TAAG Angola Airlines: Online Check-In and Boarding Pass

Two schedules run side by side: the counter timetable and the online one.

The airline states that the check-in times it publishes are the deadlines for accepting passengers for boarding, and that it reserves the right to deny boarding to a passenger who arrives late. Treat these windows as hard cut-offs rather than targets, and always check the exact time shown on your booking, since it takes priority if there's any discrepancy.

TAAG's online check-in tool opens with the surname used at booking, along with the six-character alphanumeric booking reference or the e-ticket number. Card payment also allows, according to the airline's published information, retrieval of the booking using the credit card number used to buy the ticket. Seat selection, window or aisle, is available at this stage.

Online check-in requires a confirmed booking, an e-ticket and a flight operated by TAAG. It covers all flights departing from Luanda, both domestic, regional and international, as well as departures from cities such as Cabinda, Lubango, Ondjiva, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. On a codeshare flight operated by another carrier, the operating airline's own procedure applies, as with Air Botswana or Air Côte d'Ivoire when the flight carries their code.

TAAG also offers a mobile app. The available features evolve from one version to the next: if the check-in screen doesn't appear for your flight, the website's form remains the reference option.

Once check-in is confirmed, the boarding pass can be printed or kept on your phone: a printed boarding pass is not mandatory if it is available on the phone with the QR code clearly visible. That said, the airline recommends having a printed version on hand just in case.

If you change seats afterwards, the previous boarding pass is no longer valid: a new one needs to be issued. And if your flight arrives in Portugal, the passenger locator card must be completed online after check-in, before boarding; proof is requested at the gate, either on paper or on a mobile device.

As for documents, all passengers holding a ticket must present an identity document at check-in. For a child, one parent must be present at check-in, and each ticket must be in the name of the passenger travelling. Visa and document requirements vary depending on the countries involved: it is your responsibility to check the entry and exit rules in force and to carry the necessary documents.

Checking in online doesn't remove the need to drop off hold luggage. At TAAG, drop-off takes place at the First Class counters, or at the Business Class counters where there is no First Class counter, and the cut-off is set at 90 minutes before departure.

The airline asks passengers to arrive at the airport early enough to allow for baggage drop-off, security, immigration and customs. At busier airports, allow extra time.

• Cabin and hold baggage allowances: these depend on class, fare and route, and are shown on your ticket or in the airline's baggage section.
• Extra baggage: it can be added before departure through booking management, with the airline offering a dedicated option on its website.
• Self-service kiosks: available in certain cities, including Lisbon, Porto, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Cape Town.
• Special baggage, animals, assistance: these requests need to be arranged in advance and finalised at the counter.

Certain additional administrative services may be charged by the airline; the details are listed in its dedicated section on extra fees. On other regional networks, such as Air Austral, drop-off rules differ and should be checked on a case-by-case basis.

A form that rejects a booking usually comes down to a small detail: a surname entered differently from how it appears on the ticket, a booking reference mistaken for a ticket number, or a booking still awaiting ticket issuance. Flights operated by a partner airline, and tickets issued by an agency that haven't yet synced, are also handled at the counter. Connections to the Indian Ocean with Air Mauritius or Air Seychelles then follow the rules of whichever carrier operates that segment.

Some situations are handled by ground staff by nature: unaccompanied minors, passengers requiring assistance, transport of someone who is ill, pregnant passengers, an animal in the cabin, or travel documents that need checking for a visa-required destination. In these cases, arrive within the counter opening window.

If the deadline has passed, only the counter, and then the airline's reservation centre, available 24 hours a day, can look into your situation. For travellers who would rather hand this step off, iBoardingPass carries out online check-in on their behalf as soon as it opens and sends the boarding pass by email.