United to Roll Out Apple iPhones to Customer Service Agents

By Paul Riegler on 2 December 2015
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Apple iPhone 6s

United Airlines plans to issue its customer service agents Apple iPhone 6 Plus smartphones starting next year.

The Chicago-based airline said it will give the large smartphones to roughly 6,000 agents at its U.S. hubs to allow them to support customer needs anywhere in the terminal.

Initial functionality will include printing boarding passes and baggage tags and finding alternate flights in the event of weather or delays. The airline plans to add additional features into the phone, including the ability to check passengers in and offer the same level of functionality that passengers find in an airport check-in kiosk.

“Our employees told us they needed better tools to serve our customers, especially during severe weather and busier travel times,” said Jon Roitman, the airline’s senior vice president of airport operations.

This is not United’s first deployment of Apple products to customer-facing employees: flight attendants received iPhones to use in flight in June 2014 and pilots received iPads in August 2011.

(Photo: Accura Media Group)

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