pros and cons of checking in on the app for your flight

[Dznypal]

I just got an email about checking in 24 hrs before our flight on the app to get mobile boarding passes

now several questions
does it have to be on the app
or can I just print them at home like I usually do
what are the benefits of getting them on the app
Im always afraid somehow Im going to lose them
like delete or somehow just gone
what is the best way to do this
thanks

 

[scrappinginontario]

Which airline?

IWe fly Southwest and I do everything on my phone now. So easy!

 

[Dznypal]

Sorry I forgot to mention we’re on American

 

[EACarlson]

I always check in on the app, but get paper boarding passes at the airport. There are some security officers that will not accept a home printed boarding pass to get through. Phone battery dying, locking up or no service means I don't want to rely entirely on my phone to get on the plane.
Some people want it to be as seamless as possible and probably about two thirds of the people I see boarding are using the mobile BP on their phone.

 

[sam_gordon]

I always check in on the app, but get paper boarding passes at the airport. There are some security officers that will not accept a home printed boarding pass to get through. Phone battery dying, locking up or no service means I don't want to rely entirely on my phone to get on the plane.
Some people want it to be as seamless as possible and probably about two thirds of the people I see boarding are using the mobile BP on their phone.

I have not run into the bolded yet. About 70% of the times I've gone through TSA this year, they haven't asked to see a BP, just your ID.

You can check in online and print a BP at home or have it printed at the airport. However, if you're not checking luggage, having it printed at the airport will require an extra stop at the check in counter.

I agree phone issues can be a problem with eBP, and if you use eBP, make sure you know how to quickly call it up, especially if you're only using a single device for multiple travelers.

There have been article that if you do use paper BP, that you should not throw them out in the airport, and if you do, make sure you tear them up first. There's supposedly a concern about people scanning on the bar codes on them and finding out information about you.

 

[msmayor]

I always get my BP on my mobile...but then take a screen shot and use that. No worries about losing a piece of paper, no worries about any connectivity to retrieve the BP on email or through the app. I just go to 'photos' on my phone and there it is...regardless of cell service.

 

[sheilafri]

I always get my BP on my mobile...but then take a screen shot and use that. No worries about losing a piece of paper, no worries about any connectivity to retrieve the BP on email or through the app. I just go to 'photos' on my phone and there it is...regardless of cell service.

This! Take a screen shot and also put it in your wallet if you have an iPhone. The more back ups the better. You should be able to Google how to do that.

BTW, we took a screen shot of our DLP tickets (the QR Code part is most important) and good thing. I had real issues getting a cellular connection there and their wifi was incredibly slow. I’m an every second counts kind of person when I’m at Disney.

 

[_19disnA]

I prefer to print a paper boarding pass at home prior to travel. One less thing to go wrong if my phone battery dies, phone locks ups or there is some unusually long software update taking place when you least expect it. Wifi access at some airports is unreliable so trying to display the actual boarding pass from the airline website may not always work. Storing an image of the boarding pass on your phone could still cause issues if you phone locks up/crashes at the wrong time. You can also print a boarding pass at the airport kiosk when checking in with your luggage.

Often times, hotels will have a business center or at least somewhere with a computer to print your boarding pass since I don't believe you can print them more then 24 hrs prior to travel (so you can't print your return boarding pass while still at home). Some of this is a matter of personal preference and there no one 'best' way that works for everyone.

Haven't flown recently but in the past TSA always asked to see your ID & boarding pass (paper or phone) to insure you actually had a reservation for travel today.

 

[EACarlson]

Haven't flown recently but in the past TSA always asked to see your ID & boarding pass (paper or phone) to insure you actually had a reservation for travel today.

About a year ago TSA got the ID scanners installed at most airports. It scans the ID, verifies it's legitimacy and cross checks the manifests for that day. The only reason I've had to use a BP at TSA since then is when using CLEAR, they want to mark up a paper BP to show the screener that the ID has been confirmed.

 

[Mamabun]

I've flown American a bunch recently, domestic and international. This is a lot personal preference, but I'll echo what's been said above.

- I check in online as soon as I can - I use the app or the website, whichever is easier at the moment - haven't noticed a big difference.
- I don't print boarding passes at home, but I do take a picture/save a screenshot of my digital boarding pass(es), mainly because of connectivity worries, but also it's a bit of a pain to print at a hotel.
- Once upon a time, an airline scheduler told me that time of check-in was one of the tie-break factors when bumping folks if a change of aircraft or something makes the flight overbooked at the last minute. Not sure it has ever made one bit of difference for me, but all things being equal, I check-in 24hrs before a flight vs 6hrs before.
- I do stop at a kiosk on my way in and print boarding passes - this only takes a few minutes as kiosks are typically way faster than the counter. This is especially important if I'm flying with kids, as multiple boarding passes on my phone can be cumbersome and difficult if we have to separate.
- I have had security (but never an airline) refuse a home printed boarding pass, but it's rare. Glad I had the digital passes as a backup.
- One final comment about the app (and I'm talking American Airlines, specifically) - the chat feature on the app is one of the best ways to talk with someone if you need quick help, like during weather cancellations.

Hope you have a great trip.

 

[sam_gordon]

About a year ago TSA got the ID scanners installed at most airports. It scans the ID, verifies it's legitimacy and cross checks the manifests for that day. The only reason I've had to use a BP at TSA since then is when using CLEAR, they want to mark up a paper BP to show the screener that the ID has been confirmed.

