Mobile Boarding Pass Offline Index: 20 Major Airlines Checked

Only 10 of the 20 major airlines in this study explicitly tell travelers that a mobile boarding pass can be opened without Wi-Fi or mobile data. Every airline in the sample publishes some form of mobile boarding pass. Eighteen publish a way to save it to a device or digital wallet. Those numbers sound reassuring until the airport connection drops and the airline app asks the traveler to sign in again.

The gap is not proof that the other ten passes fail offline. It is a documentation gap. We awarded the offline field only when an airline used clear wording such as "offline," "without an internet connection" or "without mobile data" on a checked first-party page. A mobile-pass button, a wallet logo or a general app description did not earn that field by itself.

Eight airlines publish the complete traveler chain in this study: British Airways, easyJet, Emirates, LATAM Airlines, Lufthansa, Ryanair, Turkish Airlines and Wizz Air. Each publishes mobile-pass availability, explicit offline access, a saving route, flight or airport limits, and a recovery or paper fallback.

Study result: mobile boarding passes are common. Complete instructions are not. Half of the 20 airlines explicitly promise offline access, and eight publish what to save, where it may not work and how to recover when the phone cannot show it.

Download the mobile boarding pass CSV or open the JSON dataset. The JSON contains the fixed sample, scoring rules, source notes, keyword set, ten competing pages, ten public traveler questions and a SHA-256 checksum for the source file. Every CSV row has its own normalized checksum.

Which boarding-pass setup fits your flight?

The strongest arrangement uses separate layers. The barcode is stored on the phone. The booking reference is available outside the airline app. Live mobile data handles changes. A paper route remains available where the airline or airport requires it.

Ten airlines explicitly say the pass works without a connection

The explicit offline group is Air Canada, British Airways, Delta Air Lines, easyJet, Emirates, LATAM Airlines, Lufthansa, Ryanair, Turkish Airlines and Wizz Air.

The wording differs, but the practical message is consistent:

• Air Canada says a boarding pass downloaded in its app is available offline and that a Wallet pass is stored on the device. - British Airways says a downloaded mobile boarding pass remains available when the phone is not online. - Delta lists offline boarding-pass access as a Fly Delta app feature. - easyJet says a pass saved to Apple or Google Wallet can be opened offline. - Emirates says app information remains available offline and that a saved screenshot or Wallet copy can scan without an active connection. - LATAM recommends saving the pass on the phone so it can be reviewed without internet. - Lufthansa says the pass can be managed and used offline in its app, iOS Wallet or Google Pay. - Ryanair says the digital boarding pass is available offline in its app after online check-in. - Turkish Airlines recommends a screenshot or wallet copy so the pass remains accessible offline. - Wizz Air says the app can show the pass and itinerary without a connection.

This field is deliberately narrow. It does not measure how quickly an app opens, whether the barcode updates after a seat change or whether an airport scanner accepts a particular screen. It answers one question: does the airline publicly tell a traveler that the saved pass works without a network connection?

Strongest supported conclusion: a traveler should not have to infer offline behavior from a wallet logo. The most useful airline pages state the no-connection outcome in plain language.

Eight airlines publish the complete traveler chain

The complete score requires more than offline access. A traveler also needs to know whether the selected airport accepts a mobile pass, whether a document check changes the process and what happens after a dead battery or missing phone.

The eight complete guides take different approaches.

British Airways connects offline access to a practical airport fallback

British Airways lets a traveler download a pass in the app or save it to Apple or Google Wallet. Its mobile guidance states that the pass remains accessible without a connection. Its check-in page adds the recovery step: a lost or forgotten boarding pass can be printed at an airport kiosk or desk.

The route qualification matters. A British Airways booking can contain a flight operated by a partner, and not every departure can issue a mobile pass. Check the operating carrier rather than relying on the marketing airline shown first on the confirmation.

easyJet publishes the clearest airport exclusion list

easyJet combines a direct offline instruction with a named list of airports that do not accept mobile boarding passes. The current page tells affected passengers to check in online and print a paper pass.

That distinction prevents a common mistake. A boarding pass can be stored perfectly offline and still be the wrong format for the departure airport. Storage and acceptance are separate tests.

Emirates distinguishes a live link from a saved copy

Emirates explains that a boarding-pass link opened from email or SMS needs internet. A screenshot or Wallet copy saved to the device can be scanned without an active connection. The Emirates app can also retain trip information offline after the initial sign-in.

This is useful because "mobile boarding pass" describes several delivery methods. A browser link is not the same object as a local image or wallet pass. The airline's instructions tell travelers which one they have.

LATAM tells travelers to save the updated pass

LATAM recommends saving the pass to the phone for review without internet. It also explains that automatic check-in can produce a temporary pass that updates closer to departure and that some international travelers receive the final pass at the airport because of document checks.

