I travel way too often and, unfortunately, lose things even more frequently. Still, that glacial line at the airport ticket counter always makes steam rise from the top of my head - especially when I arrive at a ridiculously optimistic 15 minutes before departure. This makes me an ideal candidate for United Airline's new E Ticket, or electronic ticketing service. It's a godsend. I know the United flight schedule better than most travel agents, so all I have to do is pick up the phone, listen to a few moments of that stirring Gershwin hold music, give the friendly agent my flight info and credit card number, then show up for the flight. No paper ticket required.
At the airport, I bypass those hapless souls queued up in the ticket line and head to the gate. There, I show a picture ID or my credit card and pick up a boarding pass I need to hold onto for only a couple of minutes (a feat even I can manage).
United Shuttle flights leaving from San Francisco or Los Angeles work even more easily. Instead of flashing an ID, I just insert my Mileage Plus card into a zippy, ATM-like kiosk to select my seat and get a boarding pass. With a full display of the airplane's seating chart, I can pick the precise close-to-the-front-but-not-at-the-bulkhead aisle seat I want without having to worry I'll get that miserable, unreclining aisle seat just in front of the overly aromatic lavatory.
But alas, all is not yet perfect in E land. The few times I've tried to use one of those zippy kiosks, the machine informed me it was unable to locate my reservation and asked me to wait patiently while it printed out a handsome but utterly useless time- and date-stamped paper confirming the failure. A hint: Make sure to copy down that Record Locator Number when the agent gives it to you over the phone.
And for some reason, after the flight, you're mailed a printed receipt that looks suspiciously like a ticket. I've even had a few friends take it to the airport hoping to pass it off as an unused fare. Nice try. The skies aren't quite that friendly.
As a frequent United flier, I'm pretty pleased with E Ticket. It's fast, it's fun, and if I can remember where I put my picture ID, it's far less stressful than the airport ticket counter.
- Michael Tchao
United Airlines Reservations and Information: (800) 241 6522.
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