Do I need to print an electronic airplane ticket?

It would seem that the answer to the question is obvious and there is no sense in speaking on this topic at all.

But this is not so.

As they say, there are nuances. And I highly recommend printing tickets, especially for inexperienced travelers.

Now I will explain why.

When buying an electronic ticket for an airplane, we are used to not printing it: we just arrive at the airport and show our passport at the registration desk. The operator finds our reservation and prints the boarding pass.

- Have a good flight!

The first flight, the tenth, the fortieth ... And on the forty-first you suddenly hear:

- Sorry, we do not see you on the passenger list.

- Present a return ticket / ticket to your final destination if your flight is a transfer.

Or ... you are simply not allowed into the airport, because at the entrance, the policeman checks the ticket and checks it with the passport, letting only those who have them and not letting off the mourners and any other personalities.

Or they simply don’t register you, because generally asked to present a ticket with a passport.

You quite rightly object that it is electronic in order not to print! Of course, you’ll be right a hundred times, but this argument will not be at all an argument for a policeman in an African country, a reception desk operator at a small Indian airport or a passport control officer in Dubai, Macau, the USA or Malaysia ... And the thing is that we are used to nothing typing and relaxedly flew away on the next trip, without even thinking to google the features and nuances of the travel route.

And they arise at the most unexpected moment.

That is why I recommend printing tickets, at least during trips abroad.

Although sometimes on domestic flights there may be difficulties in its absence.

In principle, the IATA rules do not clearly spell out the need to print a ticket.

On the other hand, buying an electronic ticket through various services, you get an email with a ticket form and recommendations, one of which just says that you need to print it.

The fact is that failures are possible everywhere, and when your ticket is suddenly not found during registration, the printout will be invaluable, save time and nerves - according to the information in it, employees will be able to quickly find a ticket (it happened to me - there was only time before the end of registration 10 minutes, so I had a real risk of not flying away).

It is very important to have a printed ticket during difficult flights with transfers or transit through some countries. So, for example, when traveling through Macau without a visa to check in for a flight to Macau, you will definitely be asked to show a ticket to make sure that you are flying on.

The same is true for transit through Dubai or other points where you can get a transit visa. Without confirmation of a flight to a third country, you will not be given a visa and will not be released from the airport.

When you visit some countries, you must have a return ticket or a ticket to a third country. And the confirmation is just a printout of the ticket.

At some airports (for example, in the USA), flight confirmation may be necessary for presentation to the security services at the control before entering the registration. And in many countries of Africa, a printed ticket is absolutely required to enter the airport. The police check it with a passport and those who do not have a ticket are not allowed into the airport. I saw similar at Addis Ababa and Kilimanjaro Airport.

In general, I recommend again not to take risks and try to print out your ticket before traveling so that it is not clouded by showdowns or problems that suddenly arise. Yes, sometimes it can help out having a ticket on an iPad or smartphone, but sometimes they can still ask for a paper version ...