An old saved image may not reflect a later update. Save the current pass after the final check-in state appears, especially after a seat, route or document-status change.

Lufthansa separates its own flights from codeshares

Lufthansa explicitly supports offline use in its app, iOS Wallet and Google Pay. It also states that official regulations can prevent mobile-pass issuance. When that happens, the traveler receives a check-in confirmation and collects the boarding pass at the airport counter.

The page is also clear about operating carriers. Lufthansa online check-in does not cover every partner or codeshare flight. A Lufthansa flight number is not enough when the confirmation says another airline operates the segment.

Ryanair answers the no-data and dead-phone questions directly

Ryanair's current digital boarding-pass page says the pass appears in the app after online check-in and remains available offline. It also explains the outcome when a checked-in passenger loses a device, has a dead battery or does not own a smartphone. The airport can issue a pass without a reissue charge when online check-in was completed before arrival.

Country rules still apply. The same page gives a specific Morocco process and names the Moroccan departure airports where the app pass can now be used. Travelers should read that live list rather than repeat an older blanket claim about Morocco.

Turkish Airlines gives the most detailed backup checklist

Turkish Airlines recommends a screenshot or an Apple Wallet or Google Pay copy for offline access. It covers phone loss, dead batteries, airport compatibility, visa checks, connecting flights, damaged screens and seat changes.

The seat-change instruction is especially useful. A change can invalidate the old QR code, so the traveler should generate and save the updated pass. Offline access protects availability, not freshness.

Wizz Air combines offline app access with an airport checker

Wizz Air says the app can display the boarding pass and itinerary without a connection. It also offers digital-wallet storage. Its check-in help warns that some airports do not support mobile boarding passes and directs those passengers to a printed card.

The traveler still needs to use the current airport checker. A general app feature does not override the rule for a particular departure.

🏆 Documentation leaders: these eight airlines publish all five fields. The trophy recognizes the completeness of the checked instructions. It is not a claim about app reliability, airport staff or scanner performance.

A wallet button is helpful, but it is not the same as an offline statement

Eighteen of the 20 airlines publish some way to save a pass to a device, app, image or wallet. China Eastern and United are the two records where the checked public HTML did not expose a clear saving route that met the study rule.

Several airlines publish strong saving instructions without using explicit offline wording:

• Air China lists save, print, email, SMS and Passbook routes.
• Alaska Airlines tells travelers to save or bookmark the electronic pass page and check departure-airport eligibility.
• ANA documents mobile boarding passes and Wallet registration in its domestic guide.
• American Airlines says the app stores the pass on the device and now supports Apple, Google and Samsung wallet integrations.
• China Southern delivers QR boarding passes through its mobile services and documents resend options.
• IndiGo lets travelers download a soft copy or print the pass.
• Qatar Airways tells eligible travelers to add the digital pass to a Wallet.
• Southwest supports Apple Wallet, Google Wallet and Android photo saving.

These are useful routes, but the study does not fill in the missing sentence for the airline. A traveler can take the safer action anyway: complete the save while connected, open the result once, and keep the confirmation number outside the app.

The classification also avoids a false negative. "Not publicly documented" does not mean an app cannot work offline. It means a traveler could not confirm that behavior from the checked first-party pages before the trip.

Airport acceptance is a separate decision from offline storage

Seventeen airlines publish at least one airport, route, operating-carrier, passenger or document exception. Air Canada, Delta and United did not publish a complete exception set on the pages used in this audit.

The most common boundaries are:

1. Departure-airport acceptance. easyJet, Qatar Airways and Wizz Air publish airport-level availability or exclusion information.
2. Document checks. Emirates, LATAM, Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines explain situations where a passport or visa review can move the final pass to the counter.
3. Operating carrier. British Airways, Lufthansa and Qatar Airways distinguish their own operated flights from some partner or codeshare itineraries.
4. Passenger type. Air China, China Eastern, IndiGo and Southwest publish exclusions for at least some special-service, child, military, government or partner bookings.
5. Country-specific handling. Ryanair publishes a specific process for departures from Morocco.

A phone can show a sharp, current QR code offline while the airport still requires paper or a counter stamp. That is why this study gives separate fields to offline behavior and acceptance limits.

Thirteen airlines publish a recovery or paper-pass fallback

The recovery group is Air China, American Airlines, British Airways, China Southern, easyJet, Emirates, IndiGo, LATAM Airlines, Lufthansa, Ryanair, Southwest Airlines, Turkish Airlines and Wizz Air.

The better pages answer at least one concrete failure:

• the pass was deleted;
• the phone is lost or has no power;
• the app cannot show the pass;
• the airport does not accept mobile boarding;
• a document check prevents final issuance;
• a seat or itinerary change makes the stored pass stale.

