Korean Air moving to bag drop counters for Economy Class
From September 1, Korean Air will transform all Economy Class check-in counters in domestic airports to bag-drop counters for passengers already checked in using mobile and web check-in services or airport kiosks. The change will enable Korean Air to provide more efficient, convenient baggage check-in services to self-check-in users and possibly cut jobs as well. Passengers who use the self-check-in through mobile, web services or airport kiosks can choose their seats and reduce waiting time at the airport.
The airline said at Incheon International Airport, 70 percent of Economy Class passengers used the self-check-in in August. As a result, bag-drop counters were crowded, causing passengers to wait in long lines during peak hours.
The transformation of counters will be applied to all domestic airports used by Korean Air. As of 13 August, all of the Economy Class check-in counters at Gimpo International Airport, in both international and domestic terminals, were converted to bag check-in counters for self-check-in passengers. The service will be rolled out at Incheon International Airport Terminal 2 from September.
The family care service counter, used by passengers requiring assistance such as unaccompanied minors, pregnant passengers and so on, as well as First Class, Prestige Class and Morning Calm counters will continue normal operations. The counters for US-bound Economy Class passengers at Incheon International Airport will also continue normal operations.
Korean Air also plans to introduce a self-tagging service by the end of 2019, which will allow passengers to pick seats and register baggage at the same time while checking in at the kiosk. This service is expected to cut down over 30 percent of check-in time for each passenger. Passengers can simply print out their baggage tags at the kiosk and put them on their baggage, then drop them at the bag drop counter.
