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Airlines Won't Dare Use the Fastest Way to Board Planes (wired.com)
An anonymous reader writes: You've arrived at the airport early. You have already selected the perfect seat. You've employed all possible tricks for making the check-in and security processes zoom by. But there's still some blood-pressure-raising chaos you can't avoid: boarding. From impatient fellow travelers who are determined to beat you onto the plane to passengers who insist on jamming their too-big carry-ons into overhead bins, making your way to your seat can be straight-up hellish -- and Wired's Alex Davies offers up a cheery explanation of why the situation is unlikely to improve any time soon. It's not that airlines aren't trying. In fact, United is in the middle of a months-long test at LAX that involves splitting its five groups of passengers into two lines, instead of five, to see whether that will make boarding less painful. But there are some basic measures that airlines could be taking to speed things up -- offering free baggage check, for instance, or cutting down on early boarding perks -- if they weren't so worried about their bottom lines. "The question for the airlines, then, is not how to get everyone onto a plane as quickly as possible," Davies writes. "It's how to get everyone onto a plane as quickly as possible while still charging them extra for bags, doting on the regular customers, and maintaining the system that, like all class structures, serves whoever built it."
"Back to front, windows to aisle, and actually enforce carry on size."
And don't let idiots stop halfway to their seat, to stuff their carry-ons into someone else's space.
Enjoy life! This is not a dress rehearsal.
I've never figured out why flights with assigned seats don't load back to front to speed things up. Those seated would have fewer people banging into them as they walk past and the aisles wouldn't be such a jumbled mess of waiting on people in front of you. The downside is that the first class might have less chance to cram their bags into all spaces they can, but I'll let them sacrifice for me.
Honestly, except for needing to stuff an oversize bag in the overhead no one should want to be crammed into the stuffy airborne-infection-enabling metal tube any sooner than absolutely necessary to take off on time. Yet so many seem to treat it like trying to grab a seat on the subway.
Airlines operate on exceedingly thin margins, and the little things they allow you to pay extra for are huge cash cows. In fact, those little extras are what makes them profits.
They're not going to give you free baggage check if it means they lose booked fares or higher fuel costs.
Reducing your boarding time isn't their priority, lightening your wallet is.
The only reason I understand some of the reason they go front to back is because of First Class. But fine, let them board and then go back to front.
Half of the wait time is due to people getting to the seat and then having to put up their baggage and get settled, which the entire line behind them is just standing there, staring at an empty back of the plane.
Is there any (good) reason they don't do back to front boarding?
Back to front, windows to aisle, and actually enforce carry on size.
Kind of hard to sell upgrades then, though.
Exactly, boarding from front to back, as they do it now, is actually the worst way to do it. It causes blockages. The back should board first and the front should exit first. That's the most logical approach. Of course they don't want their precious first class people waiting longer though so they board first despite that being the slowest, most inconvenient way to board.
"That's the way to do it" - Punch
If they'd enforce carry on size, there would be no reason to put it somewhere else.
vector jet exhaust into cabin
rewriting history since 2109
Not true, they do not size the overhead baggage compartments to the number of seats entirely correctly.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
Starting about 20 years ago, the commercial airlines business has become a race to the bottom - the goal is to find out who can offer the worst services, while at the same time squeezing as much money as possible out of the passengers, while minimizing the loss of business.
As much as I as a consumer would prefer to not pay extra for a Baggage check, I don't think it is as much the cost that is hindering people from checking their baggage but the hassle of doing such.
Hassle 1: Waiting in line to get it checked, as now your boarding pass can often be printed from home or from a kiosk at the airport, you don't need to wait in line to check your baggage.
Hassle 2: Waiting for it to get out of the plane. After a long flight, you just want to get to your destination. Having to wait 20-40 minutes more for your bag to show up.
Hassle 3: Lost baggage. It sucks when your bags get lost, get more airline miles then you do. In this case it is a tripple whammy, because you have already gone thru many hassles before, to only get your bags lost, having to report it... Pick it up if it is found....
In short other then the cost, there is a lot of hassle for your belongings that are important to you, but just an other bag to everyone else.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
Boarding the plane isn't so bad... it's the time after boarding, after the plane pushes away from the gate, sitting on the tarmac with out much air circulation - that's the worst.
"on time" is defined by the time the plane leaves the gate - even when it sits on the runway for 2 hours waiting...... so airlines are incentivized to just "push away" and sit.
And even if they did, the size requirements are generally per airline, not per aircraft model, and they don't all have the same size overhead compartments. There would have to be an international standard size that all the airlines agreed to for it to work, and it would still be another 10-15 years before the luggage sizes had standardized to match and the average traveler had compliant bags.
But nobody would even agree to the standard, all the airlines value their ability to endlessly twiddle these policies back and forth.
Airlines have a checklist of things that the pilot and ground crew need to do and those things take a certain amount of time. Keeping people busy boarding means they aren't complaining about sitting at the gate or waiting to board when the plane is already there.
The delay is a feature, not a bug.
"I don't think software should necessarily be free
Easy fix - put First Class at the back.
Then first class would be next to the toilets and last to get off... that would upset first class even more.
"That's the way to do it" - Punch
So do what I've wanted them to do for ages.. Give their first-class passengers free access to the swanky private lounges that they maintain, give them one or two free drink coupons for the privilege, and then have the gate agent come get them when it's time to board first-class. In the meantime keep the overhead bins in first-class closed so that people flying coach don't stuff their baggage in there on their way through.
