May 21, 2013, 10:43 am
Last edit by: aacharya
Source: https://hub.united.com/en-us/News/Co...g-process.aspx
Pre-Boarding
Premier Access Boarding
*A Star Alliance Silver who is not a Premier Silver is not eligible for Premier Access boarding.
General boarding (Window Seats, then Middle Seats, then Aisle)
Note: If you’re traveling with a companion and one of you has a higher boarding status, you both may board with the earlier group.
Note: Self Boarding Gates are being tested at the following gates...
sUA Boarding Times by Aircraft (AFA)
Pre-Boarding
- Customers with Disabilities
- Global Services
- Uniformed Military Personnel
- Families with Children Age Two and Under
Premier Access Boarding
- Group 1: Premier 1K, Premier Platinum, BusinessFirst, and First.
- Group 2: Premier Gold, Star Gold, Premier Silver*, MileagePlus Presidential Plus, Club, Explorer and Awards, purchased Premier Access
*A Star Alliance Silver who is not a Premier Silver is not eligible for Premier Access boarding.
General boarding (Window Seats, then Middle Seats, then Aisle)
- Group 3 - Window Seats
- Group 4 - Middle Seats (Aisle Seats on UA Express)
- Group 5 - Aisle Seats
Note: If you’re traveling with a companion and one of you has a higher boarding status, you both may board with the earlier group.
Note: Self Boarding Gates are being tested at the following gates...
- IAH - Gate C25/C26 - See Post 2960, Includes YouTube video from CO777DAL
- IAH - Gate E4 - Old test from pmCO days, See Thread Here
- BOS - Self boarding gates are now back in *LIMITED* use at least at gates B25 and B26
sUA Boarding Times by Aircraft (AFA)
United's Current Boarding Process (with Wiki) [Revised, May 2013]
Oct 27, 2014, 7:30 pm
#4231
Moderator: Midwest, Las Vegas & Dining Buzz
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Chicago, Illinois
Posts: 17,976
At YUL today, the mention of "military" pre-boarding at two different gates did not happen. Only GS and those needing extra time.
Oct 27, 2014, 7:34 pm
#4232
Moderator, Omni, Omni/PR, Omni/Games, FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Between DCA and IAD
Programs: UA 1K MM; Hilton Diamond
Posts: 67,129
Group 1 is F, C, GS, 1K, and Plat IIRC. Still can be incredibly excessive on some routes... I've shown up 45 minutes before boarding for SFO-IAD and already seen 50+ pax in the group 1 line.
Oct 27, 2014, 7:35 pm
#4233
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: ORD
Programs: United Plat 2MM, Hilton Gold
Posts: 2,727
Oct 27, 2014, 7:36 pm
#4234
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.995MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,849
Since there seems to be confusion
We board all aircraft by boarding groups, which are numbered from 1 to 5. On your mobile or printed boarding pass, look for “Boarding Group” followed by the number of your group.
Customers who have requested physical assistance and those customers with disabilities are invited to board the aircraft first.
Pre-boarding comes next. This group includes Global ServicesSM members and uniformed military personnel.
After pre-boarding is complete, listen for your boarding group number to be called. To get an idea of what your group number will be, here’s the list for aircraft with two cabins — organized by Premier AccessSM member level.
Group 1 – Premier Access boarding
o Global ServicesSM (for those customers who didn't board during the pre-boarding announcement)
o Premier 1K®
o Premier® Platinum
o Premium cabins, including United First®
Note: On aircraft with three cabins, United Business® members board in this group. (Also, for three-cabin aircraft, on certain international routes, United First is referred to as United Global First® and United Business® is referred to as United BusinessFirst®.)
Group 2 – Premier Access boarding
o Premier® Gold
o Star Alliance™ Gold
o Premier® Silver
o MileagePlus® Club Card members
o Presidential PlusSM Card members
o MileagePlus® Explorer Card members
o MileagePlus® Awards Card members
Note: A Star Alliance Silver member who is also a MileagePlus Premier Silver member traveling on United is able to board in Group 2 with a companion, as part of the MileagePlus Premier Silver benefit. This benefit does not apply to travelers who are Star Alliance Silver members from another airline.
Groups 3, 4, 5 – General boarding
....
Tip: If you’re traveling with a companion and one of you has a higher boarding status, you both may board with the earlier group.
Read more at https://hub.united.com/en-us/News/Co...g-process.aspx
Customers who have requested physical assistance and those customers with disabilities are invited to board the aircraft first.
Pre-boarding comes next. This group includes Global ServicesSM members and uniformed military personnel.
After pre-boarding is complete, listen for your boarding group number to be called. To get an idea of what your group number will be, here’s the list for aircraft with two cabins — organized by Premier AccessSM member level.
