Virgin Atlantic Print your own Boardings Cards

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

On the VA website under "manage my flights" you can now Print your own boarding cards, which means that all you will have to do when you get to the airport is to go to the bag drop, get rid of your cases and go straight to security.

Excellent!

EDIT:
Now have the press release:

"03 April 2007

NOW BOARDING FROM HOME!!

Virgin Atlantic has today launched the facility for passengers to print off boarding passes from home.

Passengers boarding passes can be printed off from home in selected destinations where online check in is available The system is designed to be easy to use and has step by step instructions on how to print off the boarding pass.

Virgin Atlantic already allows passengers to check in for their flights online 24 hours before departure but printing off their boarding passes from home makes it a simple option for all passengers. On arrival at the airport, passengers can hand over their luggage at the ‘Bag Drop’ desk and go straight through to the boarding gate.

This new service will also enable passengers carrying hand baggage only to go straight to security, avoiding check-in or Kiosk Check In.

The boarding pass should be printed on plain paper which will have a unique barcode containing all the relevant flight details.

Virgin Atlantic first launched online check in via the Virgin Atlantic website in July 2004 and Kiosk Check In for passengers with the introduction of self service kiosks at airports in November 2004.

Steve Ridgway, CEO of Virgin Atlantic said:

“We are excited to be able to offer this convenient facility to our passengers which means that from the comfort of their own home, they can simply log on, check in and print off the boarding pass ensuring themselves a seamless journey through the airport.”

”We believe that on line check in will increase popularity with the introduction of home printed boarding passes for passengers. Currently up to 27% of our passengers check in on line and we predict this will grow to around 40% by the end of the year.”

 

[oceanscape]

Excellent news! I just wonder what took them so long - most of the US airlines have this system already.

 

[Danauk]

Excellent news.
Quick question though, if you are flying PE and have seperate check in would it be quicker to still use this or check in on line and queue for the bag drop. Or do you think it would make no difference either way!

 

[Leanne1977]

Would you say then that this will omit the need to do twilight check-in?

I was planning on doing online check-in and then having an overnight stay at a Gatwick hotel to do twilight check-in so i have the best chance of getting the seats i picked.

 

[natalielongstaff]

sounds great to me

 

[wayneg]

Would you say then that this will omit the need to do twilight check-in?

I was planning on doing online check-in and then having an overnight stay at a Gatwick hotel to do twilight check-in so i have the best chance of getting the seats i picked.

Dont see any reason for Twilight check in if you have printed boarding cards, just drop your bags on day of flight.

We flew BMI Baby in Jan to Amsterdam, no bags to check in just hand luggage, printed boarding cards and didn't have to arrive until minimum 15 mins before departure we gave ourselves a little more time, about 1 hour but still had time for breakfast and was stood around waiting. Online check in is brilliant.

 

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

Would you say then that this will omit the need to do twilight check-in?

I was planning on doing online check-in and then having an overnight stay at a Gatwick hotel to do twilight check-in so i have the best chance of getting the seats i picked.

Yes, as you will be able to check in online 24 hours before your flight and print your boarding passes, so then on the day just turn up at bag drop and get rid of your suitcases.
It won't remove totally thge requiremeny for twilight check in as some people will still want to get rid of their cases the night before and possibly if the seats you want have not been released, or yes, it stilll happens that some people do not have access to a computer, or (never happens does it?/) that the online web site goes down, but I can see this being the beginning of the end for Twilight check in at least in its present form, less cost than having to man check in desks.

 

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

Excellent news.
Quick question though, if you are flying PE and have seperate check in would it be quicker to still use this or check in on line and queue for the bag drop. Or do you think it would make no difference either way!

have a look at the queues on the day. If the PE queue is smaller bag drop there. Most of the time we still bag drop at the UC check in desks after checking in on line

 

[wideeyes]

I am surpised that they didn't already do this!

We did this with Airfrance a year ago.

 

[Manatee]

One word of caution DW used the facility with BMI last month, when she got to the departure gate, they read the barcode, it said she was on a totally different flight and time, although they had her details at the gate they would not let her board, she had to go all the way back to checkin which was shut but she managed to get hold of a manager who issued a new boarding card, they made the flight with minutes to spare, running all the way. Need less to say i have just told her about the Virgin announcement and her response, no way.

