Alaska Airlines Announces Improved Airport Lobby Experience

The Seattle-based airline Alaska Airlines has announced that it plans to revamp the customer experience at its hubs and focus cities, including airports in Anchorage, Los Angeles, Portland, San Francisco, and Seattle. It says that it’s listening to customer feedback that says that the best way to take care of its customers is to have more self-serve options available.

The $2.5 billion project will take place over the next 3 years with some changes coming as soon as the end of 2023.

Here’s what you can expect from Alaska Airlines’ new airport lobby experience.

At the Airport

While not completely removing the ability to check in with a customer service representative, Alaska Airlines will encourage travelers to check in on the Alaska Airlines app. By doing this, travelers can get their boarding passes directly on their phones, avoiding the need to print paper passes. The airline also pointed out that this move supports its sustainability goals.

If you’ll be traveling with checked luggage, you can pay for your luggage and print your boarding pass on iPads that will be available throughout the airport lobby. Travelers can tag their own luggage and then drop it at the counter.

Airport kiosks will be replaced by machines equipped with new technology to scan your face, government-issued ID, and bags. After collecting your data, travelers will be able to drop their bags on the belt at the counter before making their way to security.

What Will Stay the Same

In the announcement of these upcoming improvements, Alaska points out that there will still be travelers that either don’t have smartphones or simply prefer to work with an agent at the airport. For this reason, the airline will continue to have customer service agents present to help with check-in and paying for and tagging luggage.

Final Thoughts

The upcoming changes to the Alaska Airlines airport lobby experience and check-in process will begin as early as 2023. Travelers can expect to check in for their flights using the Alaska Airlines app on their smartphone and then use iPads at the airport to pay for and print their boarding passes. The change might be convenient to most travelers, but, hopefully, the airline still has enough staff on hand to alleviate the possible bottleneck that could present itself when relying solely on technology.