More airlines eliminating pesky check-in process

In a sign that traditional airline check-in could become a thing of the past, low-cost US airline JetBlue has become the latest carrier to eliminate the process altogether.

After Air France, Finnair, Brussels Airlines, ANA All Nippon Airway and Lufthansa, JetBlue has also introduced automatic check-in, eliminating the need to check-in online 24 hours before their flight.

It’s a move which acknowledges that the age-old practice of checking-in for flights has become old-fashioned and unnecessary in today’s technoworld.

Instead, customers will receive an email alert 24 hours before their scheduled flight along with either a printable boarding pass or a paperless mobile boarding pass for those who’ve downloaded their JetBlue mobile app.

In an interview with aviation trade site Future Travel Experience, JetBlue’s senior vice president Eash Sundaram pointed out that the check-in process has become an antiquated and unnecessary step in the flying experience today.

“You don’t check-in when you go to a movie theatre, you don’t check-in when you go to a soccer game. Why do you have to check-in (when you fly)?” he said.

“The only reason you had check-in was the airlines didn’t know whether you were going to show up or not in the 1960s.”

The 24-hour email alert will also notify passengers of any schedule changes.