Over the Fourth of July weekend, United Airlines has introduced the new Twilight Bag Drop feature at O’Hare International Airport. Allowing travellers with an early flight to drop off their bags the night before, the initiative should make the flying experience less stressful.
The Fourth of July weekend is traditionally one of the busiest of the year across airports in the United States. Millions of people are going on holiday or visiting family, which can lead to crowded departure halls and long queues at the luggage check-in.
In order to decrease the luggage friction as much as possible and to make travelling a little less stressful, for the Fourth of July 2026, United Airlines introduced its new Twilight Bag Drop scheme at its hub, O’Hare International Airport. Although tests had been running for months beforehand, the busy travel weekend was the ideal occasion for a hard launch.
@kyemartin14 Ultimate pre-flight move? Or too much planning??? Lmk in the comments… @NBC Chicago ♬ original sound – Kye Martin
“Fly through the airport in the morning without stressing about bag drop, just head straight to security,” United Airlines said in an email to eligible customers seen by USA Today Travel.
Thanks to the Twilight Bag Drop, United Airlines passengers travelling from O’Hare International Airport with a flight scheduled between 5:00 am and 9:00 am can drop their checked bags the night before. Drop-offs can be made between 7:00 pm and 10:00 pm outside Terminal 1 by door 1Da on the departures level.
Although the service is free for all eligible passengers, travellers still need to complete the online check-in beforehand, through the United Airlines app or website. During the drop-off, customers will be asked for ID, after which the staff will tag the luggage and send it for sorting and screening. On the morning of the departure, the check-in and bag drop process is thus avoided.
Terminal 3 security line at O’Hare this morning, 6/5/26, at 6:10am pic.twitter.com/wH0PHozoOb
— Hannah Anthony (@20UnDiSpuTed13) July 6, 2026
Although the launch of the service at O’Hare International Airport is being widely shared, it is not the only United Airlines hub to offer the service. Passengers travelling from Guam (GUM) can also use the scheme, although the timetable slightly varies.
“If your flight leaves Guam before 9:30 am, you can check bags the night before, between 7:30 pm and 9:30 pm. Food that can go bad should still go through regular check-in,” United specifies on its website.
It is yet unclear whether or not United Airlines plans on introducing the service at other hubs as well, if the launch goes as expected. However, according to travel outlet Live And Let’s Fly, the airline is also working on a Home Bag Pick-Up service. Reportedly, some passengers in eligible locations have already been offered a free trial, which means their luggage is being picked up at their homes before their flight.
For travellers, such a Home Bag Pick-Up service would be a great addition to United Airlines’ offer. Not only would it allow them to avoid lugging around heavy bags, but it would also greatly diminish the need to arrive (very) early at the airport in order to check in their bags. For the airline, however, the logistics of such an operation could prove to be quite complicated.
