Airlines Get On Board Apple Watch

Now that the Apple Watch has an official launch date of April 24 (pre-order April 10), the race is on for developers to bring the next generation of apps to the consumer’s wrist.

Naturally, the banks are getting on board and so are travel and hotel companies. So it’s not surprising that the next dose of apps for the Apple Watch is coming from the one type of app consumers are always using when on the go: airline companies.

So far, according to MacRumors, companies such as American Airlines, Delta, British Airways and United Airlines are a few that have released initial details about their Apple Watch apps. From the initial screenshots shared from the companies, it appears as though the airlines are looking to capitalize on the convenience that Apple has highlighted as a perk of the wearable. This includes features like enabling a traveler to use the watch to check a flight number, status, times, and what the weather is like at their destination. Unlike the current mobile system the companies rely on, the Apple Watch may provide the opportunity to transform the travel experience since the ticket information would be available quickly through the app, which could be accessed via the watch without having to tap into a phone.

Checking in on flights, of course, would be another feature. In some Heathrow airport terminals, there could be Apple Watch features that include being able to be greeted and assisted through iBeacon messages, MacRumors reported. Flight notifications were noted as another perk from airline companies like Delta and United, which Venture Beat reported last week, noting that the apps would offer notifications about flight delays and cancelations. Those apps are said to be in the development stage.

There has also been discussions indicating that the Apple Watch could give the Apple Passbook app new life as the airline apps may have the ability to pull traveler’s information from Passbook and import the information into the airline’s apps. While many airlines appear to be working on apps, companies like Southwest and Virgin American told Venture Beat they haven’t developed Apple Watch apps, but didn’t rule out the possibility of doing so eventually.