Wife used to fly a lot for work and had a membership to the US Airways Club. It was nice. Free snacks and non-alcoholic drinks, reasonably-priced alcoholic drinks. Well insulated from noise. Interior decor comfortable, and good choices to minimize sound carrying from others in the lounge. Tons of electrical and even some with data jacks back from before Wifi was ubiquitous, plus better wifi than the airport has. Work cubicle areas for those who need to conduct business while they wait during a layover without causing a disturbance. Free magazines, and I don't just mean the crappy skymall stuff.
If a first-class ticket meant getting free admissions to the private lounges and the perks therein, it would be a lot more desirable to pay those prices.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
The fastest way possible to load would be to use Southwest's system where people can pick their own seat, with a twist - the plane always unloads from the opposite door they load in, and every landing you switch doors you dock at front to back.
Everyone wants to sit to get off as soon as possible, so under this system the first people in would flock to the back and not block up people just trying to get on.
The other thing that slows down boarding is carry-ons. I do think maybe airlines should have checked luggage free but charge for carry-on bags that go in overhead, so they'd be less common and go to those that really need carry on. If people knew they would be getting carry-on space for sure they would not be so desperate to board early.
Another system that would help a lot with checking bags is some system you could call SureCheck, that would text you when your bag(s) had entered the hold of the plane. Most people would feel more secure in checking bags if they could perhaps see what part of the airport baggage handler process the bag was in. It would involve a lot of technology but I think increased check-ins would be worth it overall...
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Not true, they do not size the overhead baggage compartments to the number of seats entirely correctly.
Oh... the overhead baggage compartments are correct to the number of seats INTENDED for the aircraft. It's just they crammed extra seats in relative to how the plane was initially intended and didn't increase storage space.
"That's the way to do it" - Punch
https://mythresults.com/airplane-boarding
It was not long time ago when domestic flights allowed two free checked in bags, each 70 lb. Heck, I still have those suitcases. Then it became 50 lb and then one checked in bag, and then no checked in bag. Southwest still gives free checked in bags, No preallocated seats. Still reserves A1 to A30 group for frequent fliers and people who pay...
If people valued it enough, and were willing to pay enough, all airlines would have copied it. Fact of the matter is, most people are cheap skates, they would rather stuff 70 lb into a carry on that no one could carry and save 25$.
sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
"Back to front, windows to aisle, and actually enforce carry on size."
And don't let idiots stop halfway to their seat, to stuff their carry-ons into someone else's space.
Grab that fucker's bag and gate-check it as yours.
It also doesn't help that the official standard (or as official as that thing sitting at the ticket counter is) doesn't really match the form-factor of the bin either. We have a couple of bags that are thicker than the official standard but when placed in the overhead bin with the handle toward the outside of the plane, wheels toward the hatch and down, fit with enough room for a hat or a coat to be stuffed in on top. Once we were forced to gate-check these bags even though they fit the official width and height, just not the thickness, but they have fit easily in previous airplanes of the same series before.
The problem that I saw most were people with suitcases that when wheels-down were too tall, so they are too long and would prevent the door from closing, so they turn them sideways.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
I agree that the OP was flamebait. And I'm not a proponent of class warfare. But somebody's value as a *person* is not the same as their *economic* value. There are poor people who are very decent and rich people who are real bastards. But air travel certainly does seem to blur these lines. Travel often and you're worthy of a blanket. Not so much and you can just freeze to death. Reminds you of the scene in Titanic where they evacuate the first class passengers first. That's probably coming at some point to air travel. "In the event of an emergency please evacuate with your assigned cabin."
or get an American Express Platinum card which gives you all those benefits for nothing.
Wheel of Time: Book by Book and Sumview (summary review) Bigdady92 style: http://bigdady92.blogspot.com/
Airlines are there to make profit, so if how they board the plane meet the best profits, then they will do it. If by saving time would make more money, which it should, then the airlines will do it. It's about what makes the most money. Now if you're willing to pay more to board sooner, I'm sure the airlines will take you money.
As the wise song says:
It's all about the money, money money!!
and if we at the airlines can make you happy along the way, great!
As described here, it's mainly about trying to keep so many people from getting up and standing in line all at the same time and clogging up the walkways. Group 1 boards through lane 1 and group 2 through lane 2, then groups 3/4/5 board through lane 2 while group 1/2 stragglers continue through lane 1.
The only part where they're experimenting with altering boarding order according to window/middle/aisle position is people in groups 3/4/5. So query though how much this really changes things when the majority of most flights are groups 1 and 2. (It probably helps a bit given that the group 3/4/5 crowd tends to be less frequent travelers who don't tend to board as efficiently on average. But making families who are sitting together board separately is probably going to create chaos/inefficiencies of its own, so who knows if there's a net benefit at the end of the day.)
The back should board first and the front should exit first. That's the most logical approach.
I don't know if SWA still does it like that, but they did it in the 1990s, and it was a dream.
"I don't know, therefore Aliens" Wafflebox1
I can agree with this so long as additional allowed items (such as medical equipment) are exempted.
All my liberal friends think I'm a conservative, all my conservative friends think I'm a liberal.
Except being summoned by the gate agent when it's time to board your flight after everyone else has already boarded, and where there's still room in the overhead bin...
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
AMEX Platinum doesn't have a yearly fee?
Stupid sexy Flanders.
Except that what they've been doing is making service worse and charging people to keep it the same as it was. And it works. So it's a race to the bottom for all the airlines to cram as many people in as possible while reducing service.
Stupid sexy Flanders.
3) Pump the slurry into the plane as it drains from the pan
"This is your Captain, speaking . . . the meal on today's flight will be Soylent Green."
Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
To my knowledge, SWA has never done this. They have always done a 'first come first serve' kind of thing. Whoever checks-in first, gets to board first and pick whatever seat they want.
