United Airlines has announced that it will be distributing the iPhone 6 Plus to over 23,000 of its flight attendants to handle in-flight retail transactions such as food and drink purchases. The airline plans to distribute them during the second quarter of 2015.
The phones will be able to handle “most onboard retail transactions” such as food and drink purchases, and will allow flight attendants to access their email, the United.com website, the United Airlines Intranet, plus policies and procedures manuals.
“We are thrilled to make this investment in our flight attendants,” said Sam Risoli, United’s senior vice president of inflight services. “iPhone 6 Plus will enable them to deliver an even higher level of flyer-friendly service and will offer our flight attendants simple, one-touch access to valuable work information, enabling them to better serve our customers.”
The airline also plans to develop electronic versions of printed safety manuals for use on the devices. They will also be used for real-time reporting and access to aircraft cabin issues and repairs.
In 2011, United Airlines was one of the first airlines to distribute iPads to their pilots to use in place of the heavy flight bags full of navigational charts and other materials formerly carried by the flight crew. United now has plans to replace the original iPads with Apple’s latest iPad Air 2 tablets.