At my home airport, which uses the ID scanner, I will have my phone already in ky backpack before I get to the ID check (since I know they have the tech). Last month, the ID guy said he needed the BP because he hadn't been trained on the ID only scanner.

So it can vary.

 

[Best Aunt]

For the flight from home:
I print out my boarding pass at home. I prefer to have my phone put away in my bag when I go through security and when I get on the plane. If my phone is put away, I'm less likely to lose it.

For the flight back home:
I'm usually checking a bag. If the airport has curbside check-in, I do that and ask the employee to print a boarding pass for me. If there is no curbside check-in, some airlines have a kiosk where you print the big label thing for your checked bag and you can print a boarding pass while you're at it. If there is no kiosk, then I'm stuck waiting in line to check my bag and I have them print a boarding pass for me.

If you want a paper boarding pass, there might be a kiosk you can use even if you aren't checking a bag.

I haven't flown American in years, so I can't address that airline specifically.

I used to have the front desk of my Disney hotel print a boarding pass for me. But one time the cast member didn't bother asking me whether or not I was checking a bag, and she messed it up. Since then, I don't have them print a boarding pass.

As PP said, some hotels have a business center, or even just a computer and printer in the lobby. I have done it that way in the past, but it makes me uncomfortable to log into my frequent flyer account on a public computer. (I know, I know, I probably do riskier things, but that bugs me.)

 

[sam_gordon]

wrong if my phone battery dies, phone locks ups or there is some unusually long software update taking place when you least expect it

I would hope most folks would have an idea if their phone has battery issues or randomly updates on its own.

I had a problem with the screen display on my phone, it had been happening for weeks before my trip. I made sure I had paper BP then.

I have since gotten a new phone. I just make sure it charges before I leave and have not had a problem.

 

[RedHead0186]

I haven't printed a boarding pass in years. Just one more thing to keep track of. I always use the app, and also add my boarding pass to my Google Wallet and take a screenshot. The screenshot is my backup if something isn't working in the app or I lose connectivity.

As for TSA, it depends on the airport. Many of them have the new scanners that only need your ID, but some haven't upgraded yet so they still ask for your ID and boarding pass.

Biggest upside to a mobile boarding pass: one less thing to keep track of. Biggest downside: technology doesn't always work how you want it to (though taking a screenshot does mitigate some of that).

 

[jeff_h]

We just had a trip last weekend, they didn't scan boarding pass at security at either end, they scanned our IDs (and I expect that then searched the reservations for the airlines that are at that airport) and we didn't scan the boarding pass until heading down the jetway.

Paper or mobile passes will work (I checked in via my laptop but my AA app then showed the boarding pass as checked in, and I added that to Apple wallet) but of the people I watched I only saw one with paper and everyone else scanned their mobile device.

 

[cedricandsophie]

I usually fly United. Get boarding passes in my phone and put them in my Apple wallet. Very easy.

 

[pindecisive]

- I check in online as soon as I can - I use the app or the website, whichever is easier at the moment - haven't noticed a big difference.
- I don't print boarding passes at home, but I do take a picture/save a screenshot of my digital boarding pass(es), mainly because of connectivity worries, but also it's a bit of a pain to print at a hotel.
- Once upon a time, an airline scheduler told me that time of check-in was one of the tie-break factors when bumping folks if a change of aircraft or something makes the flight overbooked at the last minute. Not sure it has ever made one bit of difference for me, but all things being equal, I check-in 24hrs before a flight vs 6hrs before.

I do all the above as well.

Once I check in I take a screenshot of our tickets for just in case and text DH his so he can scan in for himself.

One of the main reasons I always download the airline app is because I can get a notification or text messages on when they're boarding. There have also been several times when the airline will change the gate and I only find out through the app/text. After our trip, I delete the airline apps from my phone.

The only time I ever get a paper ticket is when we check baggage since we're speaking to a gate agent anyway, but most of the time we only have carry ons so we don't bother.

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is that for airlines like United, you aren't able to buy food on the plane any longer without a credit card on file and the only way to add it is to either use the app or add it when you check in online ahead of time.

Another note is that with airlines like Turkish Airlines, if you use a travel agent to book your tickets, you won't have full access to their app as it's meant to be used. I'm not sure if other airlines are like this, but it's something to note if you use travel agents frequently.

 

[Lewisc]

I have had security (but never an airline) refuse a home printed boarding pass, but it's rare

Years ago my home printed BP wouldn't scan. TSA gave me the option of skipping TSA Pre or going to the airline counter and getting my BP reprinted.

As PP said, some hotels have a business center, or even just a computer and printer in the lobby. I have done it that way in the past, but it makes me uncomfortable to log into my frequent flyer account on a public computer. (I know, I know, I probably do riskier things, but that

The BP computers frequently delete cookies and data when you finish. The computer typically has a menu which limits you to a few activities such as print BP, flight status, weather...You don't need to log in. You need your confirmation # and last name.

I'm sure a motivated hacker could install some kind of keylogger. I don't think the information stolen is worth the effort

 

[mikehn]

Right now I do both digital and paper boarding passes. But I just read an article on CNN the other day saying some airlines are eliminating paper boarding passes, so that option might come to an end soon.

 

[Jimsig]

I will print one out and store it in my carry on/personal item as a back up when I can and also do mobile. At the airport I use the mobile that I have saved to my Apple Wallet. I also screen shot my 14yo daughters BP and text it to her so i'm not dealing with 2 passes to get us on.