United Is First Airline to Roll Out New Mobile Boarding Passes on Apple iOS 26

Jessica Puckett
by Jessica Puckett
Last updated: 4:45 PM ET, Tue October 7, 2025

The next time travelers download a United Airlines mobile boarding pass to their Apple Wallet, they could see all new features and a refreshed design on the digital ticket.

The carrier will be the first airline to launch refreshed boarding passes as part of Apple’s latest iOS roll out. United first announced in June that it would make its boarding passes compatible with the new software, but the reimagined boarding passes have just become available. 

Among the new boarding pass features are helpful functionalities like real-time flight updates called Live Activities, the ability to share Live Activities with friends and family, airport maps accessible directly from the boarding pass, and access to the Find My function to track lost luggage with an Apple Air Tag.

In addition to United, nine other airlines have committed to launching the new boarding pass technology with Apple Wallet, including Air Canada, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue, Jetstar, Lufthansa, Qantas, Southwest, and Virgin Australia.

The upgraded mobile boarding passes are part of a larger undertaking by United to launch cutting edge digital tools for its passengers. Over the summer, the airline added personalized information for passengers with tight connections to its app, with features like turn by turn directions to a connecting passenger’s next departure gate and a countdown timer until takeoff. 

The carrier was also one of the first airlines to add compatibility with Apple Find My to its app so travelers could seamlessly share the location of lost luggage with Apple Air Tags with United customer service. 


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