Recovery language is valuable even when it sends the traveler to a counter. A clear paper route sets an arrival-time decision. Silence leaves the traveler guessing whether the kiosk can reprint, whether a fee applies or whether the check-in deadline has already passed.

For a tight connection, keep the booking reference, passport and operating-carrier name accessible. Staff can help faster when the traveler can identify the exact segment without reopening email.

Screenshot, airline app or digital wallet: which copy should you use?

The right answer depends on what the airline issues.

Use the airline app when it explicitly stores the pass offline

An offline-capable airline app can keep the current pass close to live trip details. Air Canada, Delta, Emirates, Ryanair and Wizz Air explicitly document offline app access in the sources checked for this study.

The app still needs internet for tasks such as first sign-in, check-in, rebooking, document upload, gate changes and some pass refreshes. Offline mode protects the already saved record. It does not turn every app function into an offline function.

Use a digital wallet when the airline offers it

A wallet keeps the pass outside the airline's navigation and account screen. Air Canada, British Airways, easyJet, Lufthansa, Qatar Airways, Southwest, Turkish Airlines and several others publish wallet routes.

Save the pass before reaching security. Then open it from the wallet rather than from the email link. Check the visible flight number, date and seat after a booking change. A wallet pass can receive updates when connected, but a traveler should not assume an old pass refreshed without looking.

Use a screenshot only when the airline allows a static barcode

Emirates and Turkish Airlines explicitly describe screenshot use in the checked sources. That is not a universal rule. Some tickets use changing barcodes, and some airports require an official app or wallet object.

A screenshot is useful for the booking reference, airport directions and a static QR code that the airline says is acceptable. It should not replace a live pass when the airline warns that the code changes or when the airport requires a printed document.

Keep paper when the route calls for paper

Paper is not a failure of digital travel. It is the correct format at airports and for itineraries that do not accept a mobile pass. Print before leaving when the airline says so. If the airport provides a kiosk or counter fallback, arrive before the relevant check-in deadline.

What should you do before leaving for the airport?

Use this sequence after check-in opens:

1. Confirm the operating airline for every segment.
2. Complete any passport, visa or identity check requested by that airline.
3. Wait for the final boarding pass, not merely a check-in confirmation.
4. Save the pass through the airline's documented app, wallet, download or image route.
5. Open the saved copy with airplane mode on if the airline explicitly supports offline access.
6. Confirm the flight number, date, airport, terminal and passenger name.
7. Save the booking reference and airline contact route separately.
8. Read the departure-airport and connection-airport mobile-pass rule.
9. Charge the phone and carry a permitted backup power source.
10. Use a paper pass when the airline or airport requires it.

Do not test airplane mode while a pass is still being issued or updated. Finish the online workflow first, then test the saved result.

Where Roaming eSIM adds value after the pass is saved

An offline boarding pass solves one narrow task: showing the stored barcode. It does not provide current gate changes, a new pass after rebooking, airline chat, connection updates, baggage messages, ground transport or directions after landing.

🏆 Roaming eSIM continuity edge: save the boarding pass offline first, then use a current Roaming eSIM plan for the live parts of the journey where the selected package has coverage. The two layers do different jobs, so a weak airport Wi-Fi connection does not become the only route to the barcode or the latest flight information.

Roaming eSIM is the stronger fit when a traveler wants one data plan across a multi-country route covered by the selected package, needs mobile data beyond the terminal or wants to keep the usual SIM available for calls and messages. A local airport or airline rule still controls boarding-pass acceptance. Roaming eSIM cannot make an unsupported mobile pass valid, restore a dead phone or guarantee coverage inside every terminal.

The related plan cards below show current options for global, European, North American and Asian travel. Check the countries, allowance, validity and supported features on the selected package before purchase. For data sizing, use the travel data calculator. For phone preparation, see when to install a Roaming eSIM before travel and the airline power-bank guide.

Traveler questions that shaped the study

Public Reddit discussions were used to identify questions, not to score airline policies. The airline findings come from first-party pages.

Will a boarding pass still open with no airport Wi-Fi?

It will when the airline explicitly supports offline access and the pass was saved before the connection disappeared. Ten of 20 airlines in this sample publish that promise. For another airline, use every first-party saving route offered and keep a counter fallback.

Is a screenshot always accepted?

No. Emirates and Turkish Airlines publish screenshot guidance, but other passes can use a changing barcode or require an official app, wallet or paper format. Follow the instruction attached to the issued pass.

Can I print a pass after checking in online?

Many airlines publish a kiosk, desk or print route after online check-in. The deadline and fee can vary. Thirteen airlines in this sample publish some recovery or paper fallback.

What if the phone battery dies before security?

