Qantas to Remove Domestic Boarding Pass Printing from Kiosks

[encryptededdy]

I agree. Worst case they could even print the boarding passes on receipt paper, LCC-style. It's not great, but wouldn't it save the headache of having to deal with passengers who don't want to OLCI? I assume the printers currently installed in the new kiosks for bag tag receipts are just normal receipt printers.

Surely maintaining a receipt printer is not expensive. Heck, the current (domestic) boarding passes are paper not card anyway, so they're already pretty cheap.

 

[RichardMEL]

Surely maintaining a receipt printer is not expensive. Heck, the current (domestic) boarding passes are paper not card anyway, so they're already pretty cheap.

And the QF claim about mag stripes and them not being recyclable is rubbish. Indeed some card stock printers may still support mag stripes (but I don't recall the last time I saw one) but for sure the thermal paper printed BP's issued by kiosks are totally able to be recycled if one wishes.

it really seems to be a decision made to push customer behavior rather than support customer choices for self service. Sure a cost component of course too.. but the more I think about it, it's not just about costs, machine maintenance, recyclables etc...

It's a bit like some places that, when the pandemic started, went to go electronic payments, tap and go etc over cash due to a risk as a touch point and all. Fully get that and understand that rationale. However as the pandemic eases there are still places that seemingly are refusing cash (which I would have thought was illegal because "legal tender" but I digress) probably due to hassle and costs to handle it (and risks of robbery etc). I mean the cost of an e transaction, security and safety likely beat holding the cash in the til, counting and balancing it, physically banking the cash, keeping a "float" etc and so some have seen hey this really is much easier for us. And who misses out? those few who prefer cash (such as my father who has no cards, no nothing, goes to the bank with a passbook to get cash and spends it etc). Some people prefer cash (or printed BP's) for whatever reasons (I won't touch the black economy aspect) and these kinds of choices seem designed to push customers to act the way the business wants.

imo.

 

[kookaburra75]

After travelling for a lot of years now, I much prefer the 'new' system of on line check in, the QTags and the like. My parents, who are in their 80's manage to navigate it all without any issues - they only travel a couple of times a year, and Dad just got a smart phone this year.
Is Qantas streamlining and being more efficient i.e. cost-cutting, yes, but as a modern business that's what I'd expect to see happening.

 

[RooFlyer]

Sometimes its lovely to be in behind-the-times Hobart. We still have actual check-in counters . There are also kiosky-things but no-one appears to use them.

Before anyone says "Don't let Mascot hear you", I think they work it at HBA so that the check-in agents, after the flight closes, then double-up as the wheelchair-assist and on-tarmac cattle-herders, as we still have walk-across the tarmac boarding. Until Hobart Airport gets air-bridges (never), the airlines will still have to patrol and guide streams of people up to 250m long getting from the terminal door, through the cattle-yards (metal-bound alleys to stream people crossing over from arriving and departing) to the foot on the boarding stairs.

 

[Ade]

passengers who don't want to OLCI?

More importantly, pax who can't do OLCI. Not those who don't have smartphones or mobile date/internet, but those with overseas passports who can't do OLCI.

Agree that this change is for Domestic kiosks only.

Now, this could be case with just me, but when I had my previous citizenship, I was NEVER able to do OLCI for any QF international flight (or international flight with domestic connections). And most of my flights had a domestic connection before start of the international leg. So I had to go the the service desk each time and get checked-in. If I were to do this now, I'd be relying on the kiosks to print out my BP, otherwise, I'd have to rock up to the service desk anyways, get verified & checked-in.

Add to this those travelling with kids, equipment etc etc ... checking-in should not be as challenging, surely. Or at least printing a BP.

Post automatically merged: Jun 1, 2022

Worst case they could even print the boarding passes on receipt paper, LCC-style. It's not great,

I once mistook my BP for a coffees shop receipt and misplaced it somewhere. My mistake, should have been more careful. When I showed up at the lounge, I didn't have the BP on me. So the agent printed one after verifying my ID.

 

[kookaburra75]

Sometimes its lovely to be in behind-the-times Hobart. We still have actual check-in counters . There are also kiosky-things but no-one appears to use them.

Before anyone says "Don't let Mascot hear you", I think they work it at HBA so that the check-in agents, after the flight closes, then double-up as the wheelchair-assist and on-tarmac cattle-herders, as we still have walk-across the tarmac boarding. Until Hobart Airport gets air-bridges (never), the airlines will still have to patrol and guide streams of people up to 250m long getting from the terminal door, through the cattle-yards (metal-bound alleys to stream people crossing over from arriving and departing) to the foot on the boarding stairs.

But that adds to the charm of Hobart - and it's very egalitarian. No one can throw a DYKWIA hissie-fit, they're all treated the same.

 

[jpp42]

Now, this could be case with just me, but when I had my previous citizenship,

Yes I'd say that's just you. The international check-in kiosks absolutely support all passports and my friends and family on non-AUS passports have never had that issue. In fact I'd go out on a limb and say Australian passports would be a minority compared to overseas (as a group). If what you say was true there would be little benefit in having the kiosks at all.

