With spring break just around the corner, students are beginning to get all their travel gear in order. Packing clothes, books and CDs and finding just the right way to cram in those last minute additions consume the final minutes of packing and preparation. Flagging down a taxicab while weighed down with too much luggage is a last-minute ritual, too. But there is one final thing to remember: the tickets. Those airline tickets, which were received three months ago from faraway parents, are now nowhere to be found. As one stresses out in the last few minutes before the flight departure, one has to wonder whether there is an easier way to get home. Karen Kennedy, a representative of Delta Airlines, gives a resounding "yes" when she says the answer can be found in "the new wave in ticketing."

E-ticketing, or electronic ticketing, is "much easier" than purchasing tickets over the telephone, according to a United Airlines representative who asked to remain anonymous. According to the representative, E-tickets have become the "preferred method of ticketing" because all one needs is a destination in mind, a credit card in hand and a computer at your fingertips. To purchase an E-ticket, a customer logs onto an on-line reservation service, selects the departure city, destination city and date of travel and then types his or her credit card number onto an encrypted web page. The E-ticket becomes reserved in the customer's name, and all he or she has to do is to head on over to the airport, walk up to the departure gate and request the ticket.

However, Roberta Saltzberg of Great Escape Travel in Cambridge says there are many potential drawbacks to E-ticketing. According to Saltzberg, one disadvantage lies in the public's lack of familiarity with E-ticketing. "Most people seem to feel more secure with a ticket in their hand," she says.

Megan F. Raymond '01 is one such person. When she purchased her spring break tickets over the computer, she was asked whether she wanted an E-ticket or a paper copy. Raymond says she chose the paper option because she felt safer with a physical ticket in hand.

But Saltzberg says even more serious situations can arise from E-ticketing, such as difficulty in boarding a plane in the event of a strike. "Without a ticket, there are tremendous problems getting a ticket changed," Saltzberg says. "Going to another airline could be very difficult, especially because you don't have a ticket. You just have a number."

Saltzberg says one's tickets can easily become lost through the electronic process as well, a claim that all three major airlines--United, USAir and Delta--vehemently deny. Saltzberg adds that E-tickets aren't available for all flights, especially international ones. Furthermore, Saltzberg warns travelers that on-line fares are "nine out of 10 times unavailable or more expensive."

A representative of EAAsy Sabre, the on-line service of American Airlines, who asked to remain anonymous, would beg to differ. The representative says thatEAAsy Sabre on average saves customers more moneythan travel agencies. But Saltzberg says it is anunfair comparison because travel agencies "can doin two minutes what takes you an hour."

An Old Fad

Though the popularity of E-tickets is quicklyrising, E-tickets themselves are not a newinvention. Value Jet introduced E-tickets as itsprinciple method of ticketing in the late 1980s tocut costs and to save money. The fad was picked upby American Airlines and then spread to the restof the airline industry. However, althoughE-tickets themselves are not new, the technology involved is. A revamping of E-tickettechnology has led all three major airlines to notonly encourage the use of E-ticketing but toendorse its use to all of their customers.

As Easy As 1-2-3

Different airlines have different policiesabout picking up the E-ticket. United Airlinesrequires its customers to bring in photoidentification, an E-ticket confirmation numberand the credit card used to purchase the tickets.USAir and Delta are more lenient, requiring onlythat the customer bring in a picture ID. Since airtravel out of any U.S. Airport now requires validID for individuals over the age of 18, a traveleris not being asked to bring any extraneous itemsto pick up the E-ticket. United Airlines' policymight seem like a big hassle at first glance, too,but one representative, who spoke on condition ofanonymity, says ticketing agents don't reallycheck to see if you have anything but a pictureID.

'Hell on Earth'

Saltzberg says it is "hell on earth" to changea non-refundable E-ticket. But airline agentsdisagree. Kennedy of Delta Airlines says it is noharder to change an E-ticket than a regularticket, since Delta requires its customers to makeboth paper and electronic changes in person at theairport. USAirways, however, simplifies thisprocess by allowing E-tickets to be changed overthe phone. The agent will require a confirmationnumber and a credit card number to guarantee thatthe customer is really who he or she claims.

An Easy Confirmation

Using an E-ticket makes it easier to getconfirmation of flight plans as well. There isoften a lag time of up to three weeks beforetickets arrive in the mail, but purchasing anE-ticket on-line gives one immediate confirmation.As soon as the order is confirmed, the customer istypically taken to a screen, which asks if thecustomer wants to print out the information. Allthe customer has to do is to click "yes," and aneatly-formatted, easy-to-read document will comeout of the printer. This sheet isn't necessary forconfirmation, but is a nice final touch for thosewho like tangible objects.

Special Advantages

Some airlines are so zealous about E-ticketsthat they are even offering special deals topeople who book tickets on-line. Additionalfrequent-flyer miles or discounted rates are beingused to entice people to utilize theirtechnological resources. While Delta has no suchprogram, both United and USAir do--for certainflights and through certain on-line bookingagencies.

Furthermore, supporting E-tickets may provebeneficial to all airway traveling in the longrun. According to The Independent Traveler, everyon-line ticket purchase saves the airlineapproximately $7 in paperwork. The IndependentTraveler adds that if more people usedE-ticketing, perhaps airline prices willeventually begin to drop.CrimsonJason Y. Cho