Use the airline's published kiosk or counter route. Ryanair and Turkish Airlines answer the dead-phone scenario directly. A saved offline pass still needs a working screen.

Can one phone hold passes for several travelers?

Some airlines support multiple passes in one app or wallet. The group should still plan for separation, a failed device and any traveler who needs a separate document check. The family eSIM setup study covers the separate question of buying and handing off mobile data for another person.

Will the saved pass update after a seat or gate change?

It may update while connected, depending on the airline and saving method. Turkish Airlines explicitly tells travelers to create a new pass after a seat change. Check the saved flight details again after any booking change.

Can I go directly to security with a mobile pass?

Often, yes, when the departure airport accepts the pass, no document check remains and checked baggage does not require a bag-drop visit. The airline and airport instructions for the specific itinerary control.

Why did check-in finish without issuing a boarding pass?

Document verification, a partner flight, a special passenger type or an airport rule can move final issuance to the counter. A check-in confirmation is not necessarily the scannable boarding pass.

Does a digital wallet remove the need for mobile data?

It can remove the connection dependency for the stored pass when the airline or wallet workflow supports that outcome. Live changes, rebooking and a replacement pass still require data or staff help.

Should I carry a paper backup?

Carry paper when the airline or departure airport requires it, or when the traveler cannot rely on a charged phone. Otherwise, a documented offline app or wallet route plus a known kiosk or counter fallback can be sufficient.

How we selected and scored the 20 airlines

The sample was fixed before scoring. We included every airline in OAG's published 2025 major-airline set: Air Canada, Air China, Alaska Airlines, All Nippon Airways, American Airlines, British Airways, China Eastern, China Southern, Delta Air Lines, easyJet, Emirates, IndiGo, LATAM Airlines, Lufthansa, Qatar Airways, Ryanair, Southwest Airlines, Turkish Airlines, United Airlines and Wizz Air.

The set is not a service ranking. OAG presents it as a group of major airlines and publishes 2025 capacity, frequency, route and fleet context. Using the complete set prevented us from swapping in an airline because its documentation produced a convenient result.

We checked five fields:

1. Mobile boarding pass published: the airline publicly documents a mobile or digital boarding pass.
2. Explicit offline access: a first-party page states that the saved pass works offline, without internet or without mobile data.
3. Save route: the airline explains how to save the pass to an app, device, image or digital wallet.
4. Airport or itinerary limits: the airline publishes a departure, route, carrier, passenger or document boundary.
5. Recovery or paper fallback: the airline explains how to recover, reissue, print or collect a pass when the digital route is unavailable.

A clear limitation earned credit because it improves the decision. General customer service did not earn the recovery field. A wallet logo did not earn the offline field. Search snippets were used to locate pages, then the first-party page controlled the record.

How to reproduce or update the result

The normalized source file is stored at scripts/research/data/mobile-boarding-pass-offline-index-source.json. Run:

node scripts/research/generate-mobile-boarding-pass-offline-index.mjs

To audit an update:

1. Keep the OAG sample unchanged unless a new edition replaces the sample.
2. Open each first-party source and record the access date.
3. Score only wording that is present on the page.
4. Preserve "not publicly documented" when a page is silent.
5. Rebuild the outputs and review every changed checksum.
6. Update the article result only after the generated summary changes.

What this boarding-pass audit did not test

This study did not buy tickets, complete identity checks, test a live boarding barcode, measure app uptime or ask airport staff to scan a device. Those actions depend on a real booking, passenger documents, departure airport and travel date.

Some airline pages are client-rendered, localized or scoped to one market. United's checked pages, for example, did not expose enough public text to award an offline or save-route field. That is recorded as a documentation result, not a claim that the United app cannot store a boarding pass.

Air China, ANA, China Eastern and China Southern publish some instructions for particular domestic markets, device types or departure cities. We did not extend those statements to every international itinerary.

Airline and airport instructions can change. The boarding pass issued for the traveler's booking and the current first-party airport rule take priority over this dated comparison.

Why this study fills a useful content gap

The leading search results answer pieces of the question. Lufthansa, Vueling and Emirates explain their own workflows. Other pages compare general airline-app features or summarize mobile ticketing. None of the ten leading pages reviewed for this study used the complete OAG major-airline set, separated explicit offline wording from inferred behavior, scored recovery and airport limits, and published downloadable airline-level evidence.

Public Reddit discussions show why that distinction matters. Travelers describe airline apps that will not load, lost sessions, poor airport Wi-Fi, dead batteries, screenshots, wallet passes, paper reprints and departure airports with different rules. The useful answer is not simply "take a screenshot." It is a decision tree grounded in the operating airline and airport.

This index gives that decision a stable owner. Future boarding-pass documentation changes should update this dataset instead of producing separate airline-by-airline articles with the same search intent.