Nothing to see here
If you think about it, all of these airplanes have "emergency exits" in parts of the plane other than near the cockpit in front. So you could utilize at least one of those near the rear of the plane during boarding -- if you redesigned the boarding platforms at the terminal gates to work with them.
Then you could simultaneously have people board on both sides of the plane, filling in the rows in the middle first and working towards either end.
But THAT would require a lot more expense -- so I doubt you'll ever see such a thing.
Hell, I'd pay a premium to be sedated in the departures lounge, stacked in a tiny coffin on the plane, and woken up at my destination. Load me in any damn order you like once I'm unconscious.
It may look like I'm doing nothing, but I'm actively waiting for my problems to go away.
--Scott Adams
Back on topic, I wish they would crack down universally on people who somehow manage to carry on 4-6 different items, at least one of which is oversized, when "One carry-on and one personal item" is clearly stated, and then cram it all into the overhead.
"But that's my carry-on. And my personal item is this conglomeration of a huge tote and a purse and a laptop bag and a diaper bag and a pillow and a large coat and a satchel that I'm going to shove into the overhead"
Try that flying with children, does not work well.
No sir I dont like it.
and then have the gate agent come get them when it's time to board first-class.
That will cost money and waste time. People near the gate can get to the gate sooner than people in a lounge halfway across the airport. Having to dedicate a person to go get them means higher costs.
In the meantime keep the overhead bins in first-class closed so that people flying coach don't stuff their baggage in there on their way through.
Interestingly enough, knowing how to open an overhead bin is a pretty common bit of information that most flyers have. They sometimes have to do it when they deplane, and just watching someone else do it is usually enough to figure out how.
What I'm trying to say is, you can close the overhead bins, but people passing by who fear not having space where they are will simply open them up and put their stuff in. I've seen them do it to closed bins in economy as they pass by, so why you'd think they wouldn't do it to an apparently empty first class section is interesting.
You could have a waitress, I mean FA, standing there to stop them, but then she's not doing anything productive like getting the aircraft ready for departure or helping people who actually need help boarding.
If a first-class ticket meant getting free admissions to the private lounges and the perks therein, it would be a lot more desirable to pay those prices.
At least for United, most of the people in First are not paying for first class tickets. They are complimentary upgrades for Mileage Plus fliers. On many many flights I've been on, maybe two out of a dozen seats are actual first class tickets. What you'd wind up with is a system where first class paying passengers are the last people on the plane and having to search for overhead space, and those people are the LAST ones you want to piss off. Not only are they paying extra for their seats, they're usually frequent fliers who pay extra more often.
The perks work, so they will stay. I've flown United my entire career, except for a number of times I can count on the fingers of one hand. Every one of those exceptions has been a horrible flight where the airline has had no reason to treat me better than "get on last, get a middle seat" mode. (Except one flight on a government travel order.) I have no reason to switch to any other airline, despite how United sometimes screws things up really bad. (No heat on a winter flight on an Express flight, for example.)
And finally, First is not the holdup when boarding. Yes, there is an initial hiccup as they find seats and put bags away, but from then on the delays come from the many more people getting on in back. You would not speed things up significantly by making first board last.
I think Spirit Airlines has a process patent.
"National Security is the chief cause of national insecurity." - Celine's First Law
No, let a parent get on and settled faster so the kid can get their food and go to sleep.
Every airline I've ever flown already does this. Parents with kids get to board before anyone else, including first class.
Note to ACs: I usually delete AC replies without reading them. If you want to talk to me, log in.
Lufthansa & Air France board optimally: back to front.
"Tempers are wearing thin. Let's just hope some robot doesn't kill everybody." --Bender
Also: just charge for luggage by the kg / lb over whatever allowance you choose to set, whether it's hold or cabin baggage, including that "reasonable amount of reading matter for the flight". That way most people will no longer bother cramming as much stuff as possible into their cabin bag.
Also: enforce boarding order. It's adoring to see staff call the first set of passengers - the ones with seats at the rear - forward to board, then notice a somewhat larger than expected stampede. So you board the plane with the second group expecting a clear path to your seats, but finding people already blocking pretty much the length of the aisle, taking their sweet time to load their stuff in the overhead lockers. Tasering's too good for them.
If construction was anything like programming, an incorrectly fitted lock would bring down the entire building...
When I'm getting on a plane, most of the time I'm waiting is because people ahead of me are wasting time trying to cram their massive luggage into the overhead bin or are getting out of their seats into the aisle to let in someone who is sitting farther outboard.
Someone above said 'enforce carry on size'. I think we can go one further and reduce carry-on size. We have a mad rush to get on the plane because people want to get overhead bin space for their huge roller bag before everyone else fills it up with their own huge roller bags. If there was no shortage of space, people may not be in such a hurry to get on the plane. We all depart and arrive at the same time.
Divide the volume of overhead bin space by the passenger capacity of the plane and limit bag size so everyone gets room. Then we can board back to front, windows to aisle, without anyone freaking out? You can still seat first class first, it doesn't take long compared to seating coach.
But what about families? You can't send in the two kids who have the window and middle seats before the mom who has the aisle. And disabled people? You can't send the half-daffy grandpa in separate from his helper. If too many exceptions crop up, we spoil the efficiency of the process.
Sounds like an improvement to me.
Be careful what you wish for. The first class passengers are subsidizing your ticket prices. If fewer people fly FC, you will pay more.
Back on topic, I wish they would crack down universally on people who somehow manage to carry on 4-6 different items, at least one of which is oversized, when "One carry-on and one personal item" is clearly stated, and then cram it all into the overhead.
