Location: DFW; 2-time FT Fantasy Football Champ, now in recovery.
Programs: AA GLD 1.5MM; IHG Plat, Marriott Silver; OMNIPat
Posts: 10,116
Selling Priority Access seems to be working
I saw several articles about travel over the holidays suggesting that during these peak times, it's worth it for non-elites to pay to purchase priority boarding. Based on my flight yesterday, people seem to ba taking that advice.
There didn't seem to be many elites on the flight: As a GLD, I was #2 of 2 on the upgrade list, and the exit seats were the last ones available 1 day before departure. Not more than a half dozen folks boarded when EXP and PLT was called, but when the next announcement came for Priority Access, I'd estimate at least 40 people queued up.
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Programs: AAGld, HHonorsSilver, HertzGold, BaExec (GLD soon), Iron Maiden FC
Posts: 209
I have noticed a lot more people seeming to have priority access. I am plat, typically fly first, but its now always a scrum to get past the gate lice as they appear to have multiplied. I suppose I could stand in the priority access line, but i nearly died laughing at a chap who did just that in miami last week, boarding pass on show for the world to see half an hour prior to boarding. My alternative is to buy a cattle prod. That'll work.
I saw several articles about travel over the holidays suggesting that during these peak times, it's worth it for non-elites to pay to purchase priority boarding. Based on my flight yesterday, people seem to ba taking that advice.
There didn't seem to be many elites on the flight: As a GLD, I was #2 of 2 on the upgrade list, and the exit seats were the last ones available 1 day before departure. Not more than a half dozen folks boarded when EXP and PLT was called, but when the next announcement came for Priority Access, I'd estimate at least 40 people queued up.
Two comments:
1) I also saw a rather light elite load on flights on Nov. 21.
2) Many of the new AA credit cards come with Priority AAccess. A security agent in Toronto recently commented that "All American Airlines passengers are Priority Access".
It's definitely becoming a bit of an annoyance-- thankfully they usually call Plats before PriorityAAccess, but I frequently see people with PriorityAAccess only rush the line when they are still only boarding First/ExecPlats and Plats
I've been noticing this and finding it irritating at security at DFW. We have lots of AA elites, but lately it seems like the Priority Access lines are as long as the regular lines.
Hoping they get the separate PreCheck lines like most other airports that offer PC.
Programs: AA EXP, UA 1K, Marriott Platinum, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 161
Quote:
Originally Posted by mwk190
I've been noticing this and finding it irritating at security at DFW. We have lots of AA elites, but lately it seems like the Priority Access lines are as long as the regular lines.
Hoping they get the separate PreCheck lines like most other airports that offer PC.
I agree dedicated PreCheck lines are in order, but they don't do much for us when we're traveling internationally.
I will say, though, that this place still isn't half as bad as United. I would like to see some effort put into preventing it from getting there, though.
Noticed during the last six months they call gold with priority, at least what I notice outta LAX. As EXP, when I do get upgraded I just hang back until the end. If the upgrade doesn't go through, I make sure to swoop in early so my carry on has a space...and underneath the seat is not it!
Group 1 is available for purchase, not 'Priority Access', problem is that most people who buy Group 1 think it means they get to board first, hence the scrum at the gate
Programs: AA (current EXP, occasional PLT, 0MM); UA; US; DL
Posts: 4,705
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark_T
...problem is that most people who buy Group 1 think it means they get to board first...
I fault AA's marketing and perhaps deliberately misleading terminology for the confusion. If you bought "Group 1", why wouldn't you think you'd be in the first group to board? It would be clearer if they called it Economy 1 or similar, but that would not sound sexy, merely correct.
Group 1 is available for purchase, not 'Priority Access', problem is that most people who buy Group 1 think it means they get to board first, hence the scrum at the gate
Taking the boarding issue first, according to AA's web site, Priority AAccess and Group 1 board at the same time.
(Short version: Behind F, Uniformed Military, EXP, Plat & equivalents; in front of groups 2-4) So as of now, Priority AAccess = Group 1 at least according to what AA is saying.
What's not clear, is if Group 1 should be 1st in the Blue side, or just use the Red side with the Gold's and other bottom tier elites. The web site implies "Go with the Golds" Finally different GA's board differently.
AA Credit Card holders also get Group 1 as a published benefit.
It may be that group 1 could be shuffled out of Priority AAccess at a future time if the boarding process is changed again. Other airlines, i.e. UA, DL, seem to get the same complaints perhaps more so from the Credit Card than purchased Group 1.
As far as other benefits go, Priority AAccess seems to imply the use of Elite security lines where Group 1 does not, same for using the F check in. This is more or less monetized as "Five Star Service" (where available) as far as mixing things at security.
At the end of the day, if everyone is elite, nobody is elite. Pre-check has vastly diluted the value of premium security and I very much doubt that the day is coming when there will be premium pre-check lines. That largely leaves check-in and boarding group.
Given that most business people have figured out how to pack and don't check, that really leaves boarding and the sole benefit of boarding is that you get OH space. If there are 50 PA people (whether by status, card, purchase) and 150 seats, so long as the 50th person to board still gets OH space, doesn't really matter.
Unless you really think that because AA's marketing people sent you a shiny plastic card that you are somehow a more elite person !
What's not clear, is if Group 1 should be 1st in the Blue side, or just use the Red side with the Gold's and other bottom tier elites. The web site implies "Go with the Golds" Finally different GA's board differently.
This is where the process could really use some consistency, they should be boarding the Group 1 through the 'blue' side then following on with 2 and the rest of the groups on the blue side.
This would let them keep the priority access side clear for late arriving people with priority access.
Most times they seem to just board everyone through one queue and keep the other closed.
One of the issues is that only the Citi Executive card (the one that comes with AAdmirals Club access) is supposed to give cardholders Priority AAccess; I believe the intent was that the regular Citi cards were to give cardholders priority boarding, as in Group 1 boarding, but not premium security line access.
The problem, however, is that non-elites with the regular Citi cards have reported that they have received Priority AAccess printed on their BPs, so this sounds like a potential IT glitch.
