OREANDA-NEWS. May 31, 2008. More than seven hundred thousand electronic tickets (e-tickets) have been bought by passengers of S7 Airlines since the technology was implemented in the spring of 2007, reported the press-centre of S7 Airlines.

Today electronic tickets are available on 87% of the flights of S7 Airlines’ expansive route network. Thirty-one Russian and 23 foreign airports service passengers with S7 Airlines electronic tickets. By the beginning of 2009, S7 Airlines, Russia’s largest air carrier by number of transported passengers on domestic routes, plans to switch completely to e-tickets.

“Electronic tickets are available on practically all of S7 Airlines’ regular Russian and international routes. Russian passengers have already grown accustomed to electronic tickets and in fact prefer them over paper tickets. In April 2008 more than 90% of all S7 Airlines tickets sold through the company’s website were electronic tickets. E-tickets sold through the company’s own ticket counters accounted for more than 75% of all tickets sold,” says S7 Airlines’ Deputy Commercial Director Yelena Muzykantova.

Since the technology was implemented, there has been a stable increase in sales of electronic tickets. In April 2007 the share of e-tickets comprised 0.2% of all S7 Airlines tickets sold, and in April 2008 this indicator exceeded 30%, taking into account sales of electronic tickets through the website, the company’s own ticket counters and agent network.

The increase in the sales of electronic tickets can be attributed to efforts to conclude interline agreements with partner airlines to mutually accept electronic tickets. As of today, 27 electronic interline agreements have been signed.

“According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the company’s use of electronic tickets can save about 9-12 dollars per ticket thanks to reduced expenditures on the production of company ticket blanks and reduced labor on printing out paper tickets. But we still haven’t seen real savings because electronic tickets are not used on all routes, so airlines have to support two technologies—electronic and paper,” says S7 Airlines’ Sales Director Maxim Polukhin.

Electronic tickets can be purchased on the S7 Airlines website, at the company’s ticket counters, and through agents. To make purchases of electronic tickets through the company’s website more convenient, S7 Airlines plans to implement technology that allows payment for electronic tickets through payment terminals.

Electronic ticket technology is convenient for passengers first and foremost because electronic tickets are impossible to lose, since the information about the passenger and route are stored in the company’s electronic database. The passenger need only show his or her passport at check-in. Confirmation of the electronic ticket purchase is the itinerary/receipt, which contains information about the flight. If the ticket is purchased through the Internet, the passenger receives it via electronic mail.

E-ticket technology is also convenient for corporate clients who need flexible schedules for their business trips. If you wish to change the departure date,* simply call S7 Airlines customer service at 8-800-200-000-7.