 

[drron]

The one thing I already miss is the human contact. kiosks will never really take the place of humans. QF may well have more agents on the floor these days but they are not as easy to relate too.
I really miss talking to the VA agent at MCY whose grandmother was a patient of mine. Always got good seats and on one occasion I ran into a 90 year old who had been bumped off JQ. my VA agent was able to get her on the VA flight,gave her the seat next to me and then rang the lady's son to explain that she would be on a different flight. No way could a kiosk could do that.

Then there was the day I was flying DPO - MEL -MCY. Horrible day and all DPO flights cancelled. The QF agent at DPO rang me to tell me that and how she was able to get me on a midday flight out of LST. Again a kiosk is not going to do that.
Not only that but missed my JQ connection. JQ's response -nothing we can do. So I took a woman who also missed her JQ flight to BNE who was in tears as she was flying for her grandmothers funeral to the QF service desk. A truly wonderful fellow who converted our JQ tickets to QF and got us on the last plane to BNE. Again no kiosk could do that.

So sorry kiosks may be more efficient and save money but are another step down the road to 1984. You may like it but I don't.

 

[ausfox]

Maybe 5 years ago we took a couple of Norwegian Air flights. The checkin was totally automated including BPs, weighing and dispatching baggage. There were a couple of attendants to react to alarms when you did not fully comply. We had a bag 0.5kg heavy. Easily transferred a little weight to our hand luggage Where it no longer counted. Possibly 15 counters.

 

[Kiwi_Flyer]

Yes I'd say that's just you. The international check-in kiosks absolutely support all passports and my friends and family on non-AUS passports have never had that issue. In fact I'd go out on a limb and say Australian passports would be a minority compared to overseas (as a group). If what you say was true there would be little benefit in having the kiosks at all.

They don't support domestic connection to Intl in my recent experiences.

 

[TheInsider]

They don't support domestic connection to Intl in my recent experiences.

The new ones will (well, will support the printing of bag tags after phone check-in), and more so when the document checks are more automated (which is in trial now for a few ports).

 

[TomVexille]

The new ones will (well, will support the printing of bag tags after phone check-in), and more so when the document checks are more automated (which is in trial now for a few ports).

Given it often takes QF an hour or so to check me in for international, hopefully this is actually better, but I highly doubt they actually implement the systems correctly.

 

[dajop]

In theory, good idea. In practice, just watch the boarding times blow out at as everyone fumbles around trying to find the right screen on their phone, and have it scanned (is that still how it happens?) as they juggle their carry on luggage. And people go to the wrong seats, because their phone went on screen lock whilst waiting in the airbridge, and they forgot what seat they were allocated. Not a problem for those who are "match fit", but for those who are not, pain in the backside. Maybe that's what QF wants, none of the "riff raff" once or twice a year travellers .

 

[TheInsider]

Given it often takes QF an hour or so to check me in for international, hopefully this is actually better, but I highly doubt they actually implement the systems correctly.

They will implement it properly. The updated self check-in system will also do the TIMATIC checks too - like entry requirement checks,

 

[TomVexille]

They will implement it properly. The updated self check-in system will also do the TIMATIC checks too - like entry requirement checks,

But can it handle BF passport linking and override codes?

 

[TheInsider]

In theory, good idea. In practice, just watch the boarding times blow out at as everyone fumbles around trying to find the right screen on their phone, and have it scanned (is that still how it happens?) as they juggle their carry on luggage. And people go to the wrong seats, because their phone went on screen lock whilst waiting in the airbridge, and they forgot what seat they were allocated. Not a problem for those who are "match fit", but for those who are not, pain in the backside. Maybe that's what QF wants, none of the "riff raff" once or twice a year travellers .

That assumption is just plain wrong, already approx 80% use their phones to board and check-in.

 

[RooFlyer]

So 80% are at risk of the issues that dajop mentioned? Which is, by the way, the reason why I have historically gone to the QP and get a paper BP after doing OLCI.

 

[dajop]

That assumption is just plain wrong, already approx 80% use their phones to board and check-in.

It's the other 20% that could blow out the times, who aren't "match fit". I can just imagine some relatives mucking around with their phones for ever in the checkin queue, if they didn't have someone to help the,.

I'm not a luddite - I've used mobile boarding passes multiple times on international flights which takes it to the next level (the leap of faith handing your phone over to a Thai immigration official to show the BP, for example). A great solution would be scanning into a boarding gate with RFID like you do at train gates, works almost every time without fail, unlike scanners than sometimes seem to take 4 or 5 goes to scan the screen (or ultimately where it may go for international in particular is facial recognition - like at immigration).

Ultimately there is a section of the travelling public who just aren't technologically savvy - whether 40 or 90 - even some adept at using and posting on facebook seem to struggle with some other fairly basic functionality . Maybe I'm wrong. Or maybe those folk can just fly Jetstar or Rex.

 

[MalcolmS]

My wife will be travelling solo in a couple of months, SYD-MEL-DOH-ZRH in J. So the first leg is QF domestic then linking to QR international. Does anyone know if this will be possible for the new checkin process, or will she need to checkin again at MEL for the international part. Or will it be possible to get a human to checkin for the whole trip at SYD? Which is the way it used to work.
Thanks

 

[serfty]

Or will it be possible to get a human to checkin for the whole trip at SYD?

^This, the Kiosks can't be used for international travel.