"But that's my carry-on. And my personal item is this conglomeration of a huge tote and a purse and a laptop bag and a diaper bag and a pillow and a large coat and a satchel that I'm going to shove into the overhead"
On vacations I travel with hands free. Buy clothes and stuff at the destination. And I'm 1,80 m tall, 75 kg. They should pay me to board their planes.
No, the easy fix is to board via a Door 2 like most 757's are done. First turns left, economy turns right. The perk is maintained for first class, and late first class boarders do not impact the remainder of boarding; the flight attendants also have proper access for pre-flight coddling.
The reason this isn't done on newer planes is they eliminate the door to maximize flexibility in first class cabin size.
The *fastest* way to board is with both front and rear doors via jet bridges. This isn't done because the incremental benefit in time saved does not offset the additional cost or complexity. Maybe what they should do is have the "basic economy" passengers (who are not allowed carry-ons that won't fit under the seat) board via a scissors-lift catering van at the back of the plane. Maybe add to the discount if they work a shift for the catering company first and "check in" at that depot.
Personally, I wouldn't pay for first class if it didn't give priority boarding. I want my decompression time prior to the flight.
It doesn't matter if it's actually better. The perception is that if you pay more you should go to the front of the line.
Your town is your oyster.
Stupid sexy Flanders.
Actually, the random unassigned seating method that Southwest uses is the fastest.
Unfortunately other airlines will never do that because they have to get rid of all their perk levels.
Look at grocery stores... one line per checkout, means you're fucked if you get stuck behind somebody that needs a price check, or is price matching everything in their buggy. One long line that feeds into the individual checkouts would be way WAY faster. But will we see it? Nope. If something that simple can't even be done properly, I doubt airlines will ever figure out efficiency.
This is so wrong it is funny. Yes, the 'traditional' airlines used to have free luggage, and meals, blah blah blah. Then 'discount' airlines, like JetBlue, came along and at the same time online booking made it MUCH easier to shop on price. The discount airlines started taking significant business away from the the traditionals. So in order to COMPETE (oddly, the exact opposite of your claim), the traditional airlines had to find ways to lower prices, and they did. To say that these changes have not resulted in lower prices is the height of stupidity.
What? One small revenge people can still take against the 1%ters is to fart as they go through first class. Want to take that away too? Elitist!
sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
Back to front is not much better because it's still a serial process (i.e. one person loading their luggage and sitting at a time). The best way is when you can get multiple people loading their luggage in the overheads and sitting at once. That means loading people from throughout the plane at once. The best way to get that to happen is to not assign seats. Southwest's way is by far the best way to load an airplane.
Pro-tip: Use a soft bag, and put a smaller hard case inside it for the items that need to be protected.
Also, I was in the military, and here is the proper way to load and unload a plane (or bus):
1. Put a gunnery sergeant at the front of the vessel to control the process.
2. Load back-to-front BY COLUMN. So window seats load first, back-to-front, then middle seats, then aisle seats.
3. Unload the same way: Everyone in an aisle seat on the starboard side stands up, grabs their gear and files off. Then the port side aisle. Then the starboard middle seats, etc. An entire column of passengers is getting their gear simultaneously, adding massive parallelism to the process.
4. Anyone who bottlenecks the system get assigned to latrine cleaning duty.
This is what we've been reduced to, that is, groveling over seeming "small favors" like ok, bring your CPAP, or your CGM, cane, walker, etc. Musicians can bring instruments (sometimes).
We're GROVELING for space that we should have anyway, just so airlines can please Wall Street, NOT THEIR PAYING PASSENGERS.
There are no longer clothes closets for coats. The food was never much good. The seat pitch is made for anorexics. And people, believing they're getting a "deal" (notice there are no such things as bereavement fares and the like) will swallow any humiliation no matter how undignified or simply crazy.
You have to have your naked image taken, remove very reasonable items from luggage, ensure your Papers Are In Order, then queue in to lines that are grievously long. We're like cows to slaughter.
---- Teach Peace. It's Cheaper Than War.
The back should board first...
If one types in a search engine: aircraft tail sitting, and sees the images, it would become clear that it is not a good idea.
Aircraft is not a bus. The common sense does not always work in aviation.
So you're Allen Iverson?
I used to think this was standard as well. Then, two years ago, I had the misfortune of trying to bring my two-year-old to Hawaii. United Airlines does not let parents with small children board first! I recommend not flying with them.
1) Walk the customers through a propeller
2) Collect the slurry in a pan
That doesn't get customers onto the plane, that gets customer slurry onto the plane. But let me share with you my plan for using hydraulic trash compactors...
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
The fee is waived for active-duty military
I believe the crew bags are a standard size and are stored in slots which only work for those bags. The idea could be extended to passenger bags too.
http://michaelsmith.id.au
Assign the overhead space to the seats below it. If your bags don't fit in the space assigned to you, the airline can charge you extra, and keep them happy juicing their customers.
Of course, that would lead to reduced space utilization. But it might encourage folks to check bags that are too big and obscenely cry to be checked.
Seems like that's just going to make things worse as many more bags need to travel upstream from the rear of the plane up front where they can be gate checked... and kind of silly to do that since as the bag travels foward, it's going to pass up empty bins from passengers that didn't use their assigned space.
You must work for the airlines, you've come up with a solution that's going to make the problem worse while also charging customers more.
First class has never been a problem in my life. By the time they allow economy in, first class is already seated and enjoy their Safeway zinfandel.
Actually I never had a problem boarding except in some routes where the shit countries are.
I do not believe in karma. "Funny"=-6. Do good and forbid evil. Yours, Oft-Offtopic Flamebaiting Troll.
The US cast system needs to stay intact!
1 - Let the rich - highest cast - in and start at the front, then enjoying their flight by getting spoiled with drinks comfy in lots of leg space.