 

[PoppyAnna]

Interesting thread.
Can somebody educate me with regards to the time difference in queing and checking in and queing for bagdrop? Surely your baggage and passports still have to checked and questions asked about bag contents at a bagdrop? why is this so much quicker than checking in?
I have never used any online checkin facility or twilight checkin facility and am trying to weigh up my best options.
Part of me wants rid of the cases the night before (I live about an hour from gatwick), on the other hand I don't want to make two trips if I can help it.
Help me!?!?

 

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

Interesting thread.
Can somebody educate me with regards to the time difference in queing and checking in and queing for bagdrop? Surely your baggage and passports still have to checked and questions asked about bag contents at a bagdrop? why is this so much quicker than checking in?
I have never used any online checkin facility or twilight checkin facility and am trying to weigh up my best options.
Part of me wants rid of the cases the night before (I live about an hour from gatwick), on the other hand I don't want to make two trips if I can help it.
Help me!?!?

Whilst you still have to answer the security questions, the time saving is the printing and allocation of the seats.
As you have to give your passport info as well before hand, any err "discrepancies" can be alerted without the wait at the check in desk

 

[wayneg]

Interesting thread.
Can somebody educate me with regards to the time difference in queing and checking in and queing for bagdrop? Surely your baggage and passports still have to checked and questions asked about bag contents at a bagdrop? why is this so much quicker than checking in?
I have never used any online checkin facility or twilight checkin facility and am trying to weigh up my best options.
Part of me wants rid of the cases the night before (I live about an hour from gatwick), on the other hand I don't want to make two trips if I can help it.
Help me!?!?

I have only done it once with Virgin, coming back from LA last October, checked in online then when we got to airport there was about 40-50 people in line, we just went in seperate line with 2 people in front of us, took 5 mins. I reckon other line was around 30-45mins.
I have only flown from gatwick once with Virgin and wished there had been online checkin then, all the Virgin flights were in one very very long checkin line took over 1 hour
We usually fly from Manchester like this weekend, never been in a line more than 15 mins so doesn't make a big diff there but I think Virgin oly do about 2 flights a day from MAN.

 

[TraceyL]

I would be great news - if we could use VA's online checkin

 

[traceycooper]

ok i'm a worrier..... but what if whilst printing your boarding card your printer doesnt print it right or something like that goes wrong???
could you print it again???
Do you print it the same time as you do online check-in or can you print it earlier?

 

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

ok i'm a worrier..... but what if whilst printing your boarding card your printer doesnt print it right or something like that goes wrong???
could you print it again???
Do you print it the same time as you do online check-in or can you print it earlier?

You should be able to print it again.
You will have toi check in first as the Boarding card has your seat number on it.

 

[wayneg]

ok i'm a worrier..... but what if whilst printing your boarding card your printer doesnt print it right or something like that goes wrong???
could you print it again???
Do you print it the same time as you do online check-in or can you print it earlier?

Some of you do worry too much

Just checked in online for tomorrows flight. You have to checkin first then you can print off your boarding sheet, A4 size full of colour cost about £5 each in ink to print off If there is any problems it keeps the page open and you can print it off again.

5 days from now I will be in VMK central getting more quest cards!!!

 

[Simon06]

will printing your own boarding card, and checking in online, will it cut out alot of queueing at the airport?

 

[wayneg]

will printing your own boarding card, and checking in online, will it cut out alot of queueing at the airport?

Depends which airport and what time of year.
We flew from Gatwick Xmas before last. Took over 1 hour queing to check in. Its not just that, Manchester this Xmas the online service was not working so we got to airport 2 hours before departure to check in, even though we had prebooked seats they are not guarenteed and they had given them away (probably to a family with youger children) we had to sit 2+2 about 10 rows apart. Now I have checked in for tomorrow and printed the boarding passes they can't give them away.

 

[CHEK]

So wayneg have you got the seats you wanted?, Have a great trip