A service that is meant to save time and make things easier for passengers — the check-in kiosk — has not really taken off at airports.
A survey of airports across the country revealed though 80 per cent of passengers said they had no qualms about using the self-service facility to decrease the amount of time they spent at the airport, only 30 per cent knew about the availability of such kiosks.
The study was conducted by air transport IT specialist SITA and CAPA Centre for Civil Aviation
At Chennai airport, for instance, the old domestic terminal had two check-in kiosks which were operated by Air India and Jet Airways, but were hardly ever used by passengers, said airline officials. The new domestic terminal, however, does not have check-in kiosks.
“When we had a kiosk at the airport, of about 3,000 passengers we saw in a day, only 7-8 used this facility. We are now in the process of setting up a kiosk in the new terminal,” said an Air India official.
Though there are more takers for web check-in than the check-in kiosks, the patronage could be improved. “It is mostly corporates, comprising 30 per cent of flyers, that opt for web check-in since they don’t carry many bags. Often, it is the travel agent who completes the web check-in process. Otherwise, not many are aware of the facility,” said a travel agent.
