Paper Airline Tickets Vanishing June 1

Frankly, I don't remember the last time I had paper airline tickets, but every time I fly, I see one guy with a thick sheaf of dead trees, handing an envelope over to a gate agent who looks alternately annoyed and confused over having to deal with the thing.

Those days are finally coming to a close: On June 1, 2008, the association that handles airline ticketing will dump paper tickets (only about 3 percent of tickets processed today are paper) for good in favor of electronic ones. The airlines have been anxious to get rid of the things for cost reasons: Paper tickets cost an airline up to $17 a pop, while e-tickets are a buck or less, not to mention you need to maintain an infrastructure to issue them, train agents on dealing with the myriad forms they come in, and so on.

Paper tickets will still be issued by a handful of regional and foreign airlines who haven't discovered the magic of computers yet.

Is the loss of the paper ticket, at least as an option, a good thing or a bad thing? Paper tickets have always come with baggage that makes them infinitely harder to change when your plans are altered, not to mention that interminable waiting for them to arrive in the mail. The extra amenities offered by e-tickets in allowing for online scheduling and, more importantly, online check-in for your flight, more than make up for the enhanced paper trail (and the sense of security that came with it) which printed tickets provided.

Who was president the last time you flew with paper? 

LINK: Airline Industry Shelving Paper Tickets