First Passenger Checks In, Receives Boarding Pass Via the Internet Using Alaska's Online Check-in Process
SEATTLE / A customer traveling from San Jose, Calif., this week became the first person to check in and receive a boarding pass via the Internet using an online check-in process developed by Alaska Airlines.
The customer, Kathy Bloom, is one of 4,700 employees of IDT Inc. of Santa Clara, Calif. The high-tech semiconductor company is participating in Alaska's initial rollout of the online check-in process, which will be expanded to the general public in October.
"I found the process easy and quick, and I'm for anything that will save time at the airport," Bloom said. "Now I'm ready to go right to the gate and board before I leave the office."
Ed White, Alaska's vice president of customer service, said the new check-in process represents a monumental leap in airline customer convenience. "For the first time ever, airline customers will not only be able to check in online, but print their own boarding pass at their home or office, allowing them to arrive at the airport and proceed directly to the gate without stopping," White said.
Alaska customers can already bypass long ticket lines by using one of 200-plus Instant Travel Machines or ITMs located at 30 airports the carrier serves. "This new process means that every computer is effectively an Instant Travel Machine," White said. "That means our customers can now check in for any city from anywhere they can access the Internet."
After the initial testing phase is completed this month, the new check-in process will be available to customers of Alaska Airlines and its sister carrier, Horizon Air, who have purchased electronic tickets and received seat assignments via the Internet at or .
The new process will be available for customers checking in more than one hour before departure for any flights that day.
After confirming their check-in information, customers can print a boarding pass from their home or office printer and proceed directly to the airport. In the future, the boarding pass will include a barcode that can be scanned at the gate to speed the boarding process.
Customers must still present a picture ID to a customer service agent before boarding their flight. However, Alaska is currently conducting a test in Seattle that uses the barcode to call up stored photographs of participating frequent flyers.
The new check-in process isn't Alaska's first pioneering effort on the Internet. In 1995, the airline became the first U.S. carrier to offer online ticketing via the Internet.
Alaska Airlines and its sister carrier Horizon Air serve more than 70 cities in Alaska, Canada, Mexico and seven Western states. In 1999, readers of Travel & Leisure magazine voted the carrier the "World's Best Domestic Airline."
