Airline passengers could soon check in and get their boarding passes on WhatsApp

This would make the flying experience so much more convenient.

Using WhatsApp to streamline one’s flying experience could become a more common occurrence in the near future after a world-first announcement by KLM Royal Dutch Airlines on Tuesday. The airline announced that they have started a unique test for a new service on WhatsApp which will offer customers world booking confirmation, check-in notification, boarding pass, flight status updates and the ability to ask questions in 10 different languages on WhatsApp via the official WhatsApp Business application. KLM is the first airline worldwide with a verified WhatsApp business account and one of a number of businesses testing ways for businesses to communicate with customers using the messaging service. The rollout has already started in a limited number of countries, and the service will become more widely available in the coming days and weeks. The KLM service, which will offer flight information to customers through a verified WhatsApp business account, is available to customers who book tickets or check in via KLM.com and opt-in to receive information via WhatsApp. Messages are secure so that they can only be read by the customer and KLM, and no one else, not even WhatsApp and verified businesses using the official WhatsApp business application, such as KLM, will be identifiable via a green checkmark badge next to the contact name on WhatsApp. Commenting on the partnership with WhatsApp, KLM President & CEO Pieter Elbers, said: “I am very proud that KLM is the world’s first airline with a verified WhatsApp account. This unique partnership with WhatsApp underlines our position as an aviation pioneer. We want to be where our customers are and, given the 1 billion users, you have to be on WhatsApp. “With an account verified by WhatsApp, we offer our customers worldwide a reliable way to receive their flight information and ask questions 24/7. This truly is a major next step in our social media strategy.”