2 - Economy - 2. newcomers and cheapos parade by the first class which then can show off their superiority to all the passer by's and feel proud of themselves.
3 - Losers and not getting their act together parading all their failure by the selected few at the smallest front compartment into their crowded chicken coop sized destinations....
This is the law of the land - don't touch it!
Ha, you peasants think you're smart, but I've already angled my air vent so that he who dealt it smelt it.
Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
I put my bag in the first bin to my left as soon as I board. It doesn't belong to anyone. I pack light, you can buy what you need at your destination. Some people are too territorial about the space on a plane, enjoy the flight and your crowded, cramped time in the air.
. . . . when they used to board beginning at the back of the plane? That at least made sense - you didn't have to crawl over people settling into the seats in the front. Now they still board by "zones", but it's not zones, it's nothing to do with zones, it's solely a question of status.
Well of course I would and I assume that others would do the same thing. But what I wouldn't do is declare that my family members are somehow innately superior just because they are my family member. If my sister were second in line for a kidney transplant, I wouldn't go murder the person ahead of her. That's an apropos example if you remember Steve Jobs doing what amounted to jumping the transplant queue.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
I don't know about other airlines. I don't travel often (1-6 times/yr). Air Canada mandates all electronics, and encourage passengers to carry valuables and medications in carry-on. For me, it means a full carry bag with laptop, electronic odds and sods, medications, and documents no matter if they were to offer free baggage check, or some funky boarding scheme. Your results may vary.
Exactly. And the ones that couldn't compete died.
"I don't know, therefore Aliens" Wafflebox1
I have always wondered why the airlines and plane manufacturers didn't get together to create a standard checked bag form factor. A plastic hardshell case such is currently popular, with both embedded RFID and barcodes. Normal conveniences such as 4 wheels, extending handle, etc. Designed in such a way that loading and unloading can be nearly fully automated, similar to what you see used on cargo jets. If you use one of their cases, your bags are guaranteed to be at the carousel 15 minutes after the passenger door is opened upon landing. If you so desperately need to use your calvin klein designer luggage you wait.
The RFID tags also allow them to weigh the bags and charge the passenger accordingly. If my case only weighs 20 lbs and Aunt Bee's bag weighs in at 49.9 lbs, she pays more. Personally I would actually pay the extra $10-$25 tax for a checked bag if I knew I could get it back quickly at baggage claim,
Neither will anyone else boarding in the adjacent rows.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
The problem with this is that you'd separate parents from kids. So, not gonna happen.
The departing seating module is in the gate waiting area, with polycarbonate rounded sides raised like gull wings. Customers board in parallel, stowing luggage in compartments above and below the seats. A few minutes before the plane arrives at the gate, the final boarding call process occurs, and the polycarbonate sides slowly close and latch. Then the plane lands, the arriving seating module is removed, the departing seating module is inserted into the plane, and the plane takes off again. Meanwhile, the arriving seating module is placed in the gate waiting area. The sides raise, and customers exit in parallel. People who forget something go back and check, as the seating module will be there for a while. The module is cleaned and readied for boarding prior to the next departure. Efficiency people love how the boarding and waiting-at-the-gate times are combined. Airline profit watchers love how little time the planes spend on the ground.
If you choose to fly out of and in to Burbank Airport using Southwest, you'll enjoy the boarding of both front and rear doors. It is such a pleasure to walk across the tarmac toward the tail of the aircraft whilst nearly everyone else is crowding up the front stairs.
Have a Day!
True, SW has always done a first come first served approach. I recall when they were still using the plastic number cards 3 decades ago, when I'd try to be among first in line to get a card in the first 30. Now they do it online with check-in precisely 24 hours before flight, but the first 16 are reserved for those who will buy business select. They also implemented A-list priority if you pay $15 each way to let the system automatically check you in rather than waiting to click the check-in button on your browser. That is the only extra fee I pay to fly SW, it's still cheaper than the other airlines fares.
Have a Day!
So how exactly are the airlines saying frequent fliers are 'innately superior'? I don't know how you manged to get from 'blankets' to 'kidney transplants'. If you have one blanket and two people who a a little chilly (freezing to death, really?), who should get the blanket? If you give it to your wife instead of the cute babe on the other side of you, the wife is happy, you are happy, and the cute babe is still chilly. Do it the other way and the cute babe (who you will probably never see again) is warmer but the wife is now extremely hot, and you probably will not be enjoying yourself for a while.
It is the same thing with the airlines: do they give the blanket to the customer who has given them a lot of business, or do they give it to someone who hardly ever flies? Do it right and you have a happy regular customer and a new customer who thinks 'meh'. Do it wrong and you have an irate formerly regular customer. Which do you pick?
Quit trying to make it sound like they are making some judgement on the value of the human being. They aren't. They are making judgement on the value of a relationship, even if it is only an economic relationship.
Save time by start taxiing towards the runway as soon as the pilots are on board. The passengers run alongside the plane and clamber onto the boarding stairs as it moves. The taxiing is actually quite slow and if the passengers were fit enough they could easily make it before take off.
Then, two years ago, I had the misfortune of trying to bring my two-year-old to Hawaii.
Just "trying to"? What, when you found out that they wouldn't let you board first, did you just leave your kid at the airport?
How can we continue to believe in a just universe and freedom to eat crackers if we have no ale?
I also miss the seats they had that faced each other. I'd get there early to get early boarding, then sit in one of those aisles and prop my feet up so nobody would sit there. Super selfish, I'll admit, but as long as the flight wasn't full, I got lots of extra leg room.
Nothing to see here
Every airline I've ever flown already does this. Parents with kids get to board before anyone else, including first class.
