Airline operator British Airways (BA) is set to install 136 Apple Watch digital boarding pass scanning devices at check-in desks across Terminals 3 and 5 at London Heathrow Airport.
The Scan and Go systems help to expedite the departure process by allowing passengers to check in and print their own bag tags for bag drop, all with the flick of a wrist. The systems will also be compatible with digital boarding passes on smartphones with full installation scheduled for December 15, 2015.
Kevin McQuillan, head of ba.com and mobile, BA, said, “We are always striving to make our customers’ journeys easier through the use of technology. When we saw the dramatic rise in the number of people using the app on their Apple watches we knew we needed to create new features in the terminal which would make the experience even better for them.”
According to the airline, Apple Watch owners currently account for 5% of all BA app users. Alongside its digital boarding pass capabilities, the app provides travelers with real-time flight status, gate information, a countdown to the departure time and the weather at their destination. It has been downloaded more than five million times since it was first launched in 2008.
