Delta adds automatic app check-in for flyers

Delta Air Lines has added automatic check-in to the Fly Delta app, to help streamline the pre-travel process for its customers.

Eligible passengers will be checked in automatically 24 hours before departure, and sent an alert via email or push notification. The alert will prompt them to open the app and acknowledge they are conforming to the rules on restricted items, at which point their boarding pass will appear in the app as usual.

“Our customers have told us Delta can eliminate some of their stress associated with upcoming travel if they know their boarding pass is ready and can see their seat assignment,” said Rhonda Crawford, VP of global distribution & digital strategy at Delta. “Auto check-in provides that peace of mind in a simple, automated solution that also saves valuable time.”

Of course, once a user is in the app, Delta is able to upsell them on hold luggage, seat reservations and other upgrades.

Auto check-in is limited to passengers on domestic journeys, who don’t need to select their seat, and who don’t require assistance for travelling with a pet or as an unaccompanied minor.

The feature is being added as part of the app’s 4.6 update, which also makes it possible to toggle between trips in the app’s ‘Today’ mode, for passengers who have multiple trips on the same day, and to enrol in Delta’s SkyMiles loyalty scheme.

Delta says that more than half of its passengers use its mobile tools at some point during the travel process.