KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 28): AirAsia has announced that it will be limiting the counter check-in service facility at all airports in Malaysia from April 1, 2022.
The limited counter check-in service in Malaysia from April 1, AirAsia said, is to accelerate full migration to contactless self check-in.
With the gradual removal of the counter check-in service, the low-cost airline company further noted that no counter check-in fee will be applicable from April 1 as only eligible guests will be accepted for counter check-in service.
Notwithstanding that, AirAsia highlighted that counter check-in service continues to remain available for certain groups of passengers.
Among the guests mentioned by AirAsia are senior citizens aged 70 and above, bookings made under Malaysian Armed Forces and Government warrants, guests on charter flights, and guests who have self checked in but need to reprint boarding passes.
Others include guests with reduced mobility holding valid Persons with Disability (OKU) cards, group bookings of 10 guests and more, young guests travelling alone (aged 12-16), and guests affected by schedule changes and flight cancellations.
Guests who perform seat upgrade and/or add-on purchases at the check-in counter, guests affected by system outage of the super app, website or kiosk, guests who were not assigned a seat during self check-in, as well as corporate Full Flex and Premium Flex guests will also be eligible.
According to AirAsia, it has spent the period of downtime in travel over the past two years to further improve and revamp its flight procedures and processes.
The airline company also noted that in the highest interest of safety and wellbeing of all its guests and employees, only fully-vaccinated employees will operate flights and be on duty at airport terminals and likewise, only fully-vaccinated guests are accepted onboard.
Meanwhile, AirAsia said it has successfully migrated 95% of its guests to contactless self-check-in via the airasia Super App and its website, an initiative that was made mandatory at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic last year and will continue to be an integral part of its effort to further strengthen its Covid-19 mitigation plan through contactless operations.
According to AirAsia Malaysia CEO Riad Asmat, this was achieved through the enhancements made to its systems and its guests embracing them accordingly.
“Check-in for flights via the airasia Super App is done with just a few simple steps, during which guests are able to add-on their baggage, in-flight meals, travel insurance and choose their preferred seat. Guests can perform self check-in as early as 14 days before the departure date.
“Upon completion, they will receive an e-Boarding Pass within the app that can be used to board their flight. A QR code will also be produced for them to simply flash against the scanner at any contactless kiosk at the airport to have their baggage tags printed before proceeding to the self baggage drop machines.
“Guests with no check-in baggage can straight away proceed to the boarding lounge by presenting their e-Boarding Pass and national ID or passport. A guest travelling in a group can check in on behalf of other members of the group as well,” he said in a statement on Feb 25.
Riad added AirAsia will continue with awareness and education campaigns on the benefits of self-check-in and the complimentary usage of the airasia Super App via its various communication channels including social media platforms, electronic direct mailer (EDM) and push notifications on the app, as a continued effort to achieve the 100% usage of its contactless initiatives.
“Guests who have been checking in via the website are also encouraged to migrate to the super app so they can enjoy greater convenience including in-flight services and in-flight WiFi connection onboard our flights,” he said.
As at 11.15am on Monday (Feb 28), Capital A Bhd, operating as AirAsia, saw its share price fell 3.13% or two sen lower to 62 sen bringing a market capitalisation of RM2.66 billion.