Virgin digital upgrades to cut check-in times in half, airline says

Virgin Australia is instigating a major tech overhaul at the bag drop that will do away with check-in kiosks.

The airline says the changes could cut check-in times by half. The revamp also gives Velocity frequent flyer customers the ability to get on a later or earlier domestic flight straight through the app.

Announced on Thursday, Virgin’s upgrades mean people will scan their boarding pass, print the bag tag and drop off their bag all in one stop rather than queuing at the digital kiosk and printing a bag tag and moving to the bag drop-off carousel.

Advanced camera and barcode recognition technology will make this happen, the airline says.

NewsWire has asked Virgin Australia to clarify the cost of the overhaul and how it affects staffing numbers. The changes do not mean job losses, instead the desk staff will move to roving roles through the check-in area, NewsWire has been told.

The Australian Services Union represents the “guest service agent” staff whose jobs are changing. The union says it has not been notified of the changes and will write to the airline seeking assurances no jobs will be cut.

The cost of upgrading the check-in areas will also vary airport to airport, and Virgin Australia would not comment on specific commercial arrangements with airports.

“Nearly 80 per cent of our guests use the Virgin Australia mobile app and website to check in for flights and manage their booking, so we’re doubling down on improving our digital experience to slash the time it takes to check in and bag drop by up to 50 per cent,” Virgin digital general manager Alex Plummer said in a statement.

“Just like our landmark collaboration with OpenAI, we want to be where our customers are, and in 2026 that’s in the palm of your hand.”

The changes announced on Thursday span Virgin’s app, how people book and change flights, and the check-in and bag drop area as well.

Frequent flyers who’ve worked up to Velocity Gold or Platinum level can request via the app to change to an earlier flight on the day of their domestic travel. Platinum Plus customers can get a later or earlier flight.

All Virgin ticket holders will be able to get a free earlier flight on the day of their travel, pending there are seats available, during busy periods or because bad weather disrupts their flight.

All people can also now bid for seat upgrades in the app.

The consolidation of the check-in process is designed to push more people to check-in using the Virgin app before they get to the airport. The airline says 80 per cent of customers use the app.

“In an Australian airline-first, the new bag tag printers will be paired with a one-step automated bag drop, powered by advanced camera and barcode recognition technology,” the Virgin statement reads.

“Guests will simply need to scan their boarding pass to print a bag tag, then proceed to drop off their bag without needing to rescan their boarding pass.”

A one-week trial of the new process has been run in Mackay, and the results indicate check-in times can be cut by half, the airline says.

The Velocity frequent flyers will get a dedicated bag drop area as well.

The Virgin terminals at Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Darwin, and the Sunshine Coast will have the new tech implemented first, beginning this week. Melbourne, Adelaide, Launceston and Gold Coast airports will get the upgrades later in the year.