Ryanair wants to abolish paper boarding pass

Ryanair chief Michael O’Leary plans to abolish the paper boarding pass and allow online check-in only. The measure, which would apply from May next year, would save costs. Ryanair desks would disappear at airports, and every passenger would have to check in via smartphone.

An additional surcharge already applies now, but eventually, O’Leary wants to make it impossible to check in only at the counter. “We are working to get everything done through the app by May 1st at the latest, so nothing has to be done on paper anymore,” O’Leary said at a press conference in Dublin.

Additional cost of €55

For passengers without smartphones, though, that could mean they would no longer have access to a Ryanair flight. If one were to deal with a dead battery, a special procedure applies, O’Leary assured. “If we have your name and passport, we also know your seat. We already apply that for people whose smartphones don’t scan for some reason.”

Some 60% of the low-cost carrier’s passengers already use the app. By the end of this year, this will probably reach 80%, the Ryanair chief expects, to have everyone switch over by spring next year. The main reason for introducing the measure is to keep costs down. Ryanair charges 55 euros for checking in at the counter, which is free if done online.

Implementing the new measure means fewer employees will have to be physically present at the airport. At the same time, several European airports currently still only accept printed boarding passes.

Consumer organization Testaankoop regrets the decision. “We can only conclude that more and more companies are penalizing people who do not have a smartphone, or even depriving them of essential services”, said Testaankoop in a reaction in the newspaper La Libre Belgique.

For the consumer organization, this is a discriminatory practice. It recently sued Belgian public railway company NMBS/SNCB for discriminatory fare policies because some tickets can be purchased cheaper via the app than at the ticket counter and vending machines.