Southwest boards families between their "A" and "B" groups.
The overall order of boarding is: Preboards (wheelchairs, etc.); "A"; Families (A single parent and children under 6, I believe) and A-List members who didn't get an "A" on their boarding pass; "B"; then "C".
There are 60 people in the "A" and "B" categories.
Reading code is like reading the dictionary - you have to read half of it before you can go back and understand it.
Eh, first class is already next to the fwd toilets. Not sure why they're in such a hurry to board first and leave the relative comfort of the terminal lounge to spend an extra 20 minutes packed in the tin can while everyone else and their dog parades past them coughing and stuff. But hey, who am I to understand first class privilege?
Exactly, boarding from front to back, as they do it now, is actually the worst way to do it. It causes blockages. The back should board first and the front should exit first. That's the most logical approach. Of course they don't want their precious first class people waiting longer though so they board first despite that being the slowest, most inconvenient way to board.
Well I can't speak for first class but I can speak for the business class... if you're doing 100+ flights a year as I did at least one year you got everything worked out in fine detail. It's within size and weight regulations because you don't want the hassle. You keep your liquids and laptop near the zipper to easily extract and return it and they're within limits too. You know every metal object you're carrying and if the scanner beeps it for a random check. You place your hand luggage in the overhead compartment and step aside. Approximately every major delay I've seen has been a.. (thinking of a polite term) less than experienced traveler who's clearly on his once-a-year vacation trip or with rugrats that can't behave.
It even went so far that I had a security guard comment out loud "Perfect technique" and while a bit flummoxed I did manage to answer "Practice makes perfect". But of course I did look as I've done this a thousand times the last decade and... it was probably close. While the "perks" of early entry and early exit are quite questionable, trust me we're not the enemy. We just don't want to get stuck behind the 1% of the "regular" passengers who don't have any social antennas and realize (s)he's blocking a plane full of people. And well, if you're going on your once-a-year vacation you can afford to be there two hours early. Me, I've spent enough time in the airport lounge that felt like a chore. It's not a perk, it's a poor substitute for being home.
Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
Alaska Airlines and a few others I've flown always arrange boarding groups from the back to the front (well, after letting disabled, families with small children, and first class board).
Logical policymakers are out there... somewhere...
Since the teleportation booths were invented I thought everyone had abandoned using trains, planes and cars. Huh...!
Ugh, never fly United... most of their airline staff are old and cranky... also they have the highest unaccompanied minor charges ... $150 on top of the ticket up to the age of 16 or something ridiculous like that.
It's difficult to fly to some smaller airports without using United, though :/
"On vacations I travel with hands free. Buy clothes and stuff at the destination."
I just send my stuff in robust Aluminum cases to the hotel and back beforehand with UPS.
A Jacket with 20 pockets and cargo pants does the rest.
Don't forget the belt with no metal pieces and no.lace slippers and you'll travel fine.
Also, with no checked luggage, you'll be first at the taxi line when you leave the airport.
Reducing the size of carry-ons is going to be REAL unpopular. Companies make bags that are just sized for carry-ons, Travelers have bought them. Travelers are used to packing them. Travelers are going to be really pissed if you say, "No, for this flight it has to be three inches shorter."
"When you have eliminated the unacceptable, whatever is left, however improbable, must be the truthiness" - Holmes
people traveling with children aren't going to be thrilled with boarding separately from those children.
Passengers with kids could pre-board or post-board. If 10% have kids, you would still get 90% of the speedup by column loading.
I've never understood why first class want to get on first. I fly a lot, and occasionally I accidentally demonstrate enough loyalty that I get to preboard. Yuck. Lounge in the... lounge with power and wifi until the last two people are in line to board, then stroll over and walk on. Sit down, plane leaves.
Sucks to be you. My solution is to never fly *commercial*. Flying my own airplane, as long as the destination is under 1100 nautical miles I save time vs. flying in an overcrowded 737.
The reason airlines won't change boarding is because they'd no longer be able to give out "in the early boarding group" as a perk of having lots of frequent flier miles or whatever. Changing boarding order would mean that they can no longer give out an intangible benefit that costs them nothing.
Chelloveck
I give up on debugging. From now on, SIGSEGV is a feature.
How about just trying to reduce the overhead of everything that isn't sitting in a moving plane?
Most airlines only focus on purchasing one or two models with their air fleet. There's compartment variation between manufacturers, but there shouldn't be that much amongst the same manufacturer. Dumbass airlines should just have a maximal set measurement for carry-on baggage, and if it doesn't meet (laser measurement) inspection at check-in, the passenger has to put it in cargo (with requisite bag limits & charges). If they don't want to pay the extra fees, pound sand and find a different airline.
There is no America. There is no democracy. There is only IBM and AT&T and DuPont, Dow, General Electric, and Exxon
Aren't there a shortage of gunnery sergeants and equivalent in the US military?
There is no America. There is no democracy. There is only IBM and AT&T and DuPont, Dow, General Electric, and Exxon
The Southwest study only covered everyone always going in through the same entrance.
Ad-Hoc is the fastest of all possible mechanisms currently in place (from experience across many planes). However I am 100% sure Ad-Hoc combined with exiting out the opposite side of the entrance would be faster, because on the many, many Southwest flights I've ever been on people pack up the front rows first and that always slows boarding. If they were mostly packing up the rows on the other end of the plane from where everyone enters, it would increase speed of loading quite a bit...
Of course, the real issue there is would be a huge change for the gate staff, who would have to be told which end of the plane to hook up to, or possibly half the gates could be set to rear attach, half to front and the airplane could go to the right gate... either way a big change for airports, so it would probably never happen even if all the airlines wanted to do it.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
It's also a pain to get the customers entirely out of the plane afterwards, some of those customers really stick to the carpet.
