Paper tickets are out. In today’s Europe, it is almost impossible to meet passengers standing in queues at airports with paper tickets. Instead, everybody has a print out from their email account with a barcode. Nobody is complaining. The system drastically reduces the risk of ticket loss and saves huge amounts of needless paper.
The International Air Travel Association has pointed out that the implementation of the system is a vital step towards modernising the whole industry. Now the industry has gone one step further and is now, on some journeys, offering passengers the possibility of receiving flight details and boarding cards on their mobile phone.
This service is currently available for Air France passengers using the route between Paris and Amsterdam. The text messages contain a barcode which passengers can use to check in. This system absolutely nullifies the risk of losing checking in details or losing tickets. Recent research has proven that airline passengers suffer a lot more stress than road travellers or cruisers. These new services are certain to go a long way towards soothing the stress involved in travelling by plane. Bmi Baby is also experimenting with this system for passengers travelling from Edinburgh. Delta, Air Canada, Continental and Japan Airlines also offer cell-phone check in.
