<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by swag:
Way back when, perhaps 1990, often you would buy an airline ticket and the boarding passes were attached. If it was a domestic flight and you weren't checking bags, you could go straight to the gate and board without ever seeing an agent.
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It doesn't tell them I'm at the airport, the way in-person check-in does. Yes, I printed a boarding pass, but they never scanned the bar code at the gate reader, only typed in the seat number. Sure, it serves as a needed document to get thru security, but if that's all, why restrict it to 12 or 24 hours before the flight? Why can't I print whatever is needed when I ticket it?
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(1) Back in 1990, you still had to check-in with a live agent at the gate - even with a pre-issued boarding pass - so that the airline did not re-assign your seat.
(2) I assume that the reason for the 12/24 hour boarding pass rule is (a) to preclude issuance of passes to people who change their flight times after they book their trip(less likely as departure time approaches); (b) to permit the TSA carnivore program to scan the passenger list and designate security risks prior to the flight;
(c) to give the airline a more accurate idea of how many people will actually be boarding the plane, since so many of us make itinerary changes. I am not sure if the 12/24 rule really enhances security but it really makes little difference to me so long as i don't have to wait in another line -- and that rarely happens now that atm-style boarding pass machines are available.