Remote check-ins for Shanghai flights to be expanded

• Source: Global Times
• [10:28 July 13 2010]
• Comments

By Zhou Mi

Shanghai Airport Authority is in talks with the government of Kunshan city in Jiangsu Province to allow air passengers in Kunshan to remotely check-in for flights departing from Shanghai.

Su Weiwei, a spokesperson for Shanghai Airport Authority, told the Global Times Monday that the authority plans to launch remote check-in services in other cities in the Yangtze River Delta region, with Kunshan being the first.

According to Su, remote check-ins will allow passengers from participating cities who are to board planes departing from Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport or Shanghai Pudong International Airport to get their boarding passes before leaving for Shanghai.

"However, the talks have just started and no deals have been sealed," said Su. He added that airlines participating in the talks include China Eastern Airlines and its subsidiary, Shanghai Airlines, as well as some foreign carriers.

On July 1, China Eastern Airlines and Shanghai Airlines officially launched a remote check-in and luggage transfer service at Hongqiao airport for flights departing from Pudong after 1 pm every day, in cooperation with the Shanghai Airport Authority.

According to a press release by the Shanghai Airport Authority over the weekend, during the trial period of the service, which began on April 27, the two airlines received 425 passengers and transferred 401 pieces of luggage through the two remote check-in counters at Hongqiao.

"Shanghai Pudong International Airport is a major transportation hub in the Yangtze River Delta region, especially for international routes, which is why we are looking into developing our remote check-in service," said Su.

Although remote check-ins for flights are a new thing for Shanghai, remote check-in services are available in cities such as Chongqing, Zunyi, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.