Views of online check in
Nov 23, 2015, 11:06 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: UK
Posts: 121
Views of online check in
Not specific to EK but as I'm travelling with them and had intended using online check in I am posting here. My relatives returned to Oz this week and checked in online. When they got to the bag drop, the check in assistant ripped their boarding passes up and said most of them don't work ( scan, I presume) and she printed proper Passes. Now, I'm wondering why some home printed passes don't scan & is it worth checking in online.
Nov 23, 2015, 12:40 pm
#2
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 9,307
Definitely worth checking in on-line in my experience. I usually do it, but request a new boarding card as it's much easier to fit in a pocket.
Dedicated check in/bag drop queues which are shorter than the regular queues.
Anecdotal talk of being further up the queue for upgrades as they can be more confident you're travelling.
Dedicated check in/bag drop queues which are shorter than the regular queues.
Anecdotal talk of being further up the queue for upgrades as they can be more confident you're travelling.
Nov 23, 2015, 12:46 pm
#3
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: UK/Mauritius
Programs: EK Skywards silver Miles and Smiles Hilton Honours Hyatt Priority Club Kestrel A
Posts: 683
Heard that before.
ft101 next time I will request a proper boarding card as the flimsy bits of paper are next to useless.
When I do OLCI in Mauritius I don't have a printer anyway so collect the BC at check in.
ft101 next time I will request a proper boarding card as the flimsy bits of paper are next to useless.
When I do OLCI in Mauritius I don't have a printer anyway so collect the BC at check in.
Nov 23, 2015, 2:38 pm
#4
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Economy, mostly :(
Programs: Skywards Gold
Posts: 7,801
I never print my BP when i do OLCI, in fact a lot of origin/destinations don't permit it on international sectors due to document check etc.
Just the best way to secure your preferred seat and be confident in rocking up a little later at the airport.
Just the best way to secure your preferred seat and be confident in rocking up a little later at the airport.
Nov 23, 2015, 4:23 pm
#5
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Europe
Programs: EK plat, ex-FB gold, Accor plat
Posts: 1,076
Usually, op-ups are decided after check-in is closed (about an hour before departure) and are based on your status (to make explanations short), simply because they need to know exactly how many pax to upgrade.
Even when the flight is super-over-booked, the op-up list is prepared ad-meritum.
Nov 23, 2015, 5:26 pm
#6
Join Date: Nov 2013
Posts: 5,454
On EK at least, it doesn't matter when or how you check in, as long as you get to the airport in time for departure! Some airports have specific conformance times when you need to scan in at security (DXB at T-60min, LHR being very strict comes to mind) but that airport specific not EK.
FWIW I never print out a bp. Ever*. What's the point!
Except when not printing it costs you money: hello FR!
FWIW I never print out a bp. Ever*. What's the point!
Except when not printing it costs you money: hello FR!
Nov 23, 2015, 6:19 pm
#7
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 9,307
Not quite sure about that.
Usually, op-ups are decided after check-in is closed (about an hour before departure) and are based on your status (to make explanations short), simply because they need to know exactly how many pax to upgrade.
Even when the flight is super-over-booked, the op-up list is prepared ad-meritum.
Usually, op-ups are decided after check-in is closed (about an hour before departure) and are based on your status (to make explanations short), simply because they need to know exactly how many pax to upgrade.
Even when the flight is super-over-booked, the op-up list is prepared ad-meritum.
Op ups are done locally, so sometime after the flight goes to being airport controlled at T -24 hours.
Historical figures/local knowledge can tell the controller that the flight will definitely be overbooked in Y.
Nothing to stop him/her bumping up a safe amount of pax, confident in the knowledge that it won't come back to bite them, in order to save time the next day.
Who is going to be op-uped? The gold already checked in on-line or the gold not yet checked in?
Nov 24, 2015, 2:00 am
#8
Join Date: Sep 2013
Programs: BAEC Gold, EK Skywards (enhanced Blue !), Oman Air Sindbad Gold
Posts: 6,399
I have yet to see any definitive evidence of OLCI bearing any relation whatever to op-up criteria (although that's not to say a false causal link could be drawn from random incidents based on personal experience)
Nov 24, 2015, 5:53 am
#9
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Europe
Programs: EK plat, ex-FB gold, Accor plat
Posts: 1,076
On a serious tone, answer with my logic : if I have to prepare in advance, I would op-up the guy who didn't check in. If he doesn't show up, I don't need to upgrade anyone.
Now, if I know by statistics that I will have to offload someone, I will of course offload the guy who didn't check in.
This said, in real life, it doesn't work this way.
They will wait until the pax-list is complete, and cherry-pick among confirmed pax.
