The short message service (SMS) function is the latest use of technology that Singapore Airlines has introduced to make checking in easier and quicker, adding to Internet, mobile phone and fax facilities.

"This enables our customers to check in in the manner that is most convenient and saves time for passengers," the airline's senior vice president of products and services, Yap Kim Wah, said in a statement.

After checking in remotely, passengers need to pick up their boarding passes and check in their luggage on the day of departure from a dedicated counter, rather than wait in regular queues.

The SMS service will initially apply to flights departing from Singapore, Auckland, Bandar Seri Begawan, Bangkok, Chennai, Christchurch, Dhaka, Hanoi, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Penang and Taipei.

Passengers have to first register on the airline's website to use the service.

SPACE.WIRE