Well that class system allows me to fly from the UK to Greece and back for only £250, so I like the class system someone else built and the commies can fly AeroFlot of they want.
Of course they don't want their precious first class people waiting longer
A plane which offers first class would never cause that class of people to block the commoners getting on. They are completely segregated for a reason.
The author doesn't realise all the proposed "fixes" are already in place in airlines all over the world and have done absolutely nothing to make the experience better. I could have checked my carryon today, but why would I? The cost is nothing compared to the 30min wait when I get to my destination for the bag to come out.
I actually like the process some airlines have where they tag your carry on if you checked a bag. The tag guarantees you can put it in the overhead bin with priority over someone who hasn't checked a bag. Make the people who are cheaping out suffer a bit.
I was on a flight to London last week and some lady came in with her thick carry on crammed over head and then proceeded to put her duty free, and her coat under the seat. She then turned to me with a pleading look with her handbag and motioned to my leg space "Do you mind?". "Yes I do, stay away from my space." She seemed shocked that someone wouldn't give up their space for a self-obsessed asshat who refused to check a bag.
*Posted from Heathrow Terminal 5. (Still a shithole).
Well you could split the sides out and forklift modular beds straight in designed from a 3rd party. Horizontal bedding would allow many more seats
A blog I run for the wealth
Pretty certain that IS a standard, at least in the US. I bought a pelican case that was billed as matching airline standard for size, and lo and behold, it slipped right in no problem.
The problem is people find the standard too small, so they get bags they think will fit overhead, then forced the issue.
I was surprised how easy the pelican case slid in to the overhead compartment, and fit perfectly.
Ken
My proposal is that only "carry-on" bags go overhead, anything else can be pulled and put under the seat in front of you.
At 2m tall, I check my bag, and only carry a laptop/messenger bag and cost - I need every inch under the seat in front of me for my feet.
I agree with others that wish airlines would enforce carry-on policies, but I think the airlines let most carry-on rules slide because it reduces complaints about checked baggage fees, the most profitable thing they offer.
Ken
We can board in a logical order, and still allow adults flying with small children to board first, along with the elderly and folks in wheelchairs...
Ken
First class passengers can board anytime like, those that choose to board first get to watch every other passenger hump their carry on bags long-time to the back of the plane. The few times I've flown first class i boarded last - what's the rush, my state's reserved and I don't do 'carry on'.
Ken
Charge to bring carry-on. Make checked bags free.
They will make more money and boarding will go infinitely faster.
Idiots.
-- Mean People Suck
You cannot stand to be away from your partner for the three or four minutes this would take?!
As for kids, an eight year old could navigate this just fine, they line up everyday at school and file in to assigned seats in their classrooms.
Parents with wee ones could get on first, last, or be restricted to a range of seats that load in some other way.
Were that I say, pancakes?
Yes, how DARE he simply execute the Jerusalem Embassy Act passed in 1995, and strongly reaffirmed last year by 90-0 vote in the Senate! How DARE he follow the law and recognize the will of the Senate!
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Guaranteed overhead storage for my solitary bag. I've boarded near the end of the queue before for my first class seat (I fly a lot, around 295,000 miles last year and 3+ flights a week, and though I rarely pay for first/business I am almost always bumped up - the "bonus" for being a permanent Diamond medallion on Delta), and when I got on all the overheads for first class were filled. Thankfully the flight attendant stashed my bag with the crew storage.I have seen first class passengers who waited until the end having their bags gate checked - and they were NOT happy.
FWIW, I use an Everki Titan backpack for everything, every trip - even a two week blitz around Asia just last month. People need to realize that most places around the world can do laundry and have basic amenities and pharmacies, so bringing more than 3 changes of clothes is a bit crazy, and there's no need to bring every salve-under-the-sun with you, when if you need the rare tube of Neosporin you can buy it locally.
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As a frequent flier (Delta diamond medallion - permanent - and 3+ flights a week on average), I can tell you that probably 80% of those roll-on bags are NOT sized for carry-ons, they are too big. I use an Everki Titan backpack, and it just barely makes the list. Most luggage does not. Add in the popular "hack" of bringing a roller bag AND a full-size backpack (or both AND a purse), and then stuffing all of them in the bins, and a single person just took up the overhead space for 3 people.
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Kudos to you! Just a little thought ahead of the game helps it out. I don't know how many times I've seen people in the security line have to back through because they forgot their cell phone in their pocket. And some of these folks I see nearly every week on the regular flight to SFO! They STILL haven't learned to prepare ahead of time...
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I fly a lot, and occasionally I accidentally demonstrate enough loyalty that I get to preboard.
The first part of that statement does not match the second part of that statement.
Browsing at +1 - no ACs, I ignore their posts. So refreshing!
It's as though people don't read the article. The point is, airlines aren't trying to optimise for speed alone; they balance speed against other factors including profitability, which means providing priority boarding options for a fee (eg flying club or sometimes a straight-up fee).
That's because US domestic "first class" is nothing of the sort. International first class means you turn left, not right. So you get to board first, but once you're onboard and are getting seated, the process doesn't block the economy passengers from boarding.
"Cannot stand" and "would not like" are different.
Remember who is paying.
Bingo Dictionary - Pragmatist, n. A myopic idealist.
There's a pretty easy adaptation. If ticket were purchased together and are adjacent seats, they load together.
That explains a lot acutally.
Not actually true, even on a sq. footage basis. Business class is, as it's denser and more likely to be booked closer to departure when ticket prices are higher.
