United Airlines (UA) announced plans to make mobile boarding pass scanning available at all of the more than 220 domestic airports it serves by the fall of this year.
United was the first U.S. airline to introduce mobile boarding passes in 2007, and it is the first mainline carrier to announce that it plans to make the service available at all of the domestic airports it serves. United also offers mobile boarding passes at over 40 international locations.
Passengers get the boarding pass with a 2D barcode on a mobile device and simply scan the barcode on the screen at airport security checkpoints and at the gate during boarding. If a seat change, upgrade or change in departure gate occurs, the boarding pass can be refreshed to display the new information, as long as the device has connectivity.
Separately, the airline also announced refreshed applications for iPhone, Android and BlackBerry 10 that include streamlined user interfaces along with a new feature, also available on Windows Phone 8, which will enable customers to manage their travel in real time during irregular flight operations.
With the new feature, United mobile app users who experience flight delays or cancellations will be offered the option to keep their existing itinerary or, where available, the ability to change to a new itinerary. Customers whose flights are affected may use the mobile app to accept new flights that United has automatically confirmed or search for alternate routes, airports and dates of travel.
“United continues to invest in mobile technology that improves the travel experience for our customers,” said Scott Wilson, United’s vice president of merchandising and ecommerce. “The new features and updated look of these apps give travelers increased convenience, flexibility and control. United will continue to invest in building powerful mobile tools for our customers with many significant enhancements scheduled to roll out over the next year.”