December 29, 2008

Check-In Kiosks Unable to Rebook

The kiosks for Delta are unable to handle rebookings so during the recent holiday crunch when flights were cancelled, passengers could not use the kiosks and ended up having to stand in lines.

A Delta spokesman said the long lines — caused by a crunch of travelers stranded by the previous day’s inclement weather, the post-Christmas holiday rush and some problems at check-in kiosks — had been greatly reduced on Sunday because of additional personnel both at curbside and in the airport.

“Today we’re better prepared,” said Delta’s Anthony Black. “We have more staff.”

The weekend after Christmas, one of the most heavily-traveled, lived up to its billing Saturday as bad weather from the Midwest to New York created departure delays as much as three hours.

That added to headaches that started earlier Saturday for some Delta customers who were forced to stand in lines to talk to agents because quick check-in kiosks would not process their tickets.

The kiosks did not work for flyers who had left the gates because their flights were canceled or they missed their connections. When they tried to re-enter, the system became confused because it did not expect them to be at a different starting point and would not process their information, Black said.

Delta officials were working to correct the problem, he said.

ajc.com

Posted by staff at December 29, 2008 04:03 PM