Travel

Traveler shares warning about the one thing to ‘always screenshot’ before flying

By
"An airline may reassign your seat for operational reasons, but showing where you were previously seated can be persuasive in making your case not to be moved," said Leff. , Fox News
Published Dec. 13, 2024, 11:13 a.m. ET

A traveler took to social media to share their experience using their mobile boarding pass in order to share an important message with fellow travelers.

Titled “Always screenshot your boarding pass from the app,” the user wrote in the post, “Call me paranoid, but I take that extra step just in case.”

The user went on to explain that a flight attendant approached them upon seating and said they were upgraded.

“Finally get to FC [first class] and settle in, only for another FA [flight attendant] –I’m not making this up– come and tell me that it was a mistake and the upgrade was not available. Annoying but I guess whatever, maybe the GA [gate agent] made a mistake,” said the post. 

The Redditor, who claimed to be flying American Airlines, then shared that once they arrived back at their original seat, a fellow passenger who said they were on standby said it was her seat.

“I look in the app and of course, my boarding pass had changed to the FC seat, which was not available. Good thing I had the screenshot of the original pass and showed it to her and to the FA, who then moved her somewhere in the back,” the post said. 

The user added, “A complete snafu, which of course they had no explanation for, but if I had not had that screenshot, it would have been me in the back.”

Girl holding smart phone with boarding pass concept on screen.
A traveler took to social media to share their experience using their mobile boarding pass in order to share an important message with fellow travelers. maicasaa – stock.adobe.com

Fox News Digital reached out to American Airlines for comment.

Gary Leff, a Virginia-based travel industry expert and author of the blog “View From the Wing,” told Fox News Digital he always screenshots his digital boarding passes.

“An airline’s system can go down, or an internet connection can fail right as I’m trying to board. So, I view this as a backup that helps me board smoothly,” said Leff.

On the sub-Reddit forum titled “r/americanairlines,” users took part in discussing online boarding passes.

Businesswoman In Airport Departure Lounge Scanning Digital Boarding Pass On Smart Phone.
The social media user went on to explain that a flight attendant approached them upon seating and said they were upgraded. Monkey Business – stock.adobe.com

“That’s awful!! Great idea about the screenshot,” commented a user.

Another posted, “I often wondered about that. So many seat changes seem to happen before a flight.”

“I put mine on the wallet as well but if the seat changes it updates on the wallet too. Hence screenshot,” added a user.

Some also said they screenshot their passes as an added precaution. 

"Finally get to FC [first class] and settle in, only for another FA [flight attendant] --I'm not making this up-- come and tell me that it was a mistake and the upgrade was not available. Annoying but I guess whatever, maybe the GA [gate agent] made a mistake," said the post. 
“Finally get to FC [first class] and settle in, only for another FA [flight attendant] –I’m not making this up– come and tell me that it was a mistake and the upgrade was not available. Annoying but I guess whatever, maybe the GA [gate agent] made a mistake,” said the post.  Reddit/r/americanairlines

“I do it every single time, just in case my phone or the app has a connectivity issue at the wrong time.”

Other users expressed frustrations with digital passes.

“It always disappears immediately for me like it’s trying real hard to avoid me lol,” said one.

Many Redditors said they prefer physical boarding passes.

An American Airlines com
The Redditor, who claimed to be flying American Airlines, then shared that once they arrived back at their original seat, a fellow passenger who said they were on standby said it was her seat. Alex – stock.adobe.com

“Paper boarding pass ftw [for the win]. I don’t need my phone to be out for anyone to see,” commented one user. 

Another added, “I always get a paper ticket. You never [know] what can happen with electronics.”

“There’s nothing like the paper boarding (pass) document, printed on their paper, with all the fancy numbers and barcode,” a user concurred. 

The user continued, “That is a legal document that may come in handy in a court case. Electronic boarding passes from the carrier’s app/website can disappear in the blink of an eye. Screen prints are barely one step above that.”

Someone looking at their phone and boarding pass
“I look in the app and of course, my boarding pass had changed to the FC seat, which was not available. Good thing I had the screenshot of the original pass and showed it to her and to the FA, who then moved her somewhere in the back,” the post continued.  Rido – stock.adobe.com

“Just print your boarding pass at a kiosk when you enter the airport,” one user suggested. 

Leff says it is important to keep a record of seats in case something changes.

“An airline may reassign your seat for operational reasons, but showing where you were previously seated can be persuasive in making your case not to be moved,” said Leff.