Air ticket becomes paperless from June, amid industry gloom

IATA's direction comes at a time when the international airline industry faces a "grim" outlook as soaring fuel costs and economic turmoil hit passenger numbers. "The impact of skyrocketing oil prices and weaker economies has made its way to traffic growth," said IATA director general Giovanni Bisignani. "The industry outlook is grim at best."

According to a data compiled by IATA, the number of airline passengers grew by just 3 percent in April, against 5.4 percent in the corresponding month a year earlier.

IATA members, which make up 94 percent of the world's airline traffic began switching to e-tickets from February onwards as rising crude oil prices forced them to find ways to cut down on operating costs.

According to IATA, the move to ban paper tickets will not only help the industry save at least $3 billion per year, but also will bring a smile to the conservationists as about 50,000 trees will be spared per years.

E-tickets, IATA claims, also reduce the worry of passengers as it eliminates the chance of losing the ticket. Besides, e-tickets can be easily changed and reissued without necessitating a trip to the local travel agency or airline ticket booking office. Also e-tickets enable a wide array of self-service options including online and mobile check-in.

According to a conservative estimate, the average cost of processing paper ticket was $10 while that of processing e-ticket is $1.

E-tickets usher in "the beginning of a new, more convenient and more efficient era for air travel," IATA director general Giovanni Bisignani said.

While the history of paper tickets dates back to 1920s, the first e-ticket was issued in 1994. By 1997, IATA adopted the global standard for e-ticketing and deployed a global team of 150 people to work with various airlines and system providers around the world to facilitate implementation and transition.

According to IATA, international airlines will implement the move with immediate effect while some time has been given to domestic carriers to make the transition.