worse at delivering priority bags than Delta is. On Delta I’ve had a better success rate at getting my bag before non-elites and first class passengers than on American and US Airways.

I’ve contacted both American and US Airways about this in the past and they just respond with the generic “thank you for your feedback, we will look into it” email.

What has your experience with priority baggage delivery been like? Share it with us in the comments section below!