With almost 80 per cent of people checking in to flights digitally, Virgin Australia has announced it will replace its check-in kiosks with bag tag printers in domestic terminals at six of Australia’s eight capital city airports alongside some regional airports, with the majority of this transition to be complete by the end of the year.
Bag drop facilities will also get a major upgrade so that passengers will not have to rescan their boarding pass when they drop off their bags – instead high-tech cameras and barcode readers will identify the bag and pair it with data from the bag tag printers.
Virgin believes these changes will cut check-in time by half.
Alongside these changes to the airport experience, Virgin will deliver some significant changes to its mobile app, which will allow those in the top three tiers of its airline loyalty program travelling on eligible fare types to change to an earlier flight on the app on the day of travel. For the top tier of the loyalty program, it will also be possible to change to a later flight on the same day.
Across the broader passenger base, during high demand times and when there is a weather disruption, passengers may be notified via the app that they can change to an earlier flight on the app.
“We’re incredibly focused on investing in the customer experience and that starts with digital ease – something our customers expect today,” said Virgin Australia’s general manager of digital, Alex Plummer.
“The Virgin Australia app has always been focused on delivering an excellent day-of-travel experience. Today’s update is a major step forward in our mission to be Australia’s most-loved airline; allowing customers to check-in, manage their booking and move through the airport in a way that’s never been done before by an Australian airline.
“Nearly 80 per cent of our guests use the Virgin Australia mobile app and website to check in for flights and manage their booking, so we’re doubling down on improving our digital experience to slash the time it takes to check-in and bag drop by up to 50 per cent.
“Just like our landmark collaboration with OpenAI, we want to be where our customers are, and in 2026 that’s in the palm of your hand.
“In the year 2000, we were the first airline to launch online check-in, and this is just another chapter in a long history of innovating to make the customer check-in experience like no other.”
Airports that will have Virgin Australia check-in kiosks replaced by bag tag printers in domestic terminals include Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Darwin, the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Launceston and Mackay.
