I'm planning a trip soon to California and am looking for info on how they are handling the new Copa flights from DAV then on to international locations. Specifically, I have a choice between a 1.25 hour stop in PTY or a nearly 8 hour layover.
Will they check bags through and handle the international check-in stuff from David such that I can expect to make the earlier onward Copa flight? Or, will I have to leave the gate area at Tocumen and go through all the regular check in matters there?
Any experience you wish to share would be much appreciated. I will probably also ask Annavilma for advice, but actual experience would help too.
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Last month, booked through Anavilma, I flew Copa from David via PTY to Boston. Layover in PTY was a little over an hour. The Copa agent at David couldn't have been nicer, and checked my bag all the way through. It was in Boston when I arrived there.
My return from a different city involved a change of planes in the US, again with just an hour between flights. When I arrived at the gate for my second leg to PTY the Copa agents were expecting me, had been holding my bag until they knew I would be on the flight, and assured me that my bag was being put on the plane. It was one of the first off the carousel at Tocumen, where I did have to pick it up; as soon as I went through the security check with it, a Copa baggage handler picked it up to transfer it to the David flight. I love Copa.
Update - April 15th, 2015. Went out DAV to PTY to IAD (Dulles -DC). Totally smooth. 2 bags checked through max 50 lbs. each. At PTY we were bussed from the plane to security, not customs. Yes, a second security check and then a third at the boarding gate.
Coming back was a bit different. At IAD I was told that I would have to collect my bags at PTY and go through customs. The bags did have the DAV tag as the final destination. At PTY I inquired at the baggage services desk and they said that I did NOT need to collect the bags that they would be put on the plane. So, I just went through the exit scan for my carry on.
Now for the tricky part - one needs to go to the far end of the terminal following the signs for "domestic terminal" . By the Banco National, go outside and then back inside. BUT, the domestic terminal is not open until one hour prior to departure. So go back to the main terminal and find a place to hang out.
At the domestic terminal another security check and then onto a bus to the aircraft.
At DAV, sure enough, both bags appeared.
Not totally seamless but a whole lot better than Albrook.
Safe travels.
Additional info - checked in today at Tocumen for David (i.e.not an inbound connection). If you have bags to check, the special check-in desk is the extreme left desk of Copa's row at the departures check-in level.
The stairs near that desk take you down to the ground (arrivals) level and follow Alan Nielsen's directions in above post.
If you've done a web check-in and have no bags to check, then skip the above and go directly to National Departures.
New and positive experience today - we flew into Tocumen from Chile on COPA with one hour and 20 minutes to make the connection to the COPA David flight.
Our four bags had been ticketed in Santiago through to David, and arrived promptly at the PTY carousel. A baggage handler approached us at the carousel and offered to take the bags back into the system following the customs scan. I declined, as I felt the loss of control was not good idea and we would be more secure re-checking the bags upstairs at the "Nacional" desk.
A COPA agent was at a small podium right past the customs scanners, and I inquired about re-checking the luggage. She trotted back into the carousel area and came back with the original baggage handler. With the airline seal of approval, I now felt confident enough to let him have the cart and a propina. Next time, I will look for someone to accomplish the transfer among the baggage handlers.
Total time, gate-to-gate at PTY: 35 minutes.
Total wait time at DAV for the bags: 25 minutes - The sniffing dog takes his time...
Two weeks ago we flew Copa from DAV to the USA.
Luggage checked through without a problem.
Upon returning yesterday our baggage showed up on the carousel at PTY.
We had hoped, given the experience of some others, that we would not see it until DAV but knew we had better check.
PTY airport personnel told us that baggage arriving there from other countries must then clear Panamanian customs using the old procedure.
Regardless, it was great not having to switch airports and use Fletes.
BTW: Copa transported out four nearly 50 pound bags without protest.
Unfortunately, luggage carts are not (yet?) available at DAV.
Dean, forgot to ask, were your bags checked through to DAV? Did your tags say DAV?
We had to ask twice in MVD and the agent had to go chase the bags down the chute to relabel them for us. We were amazed when he actually apparently succeeded in doing so. Kudos, CM Uruguyan employee whose name I didn't catch!
Agree with your hypothesis that some have benefited from a lack of procedural competence as PTY and COPA are not yet accoustomed to handling domestic flights.
Wish we had been amongst those lucky ones!
Dean, were you on Copa all the way? We just got back from Medellin on Copa. Bags were transferred on to David without our having to touch them in PTY.
COPA all the way.
Clearly COPA has been inconsistent as they are working out how to handle the transition from international to domestic flights.
I am supposing that what you experienced inbound will be changed because, understandably, a screening should take place of those entering from any foreign country.
At least that is what I have always encountered when returning to the USA.
Hopefully, COPA will make it as painless as possible!
This could be one of those situations where we are (at least temporarily) benefiting from a lack of competence... or a desire to promote the service.
However, I think that if we continue to impress on CM that we WANT to give them our money if they make it convenient to do so, perhaps they will install a luggage transfer desk...
As I have said, El Presidente (de Copa) is amazingly responsive and apparently yields some power at PTY despite totally incompetent management there, possibly because of his current position as newly appointed chair of the National Council of Tourism.