We’ve wondered when it would happen: that you wouldn’t be able to fly without a smartphone. And now Irish carrier Ryanair has announced that starting November 12, it will not be using paper boarding passes any longer. The move to digital boarding passes requires flyers to download and use the MyRyanair app to create a digital boarding pass.
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For elders or tech-adverse people who have limped along without a smartphone and relied on printing out a boarding pass at home or the airport, the news will be hard. And anyone who’s ever panicked about being able to pull up a pass on a phone that doesn’t hold a charge (long layover on international flight or absurd delay on domestic airline, anyone?) will have to be more mindful of staying on top of keeping the phone charged.
Originally, the airline intended to stop using paper passes November 3 but added another week to the deadline to help make the transition easier when airports are less busy following the midterm break. It reminds flyers in its press release that the app has a lot of other useful features, like being able to order food and drinks (and be served first!) and receive real-time updates on gate changes, flight delays and outright disruptions.
“Ryanair’s move to 100% digital boarding passes will mean a faster, smarter, and greener travel experience for our customers, streamlined through our best-in-class myRyanair app,” said Ryanair CMO Dara Brady in the same statement.
The airline’s release notes that about 80-percent of their passengers already use a digital boarding pass, so it shouldn’t be such a huge change—but we are worried about Granny Sinéad and Granda Declan having to update their flip phones to travel to the States to see the next wee generation.