Fax boarding pass, anyone?
Reimagining British Airways' Boarding Pass Experience
During a four-week cross-departmental design sprint, my team and I overhauled the boarding pass retrieval process. We tackled scan issues, reduced complexity, and made online check-in work as it should.
Key Results:
80% fewer clicks for groups (24 → 4 clicks)
‘Add to Wallet’ launched for iOS (Android next)
Redesigned PDFs improved scannability and reduced delays
Usability testing validated flow with real users
Heathrow staff insight helped ground the design in reality
Too Many Clicks, Too Much Friction
Passengers struggled to get their boarding passes efficiently
The online check-in system was functional but not flexible. Passengers had to download each boarding pass one by one, and mobile web users couldn’t get mobile-friendly passes at all. Worse, PDF passes often failed to scan, resulting in delays at the gates.
This created real frustration:
Existing flows failed multi-traveller and multi-leg journeys
Airport agents were significantly slowed down by poor scan rates
Increased cognitive load for travellers switching between web, app, and email
Research Exposed Complexity
User and stakeholder input showed how the pain stacked up
Heatmaps showed users dropping off at the boarding pass stage. Feedback from service agents confirmed delays from unscannable PDFs. And technical analysis revealed mismatched capabilities between the mobile app and website.
“It took me 24 clicks to get my family's boarding passes for our connecting flight. 24!”
– Customer Feedback
Turning Insights into Strategy
We redefined the problem, scoped the fix, and prioritised impact
Research & Strategy
Collaborated across Product, Dev, and App teams, and LHR staff
Prioritised features based on technical feasibility + user value
Reviewed heatmaps, usage data and complaints
Experience Design
Mapped user flows for common and edge-case travel scenarios
Focused on two key wins: “Select all boarding passes” and ‘Add to Wallet’ (iOS)
Collaborated with a fellow designer on the PDF redesign
Prototype & Test
Built interactive prototypes for each key pathway
Ran remote usability testing with 5 diverse travellers
Fast, Testable Wins that Worked
A better boarding pass for everyone — passengers, staff, and systems
"It feels seamless now - boarding pass in my Wallet before I’ve even thought about it."
– Remote Test Participant
Scannability improved, resulting in fewer delays at gates and security
Clicks decreased exponentially for complex itineraries
Mobile check-in now meets modern traveller expectations
Confidence increased for both travellers and frontline staff