United Airlines has introduced new technology designed to make the baggage check-in process simpler and faster. The Chicago-based carrier pays a lot of attention to checking bags because the fees to do so generate tens of millions of dollars in incremental revenue for the airline every year.
United’s Chief Digital Officer Linda Jojo revealed the new prepay for checked luggage technology during a panel discussion at an international aviation conference in Las Vegas this week.
United customers now have the option of prepaying their checked baggage fees at the website united.com instead of having to wait until they get to the airport and check-in for their flights to check the luggage.
Passengers can pay the fees right after purchasing a ticket online or make that selection in the “manage reservation” section on united.com at any time prior to check-in for a flight. The new prepay for checked baggage technology is sufficiently sophisticated to be able to automatically refund any prepay fees if the customer winds up not checking the bag(s) for which he or she had prepaid.
In making the announcement about the new prepay option for checked luggage, United also says it is the first United States-based legacy airline to introduce such a feature.
The hope among United executives is that the prepay feature will help alleviate some crowding in airport lobbies and reduce the time passengers spend at check-in counters or kiosks completing all the necessary check-in procedures. Jojo also signaled the prepay for checked luggage technology comes after both United passengers and employees had requested a feature of this sort.
Jojo also talked at the Las Vegas conference about ConnectionSaver, another new tool introduced last February that allows United to determine if a departing plane can be held for late-arriving connecting passengers without excessively delaying the plane’s scheduled arrival time.
United Airlines is a unit of United Airlines Holdings.
- Chicago Biz Journal
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