Two years ago, I was op-uped at airport check-in. I assume they were 200% certain that they will have to upgrade some people. Unsurprisingly, upgrade calls continued once at the lounge, i.e. once the pax-list was frozen.
Nov 24, 2015, 6:02 am
#10
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Europe
Programs: EK plat, ex-FB gold, Accor plat
Posts: 1,076
Now, here's an interesting question :
We, FF, usually chose our seats in advance. Therefore, at check-in, we get the BP with the pre-selected seat. When we get op-uped at the lounge or at the gate, they trash it and give us a new BP with the new seat number.
Now, what happens, if I haven't pre-selected a seat and I'm the last one to check-in ?
At this stage, all seats are assigned and the computer doesn't know if I am eligible for op-up. What seat number appears on my BP ?
Does the check-in agent clearly tell me that my seat will be assigned at the gate ?
We, FF, usually chose our seats in advance. Therefore, at check-in, we get the BP with the pre-selected seat. When we get op-uped at the lounge or at the gate, they trash it and give us a new BP with the new seat number.
Now, what happens, if I haven't pre-selected a seat and I'm the last one to check-in ?
At this stage, all seats are assigned and the computer doesn't know if I am eligible for op-up. What seat number appears on my BP ?
Does the check-in agent clearly tell me that my seat will be assigned at the gate ?
Nov 24, 2015, 6:06 am
#11
Join Date: Sep 2013
Programs: BAEC Gold, EK Skywards (enhanced Blue !), Oman Air Sindbad Gold
Posts: 6,399
ioto - what you say here* certainly does make sense.
The no-show factor has always been a key element of course which is why final decisions are invariably left (by most carriers) until as late as possible - even if 'likely' candidates are identified some time prior to flight closure.
Ps *re post #9
The no-show factor has always been a key element of course which is why final decisions are invariably left (by most carriers) until as late as possible - even if 'likely' candidates are identified some time prior to flight closure.
Ps *re post #9
Nov 24, 2015, 6:17 am
#12
Join Date: Nov 2013
Posts: 5,454
Now, here's an interesting question :
We, FF, usually chose our seats in advance. Therefore, at check-in, we get the BP with the pre-selected seat. When we get op-uped at the lounge or at the gate, they trash it and give us a new BP with the new seat number.
Now, what happens, if I haven't pre-selected a seat and I'm the last one to check-in ?
At this stage, all seats are assigned and the computer doesn't know if I am eligible for op-up. What seat number appears on my BP ?
Does the check-in agent clearly tell me that my seat will be assigned at the gate ?
We, FF, usually chose our seats in advance. Therefore, at check-in, we get the BP with the pre-selected seat. When we get op-uped at the lounge or at the gate, they trash it and give us a new BP with the new seat number.
Now, what happens, if I haven't pre-selected a seat and I'm the last one to check-in ?
At this stage, all seats are assigned and the computer doesn't know if I am eligible for op-up. What seat number appears on my BP ?
Does the check-in agent clearly tell me that my seat will be assigned at the gate ?
Nov 24, 2015, 6:29 am
#13
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Netherlands
Programs: KL Platinum; A3 Gold
Posts: 28,737
Nov 24, 2015, 7:58 am
#14
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Europe
Programs: EK plat, ex-FB gold, Accor plat
Posts: 1,076
Very quick reply to one of your points (will get to the others later) - everyone on a flight has an assigned seat, even if you haven't preselected. An op-up is nothing more than a seat assignment in a higher cabin class - you will either be assigned a remaining seat in the lower class or you will have already been moved to the higher class, a seat in a lower class than booked or you will have been offloaded. The only other situation is if you are on standby, in which case STBY will be your seat assignment.
Nevertheless, the principle of overbooking is that there are more reservations than seats. How the computer handles the seat assignment ?
And, let's say for a 70 seats cabin (at random
), I'm the 71st to check-in.What seat appears on my BP, knowing that one pax will end up op-uped (but we don't know yet who) ... ? They won't announce me a downgrade as they need to downgrade no-one ... They won't announce me a upgrade neither as it's too early to decide so ...
(It is a calm day today ...)
Nov 24, 2015, 12:48 pm
#15
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 9,307
On a serious tone, answer with my logic : if I have to prepare in advance, I would op-up the guy who didn't check in. If he doesn't show up, I don't need to upgrade anyone.
Now, if I know by statistics that I will have to offload someone, I will of course offload the guy who didn't check in.
Now, if I know by statistics that I will have to offload someone, I will of course offload the guy who didn't check in.
A couple of years ago, when there were still (allegedly) alphabetical upgrades, early check in was regularly touted as beneficial.