Don’t be shocked if your mobile devices are checked to board the flight. With the advancement in the means of technology, the paper is out and the mobiles are in.

Airlines have come up with the new concept of electronic boarding passes, which essentially turn the hand-held devices and mobile phones of travelers into their boarding passes.

In US many airlines allow customers to check in using their mobile devices, including American, Continental, Delta, Northwest, Southwest and Alaska.

Continental is the only airline in the United States to begin testing the electronic passes, allowing the travelers to pass through security and board the plane without handling a piece of paper. Their boarding pass is an image of an encrypted bar code displayed on the phone’s screen, which can be scanned by gate agents and security personnel.

With the electronic boarding passes, passengers still need to show photo identification when they pass through security, and that identification must match the information in the bar code on the phone.

As mobile devices become more sophisticated and applications for smaller screens evolve, airlines expect passengers will be able to use their phones, BlackBerrys and other mobile devices for a growing number of services, like rebooking a ticket after a missed connection, switching seats, checking standby status or seeking an upgrade.