Again don't assume military rules apply. People can't even follow simple rules like group loading or not standing in the priority lane. Do you honestly thing the hordes would cope with not only column based loading, but then also exceptions to the rule?
Because the first class seats are more comfortable than the seats in the terminal, and the drinks are free while the peons file into their steerage class seats.
Lots of people when they travel donâ(TM)t want to blow a day sitting in a laundromat.
Passengers with kids could pre-board or post-board. If 10% have kids, you would still get 90% of the speedup by column loading.
Even if you do that....*sigh*
SAS, British Airways and Singapore Airlines were the last 3 airlines I flew with. All 3 announced that passengers with children could board first along with the "Silver" or "Gold" passengers.
You know what?
At least half the family groups that qualified (toddlers, 5 year olds) in all three waiting lounges did not take advantage of this. They lined up in the normal queue and basically slowed everyone down while they handheld little William down the aisle then got the baby bag sorted and dealt with the arguments over the window seat. Seriously wtf is wrong with people?
Singapore Airlines were very proactive though. They had the ground staff actually walk up to eligible family groups and tell them they could board. I guess people just assume they don't qualify?
When a resource is scarce and desired, CHARGE for it by weight! Seems to me like travelers value overhead space more than checked space, charge accordingly! Charge even more for the space actually over your seat! The airlines will make more money and fewer travelers will bring huge heavy wheelies into the cabin! Boarding will be much faster!
The airlines are in the human shipping business. Larger humans cost more than smaller. Heavy objects consume more jet fuel. Weigh and measure each human like Fedex or UPS, stick a readable bar code on each passengerâ(TM)s neck, scan on entry. Route each human to appropriate storage area. Tranquilize if necessary or requested.
Which is why it's a compile-time, not run-time rule. Each ticket would have the board order printed on it before boarding starts.
Wait, you have a hotel that doesn't do laundry? Those are exceedingly rare in my experience. I've encountered that once, the Showakan Forest Inn out at Akishima, Tokyo, Japan. Thankfully the local laundromat is just 10 minutes away. Drop in my clothes to wash, go to dinner next door, get back as the load is finishing, toss into the dryer, wait 15 minutes and I'm done. Much better than carrying around extra bags on the subways, waiting to check bags at the airport/pick them up off the carousel, etc. A backpack should be about all you need, in 99% of the cases.
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Yep.
Only boring people are ever bored.
They reverted that policy long ago. More than two years ago for sure. There was a time they experimented with not allowing families with kids, but it didn't last long.
Military, disabilities, parents traveling with small children...all get early pre-board on United.
It's all on their website
https://www.united.com/web/en-...
Yes, I have. According to the forms in the ones that do, itâ(TM)s slow and expensive. And one is at the mercy of whatever enzyme-laden products they use.
Leaving all clothes except what Iâ(TM)m wearing unattended seems like tempting fate.
That is not how that happens.
Anyway the real solution is even easier: Boarding both in the back in and front. It is 4 times faster on average, due to double the bandwidth and half the blocking.
No, let a parent get on and settled faster so the kid can get their food and go to sleep.
Every airline I've ever flown already does this. Parents with kids get to board before anyone else, including first class.
Which the SLOWEST possible way to board. They should be boarding last.
I guess you fly a lot of airlines that are not in the big three mileage alliances, or you don't sign up for mileage plans? Given that most start giving away perks for as little as 25K miles, you'd have to fly rather infrequently (less than 75K/year) or simply not sign up at all - which would be crazy stupid. So either no, you don't fly a lot - or you don't do mileage plans in which case the statement into the thread is irrelevant because it would never apply to you.
Browsing at +1 - no ACs, I ignore their posts. So refreshing!
Almost as efficient as the military style back-to-front column loading were the back-to-front row loading. As families usually sit in the same row or clustered around a few rows, they would be able to board almost as the same time, and exceptions to the boarding order could be made with very little cost. Flight attendants would be on hand ensuring that people stow the carry-on either at their seat or further back. This way the usual road blocks could be avoided: The people boarding early due to special seating (business, children etc.) blocking the rest with oversized luggage, obnoxious children, excessive comfort maneuvers with coats (taking several layers of coats off one at a time, folding, and storing in various bins) etc. and similar when deplaning where the same people either run around looking for their extra luggage stored in bins several rows back or forward.
My usual boarding method is this: Go to seat, put carry-on nearest overhead bin. I've already taken out the stuff I'll need on the plane and put it into my coat pockets at the gate, so I just sit down with my coat on. When all has boarded, I stand up, take out the stuff I needed from my pockets, take off the coat and put it in the bin. If I'm not at the aisle I'll ask for the aisle person to help. There's almost always room in the nearest bin as a coat is much more flexible than a bag.
"For every complex problem, there is a solution that is simple, neat, and wrong." -- H.L. Mencken (1880-1956) --
Personally, I wouldn't pay for first class if it didn't give priority boarding. I want my decompression time prior to the flight.
Even in the slums out back with the rest of the hoi polloi I find there is plenty of "decompression time". Even after I board last, I still sit waiting forever before we take off... of course, in the back there it is more like "Compression" time than "Decompression" time. I always find myself next to the 6'2" wide man whose enormous belly flops over onto my armrest and lap.
"That's the way to do it" - Punch
You don't ever have one blanket and two chilly people. You have ten blankets and two chilly people. But one of them gets a blanket and the other is told that it isn't offered at their level. Or you have somebody who desperately needs the bathroom and the first-class one is open but no matter what the situation they won't be allowed to use the bathroom. In one sense it's quite reasonable. These are pure economic criteria. But it's also dehumanizing.
It seems to me, that it would be quicker to have the people sitting in the back be the first ones on. Then you don't have everyone stopping at the front of the plane.