A B727 HAS TO RETURN LAND AFTER INGESTING SOME BAGGAGE FROM AN OPENED BAGGAGE DOOR DURING TKOF.

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OPS AT THE GATE WERE NORMAL WITH THE EXCEPTION THAT THE AFT AIRSTAIRS WERE RAISED EARLY IN THE BOARDING PROCESS. I DIRECTED THE RAMP AGENT TO LOWER THE AIRSTAIRS UNTIL WE WERE NEAR DEP TIME. AT DEP TIME; THE AIRSTAIRS WERE RAISED AND THE SO NOTED THAT THE AIRSTAIRS AND ALL DOOR LIGHTS WERE OUT. PUSHBACK AND TAXI WERE NORMAL. WE DID A DELAYED ENG START OF OUR LAST ENG. THE SO SHUT DOWN THE APU AND CONFIRMED ALL LIGHTS WERE OUT AND DID A BULB TEST. OUR PLANNED TKOF WT WAS 181900 LBS. ON TKOF ROLL JUST PRIOR TO VR (145 KTS) I HEARD AN UNIDENTED RADIO CALL THAT A DOOR WAS OPEN. ABOUT THE SAME TIME; THE SO INFORMED ME THAT THE AFT CARGO DOOR LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. THERE WAS NO ADVERSE ACFT CTL CHARACTERISTICS. THE TKOF WAS CONTINUED. AFTER TKOF; TWR INFORMED US THAT IT WAS OUR ACFT THAT HAD THE OPEN DOOR. I RETRACTED THE GEAR AND LEFT THE FLAPS AT 15 DEGS IN ORDER TO REMAIN AT A SLOW AIRSPD. THE FO WAS GIVEN THE AIRPLANE FOR FLYING; WHILE THE SO AND I ACCOMPLISHED THE CHKLISTS. WE REQUESTED VECTORS TO REMAIN CLR OF POPULATED AREAS AND A CLB TO 6000 FT TO DUMP FUEL. I CONFERRED WITH THE FLT ATTENDANTS AND HAD SOME PAX MOVED AWAY FROM THE CARGO DOOR AREA. APCHING 5000 FT THE #3 ENG MADE REPEATED COMPRESSOR STALLS. WE ACCOMPLISHED A PRECAUTIONARY SHUTDOWN OF THE #3 ENG. AN EMER WAS DECLARED WITH ATC. RADIO COORD WAS MADE WITH OUR RAMP TWR AND OUR DISPATCHER. EMER EQUIP WAS ALSO REQUESTED AS A PRECAUTION. FUEL WAS DUMPED TO GIVE US A LNDG WT OF APPROX 154000 LBS. THE APCH AND LNDG ON RWY 36L WAS NORMAL AND UNEVENTFUL. AFTER CLRING THE RWY I HAD THE FIRE/RESCUE CREW CHK OUR ACFT FOR DAMAGE. FINDING NO DAMAGE; OTHER THAN AN OPEN AFT CARGO DOOR; THEY CLRED US TO TAXI TO THE RAMP. OUR FLT ATTENDANTS DID AN EXCELLENT JOB; OUR PAX REMAINED CALM; AND THERE WERE NO INJURIES OR MEDICAL PROBS. THE REASON THE AFT CARGO CAME OPEN; AT THIS POINT; IS STILL UNKNOWN. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 436393: PRIOR TO PUSHBACK I CONFIRMED ALL DOOR LIGHTS WERE EXTINGUISHED ON THE SO'S WARNING PANEL. I TESTED THE BULBS TWICE (BOTH TIMES THE BULBS TESTED GOOD). AFTER THE DELAYED START OF THE #3 ENG AND SHUT DOWN OF THE APU I CONFIRMED ALL LIGHTS WERE OUT ON THE SO'S WARNING PANEL AND TESTED THE LIGHT BULBS (TEST WAS GOOD). AT ABOUT VR (145 KIAS) WHILE MAKING A QUICK CHK OF THE OIL PRESSURE ON THE SO'S PANEL; I NOTICED THE 'AFT CARGO' DOOR LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. I MADE ONE CALM ANNOUNCEMENT OF THIS FACT ONLY; DUE TO THE CRITICAL PHASE OF FLT (TO AVOID A HIGH SPD ABORT). AT ABOUT THE SAME TIME ON FREQ 124.15 THERE WERE A COUPLE OF CALLS ABOUT THINGS FALLING OFF OR OUT OF AN ACFT'S AFT DOOR. THE AFT FLT ATTENDANT CALLED FORWARD TO CONFIRM A PAX SAW THE DOOR OPEN. EITHER THE LIGHT WARNING SYS WAS FAULTY OR THE DOOR CAME OPEN DUE TO SPD; VIBRATION AND PRESSURIZATION AND AN INCOMPLETE LOCK OF THE HANDLE. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 437014: AT THIS POINT I WAS VERY GLAD TO BE IN A 3-MAN COCKPIT. CRM TRAINING KICKED IN AS THE CAPT DELEGATED FLYING AND ATC COM TO ME; THE FO; WHILE HE INITIATED CLB; DSCNT; APCH; DOOR OPEN INFLT; AND ENG FAILURE; SHUTDOWN CHKLISTS WITH THE SO. TOTAL TIME FROM TKOF TO LNDG WAS 18 MINS. I AM A STRONG BELIEVER IN A 3-MAN CREW AND I FEEL THE INDUSTRY MOVE TOWARD 2-MAN ACFT IN ORDER TO REDUCE COSTS IS PLAYING THE ODDS.