Emirates phases out paper boarding passes for flights departing Dubai

Emirates has announced that it is phasing out paper boarding passes for flights departing Dubai, further digitising the journey.

Emirates passengers checking in at Dubai International Airport’s Terminal 3 will receive their mobile boarding pass via email or SMS. This will be in effect from 15th May 2023. Passengers who check in online can load their boarding pass into their Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, or retrieve their boarding pass on the user-friendly Emirates App. The checked-in baggage receipt is also emailed directly to passengers, or available in the Emirates App.

Passengers travelling with infants, unaccompanied minors, passengers requiring special assistance, passengers with onwards flights on other airlines, and all passengers travelling on flights to the United States may still require to carry a paper boarding pass.

The option to print a boarding pass is available by request to Emirates agents at check-in counters, if passengers do not have a mobile device, or if they are unable to access the information on their devices for reasons such as: running out of battery power, a system breakdown or glitch, message delivery delay, or inability to access Wi-Fi, network or a data package.

Related: Emirates opens new check-in and travel store in Dubai’s Finance Hub

Emirates says that this initiative will significantly reduce paper waste “while simultaneously offering a convenient and speedy digitised check in experience for passengers departing Dubai”. It reduces the risk of lost or misplaced boarding passes, “giving passengers peace of mind when travelling”.

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The mobile boarding pass can be used throughout the travel journey – in Dubai Duty Free, at security and for boarding, simply by showing the boarding pass on the phone. Emirates agents and airport staff will simply scan the QR code on the mobile boarding pass as passengers move through the airport and onto the aircraft.

I personally think that it’s a great initiative as it’s safe and environment-friendly. One thing that I am sceptical about is how much user-friendly the mobile boarding pass will be to those who are not into the “tech game”. I mean everyone is not comfortable with using the mobile app. A different point of view is that going forward, all of these things are going to be digitised sooner rather than later and travellers will have to get accustomed to “digital travel”. Emirates is taking this step now, although only for flights departing Dubai.

Meanwhile, Emirates recently announced expansion of interline agreement with Etihad Airways.

Featured image by Emirates

What do you think of Emirates phasing out paper boarding passes for flights departing Dubai? Let me know in the comments section below.

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