Qantas sells passengers' lost property to staff

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Property left behind by Qantas passengers - including cellphones, cameras and computers - is regularly auctioned off to airline staff.

A report in Sydney's Sunday Telegraph yesterday revealed that the airline did not actively try to return items to passengers who left them behind on aircraft.

Instead, the items were bought by staff at regular auctions.

"Some of our airports conduct staff auctions one or two times per year for unclaimed items, with the money raised being donated to a charity that has been set up for terminally ill Qantas staff that can no longer work, or other charitable causes," an airline spokeswoman said.

Qantas, which generates around A$6.9 billion ($8.6 billion) each year, told the Sunday Telegraph the money raised by the auctions went to charities such as the Salvation Army and Sydney-based Mission Australia.

It told the newspaper that hundreds of unclaimed items, "sometimes enough to fill a van", were given to charity.

People had up to four weeks to claim a missing item from the airline, after which time it would be given to charity.

However, when passengers phone in to report missing property, they are told to leave a message describing the lost gear, before being told immediately that the item is unlikely to be recovered.

Air New Zealand does not have such auctions and spokesman Mark Street yesterday said that staff had no access to lost property.

Every effort was made to get items back to their owners, Mr Street said, by tracing passengers through their seat numbers and details.

"And if it's a valuable item, we always look to get it back to them."

People who left property on Air New Zealand flights had up to four months to claim it before it was given to the Salvation Army, a hospice or wherever it might be best received.

Schools or libraries were given lost items such as books.