South Africa enables flight booking via mobile

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA:  People in South Africa can now book their flights and even check in on mobile phones.

The Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) and other airlines in the country have introduced the system which will allow passengers to even print their own boarding passes, BuaNews, the national news agency, reported.

The system, however, has been implemented for the time being for domestic flights only, BuaNews said.

Officials said the system will be made available for international travellers as soon as approval is received from the department of home affairs.

"Passengers will no longer have to queue at the airport for check-in as their seat is assigned at the time of booking, while they can also print their boarding pass on any computer printer," said Bongani Maseko, an ACSA official, was quoted as saying.

He said this would reduce the number of people using check-in desks and give airlines real-time monitoring of which passengers have already checked into the secure area.

The objective of the new system was to simplify the check-in process and provide greater flexibility and convenience for travellers