jmappleby

Are any other F customers tired of angry AAdvantage elites flocking at the gate?

This morning they started to board First, and whilst trying to get past the hoards of P and EXP commuters jamming up the entrance, they boarded Priority.

One particularly unpleasant character made a passive aggressive comment about my jumping the line, to which I pointed out that if they weren't all trying to be the first elite to board, I could have gotten past them.

I do wish that AA would have boarding zones by the gate for F, EXP, P Etc., and would give a few moments between zones. It's not like the jetway isn't full in the meantime.

Ok, Monday morning rant over.

bchandler02

Call them out on it.

cwy1980

Granted it wasn't the Monday morning commuting crush but the gate agents in DFW yesterday were stopping the elites trying to board with F on my flight to SNA, making them stand aside. Several elites showing their impatient exasperation when this was happening.

jmappleby

I did, but unfortunately it doesn't help. Elite gate crushing has become a phenomenon and they don't differentiate themselves with F customers.

I'm not particularly elitist about all this; just want to get on board in peace

smilinganddialing

I enjoy watching 23 people board for First (with no uniformed military) on a B737-800. When I usually go claim 8C or 8D, I then find that these 7 or so additional boarders are sitting either in the exit rows or in my row telling me it's probably other ExecPlats and Plats who find themselves too important to wait their turn.

ronniefastback

Even if we could get every flier to read this, wouldn't matter. Unless I have the bulkhead, I purposely stand away from the gate, and when they announce first I make it a point to walk through all the people saying "Excuse Me" as many times as I possibly can. Call me an a$$....... but makes me smile inside! :-)

rjque

I do this too, but I don't really smile inside. Last night on MCO-ORD we got a couple of comments about cutting.

The gate lice situation is really out of control right now. There needs to be a clear path to both boarding lanes. A striped off "do not stand here" path to the boarding lanes would be ideal.

Often1

At both DCA and PHX last week, the GA made a clear announcement about both carry-on enforcement and F boarding first and then turned back a bunch of non-F passengers. She also made 3 F passengers step out of line and deal with the other GA to check their non-compliant carry-ons. No idea when they boarded, but I guess it didn't matter as they didn't have a larger carry-on for the OH !

It's well worth AA taking the time to do both of these things. It may even slow things down a tad for a bit. But, just like Pavlov's dogs, even the dumbest EXP seated in Y can eventually figure out that when F is called and it doesn't say F on his BP, it doesn't mean him.

As to AA, it would also help if, when there are all of those "we're going to start boarding in X minutes" announcements, to ask people without F boarding passes to step out of the line.

rjw242

I dunno, I think you're giving the dumbest EXPs way too much credit.

This is why WN's "stand exactly at THIS SPOT" method works so well. There's no room for interpretation.

MiamiAirport Formerly NY George

My pet peeve F paxs that block the boarding lane so wheelchairs can't get through and elites that are far worse than any kettle gate lice. The a/c is not going to suddenly depart without giving them the chance to board.

cmd320

I try to just stay in the lounge as long as possible and board towards the end unless it's an L2 aircraft or multi-bridge aircraft. I hate sitting in F with L1 boarding while 150 Y pax stroll by...

jmappleby

You know the sad thing? Southwest is much more civilized, with its boarding numbers. It creates an orderly line, which is great. I'm not a huge fan of unassigned seating but it does at least drive a civilized boarding process.

Something really ought to be done.

Austin787

AA should take notes from UA: UA puts each group into boarding lanes with each lane clearly marked. Makes boarding area more organized.

jmappleby

How do you deal with the OH luggage space issue, if everyone boards before you? I carry a very modest sized carry-on, but it won't fit underneath a seat.

Even in F, OH space can be at a premium because many passengers either:

1) Carry a non-compliant carry-on. I've seen them the size of suitcases lately...
2) Put both their carry-on and their personal item and their coat up top

cmd320

UA can be faulted for a lot of things, but I agree their boarding process is much more organized and clear than AA or DL.

I don't normally have an issue in F. In my experience a lot of the time the cabin is either not full, or there are elites waiting on the upgrade list that cannot board particularly early. If push comes to shove I have no problem stuffing my bag on top of someone's coat if they were stupid enough to put it overhead.