Darby Maloney is a former airline employee. She has recently shared a simple, one-step travel trick that has gone viral on social media. In a viral TikTok video, Maloney presented a short tip that can change the way travelers stay informed during travels.
Her one-step simple hack is to just text yourself your flight number on the morning of your journey.
This simple act can establish a live hyperlink, which works particularly well on iPhones via iMessage. This link then provides real-time data on every information or change. Travelers will know about gate change, if there are any delays and even a live map of their aircraft’s location.
This hack makes travel easy and gathering important information quicken. This can save passengers a lot of stress, especially during peak travel season and when connecting flights.
The effectiveness of this hack comes from its simplicity. This also shows how many of us are unaware of several built-in phone features. As reported by The Mirror, Here’s how to do it yourself:
Just realized you can check flight status by entering flight number in iOS search. What! pic.twitter.com/ok0MMWupht
— Kerem (@kerem) January 14, 2019
- Create a link: Open your SMS messages. Now, enter your flight number and the airline code. For example, “AA686” represents American Airlines Flight 686.
If that configuration is not working, try the following patterns:
Airline and flight number: ‘Delta Airlines 405’
Airline abbreviation plus flight number: ‘DL 405’
Airline abbreviation + flight number (without space): ‘DL405’
When the message is sent, the text will be underlined (showing a hyperlink), confirming that the format is right.
- Send and Tap: Once you press the send button, your phone will instantly turn the text into a tappable link. Tap it to see a comprehensive flight preview.
- This preview reveals critical information such as flight departure time, gate assignment, projected arrival time, terminal changes, and even the plane’s current position on a map.
What makes this hack especially beneficial is that the information automatically updates in real-time. There is no need to refresh or reopen the apps. Any information on flight delays or gate change updates automatically.
The best part of this hack is that it is not only useful for the travelers but also for the people who are at the airport to pick them up. This way they are aware if the flight is getting delayed or not.
Travelers can just provide the same flight number link to friends and family. So they can track your voyage and arrival without having to use airport websites or applications.
Other benefits are
- No More Guesswork: Travelers can avoid the airport departure boards and long waits to ask staff about gate changes.
- Less App Fatigue: This saves going through another app to get the information. It also saves them from the inconvenience of downloading airline-specific apps or logging into websites.
- Maintain Control: Having your flight info at your fingertips means fewer surprises during short layovers or unforeseen delays.
Maloney’s TikTok soon received millions of views and thousands of comments on the originality of the hack. Many users praised the advice. They also pointed out how much time and stress it may save.
Frequent travelers mentioned having used similar techniques before. Though there were some who were surprised they hadn’t known about this built-in capability sooner.
One commenter said, “This is so simple. How did I not know this sooner?” Another person wrote, “Been doing this for years. The best-kept secret in travel!”
The reaction reflects how everyone wants a stress-free travel. It also showed how even little technological innovations may have a significant influence.
In conclusion, this simple travel tip demonstrates that the most basic solutions are often the most effective. A one-second text can mean the difference between a smooth flight and a hectic airport scramble.