Group 1 – Premier Access boarding
o Global ServicesSM (for those customers who didn't board during the pre-boarding announcement)
o Premier 1K®
o Premier® Platinum
o Premium cabins, including United First®
Note: On aircraft with three cabins, United Business® members board in this group. (Also, for three-cabin aircraft, on certain international routes, United First is referred to as United Global First® and United Business® is referred to as United BusinessFirst®.)
Group 2 – Premier Access boarding
o Premier® Gold
o Star Alliance™ Gold
o Premier® Silver
o MileagePlus® Club Card members
o Presidential PlusSM Card members
o MileagePlus® Explorer Card members
o MileagePlus® Awards Card members
Note: A Star Alliance Silver member who is also a MileagePlus Premier Silver member traveling on United is able to board in Group 2 with a companion, as part of the MileagePlus Premier Silver benefit. This benefit does not apply to travelers who are Star Alliance Silver members from another airline.
Groups 3, 4, 5 – General boarding
....
Tip: If you’re traveling with a companion and one of you has a higher boarding status, you both may board with the earlier group.
Read more at https://hub.united.com/en-us/News/Co...g-process.aspx
Oct 27, 2014, 7:36 pm
#4235
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: SAN
Programs: AA - Plat
Posts: 395
55 people in Group 1 boarding! Really!
Why shouldn't plats get group 1? They fly a ton and deserve the perk. There's simply more people traveling these days. Stop hating.
Oct 27, 2014, 7:37 pm
#4236
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: DC|NYC
Programs: UA GS, DL Plat, Marriott Bonvoy LIfetime Titanium/SPG refugee, Hertz Prez, Amtrak Select
Posts: 3,201
55 in group one? Child's play. Try a 747 out of SFO. Now there's a Group 1!
Oct 27, 2014, 7:37 pm
#4237
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Los Angeles / Basel
Programs: UA 1K MM, AA EXP, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 26,923
So I'm on a paid first class ticket and see all these people, when there are only
12 First class seats. Is this any way to run an airline? Because they have some status or a credit card??
We made a flanking maneuver to the crippled and crazy line and boarded first.
I abhor United.
12 First class seats. Is this any way to run an airline? Because they have some status or a credit card??
We made a flanking maneuver to the crippled and crazy line and boarded first.
I abhor United.
Oct 27, 2014, 8:09 pm
#4238
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 142
ORD-NRT on a 747. Got a very sore thumb because
I used a counting app on my phone. Here are the
results.
Disabled/elderly: 3
GS: 23
Group 1: 72
Group 2: 157
I boarded with Group 2. My boarding pass said Groupo 5, but the GA
accepted my Star Alliance Gold card from a foreign airline.(had no
UA status when I boarded)
Oct 27, 2014, 9:45 pm
#4239
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Between AUS, EWR, and YTO In a little twisty maze of airline seats, all alike.. but I wanna go home with the armadillo
Programs: CO, NW, & UA forum moderator emeritus
Posts: 35,415
n EWR-SFO flights where all pax but 4 or 5 were elite.
Oct 27, 2014, 9:48 pm
#4240
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: gggrrrovvveee (ORD)
Programs: UA Pt, Marriott Ti, Hertz PC
Posts: 6,091
Oct 27, 2014, 9:53 pm
#4241
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: SoCal (ONT), PVD/BOS, JAX, RSW
Programs: AA/US PlatPro & 1.05MM, DL Plat (challenge), UA dirt
Posts: 3,189
Oct 27, 2014, 10:32 pm
#4243
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: SF Bay Area
Posts: 93
Flew LAX-IAD today, overhead space filled up during group 2 boarding. I was in the middle of group 2 and had to gate check my bag. Fun times.
Oct 27, 2014, 11:33 pm
#4244
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: San Jose, CA USA
Posts: 1,791
Let me defend him and venture that he's not a DYK, especially just because he's a first class passenger.
A recent experience on DL from SFO-DTW (I was in paid F) made me think about this. OK, DL has the only 4 non-stops SFO-DTW. Major reason I take one. DL had a chaotic boarding process (not unthinkable) and did their thing on calling the priority classes to board (disabled, followed by military).
The flight was running way late and was a 757, using, like they all do, door number 2---with the 1st class pax entering by the same door, but taking a left turn to their seats.
What happened was the disabled pax (wheelchairs and other stuff) was so backed up that, even though they left a buffer of time between the disabled and the F group, the line backed up for nearly 15 min out the ramp. I was one of the F pax.
My venture is that if they simply got the left-turning F pax on first (who normally board efficiently, I will argue) that would be about 24 pax who could have gotten on expeditiously. Granted, there can be a F-pax who is a wheel chair case or in need of help.
I think this is a preferred priority for a 757 flight, using door 2. For flights where everybody goes through the forward door 1, it probably makes no difference. It's not slighting the disabled or military, I think it is in the interest of efficiency.
A recent experience on DL from SFO-DTW (I was in paid F) made me think about this. OK, DL has the only 4 non-stops SFO-DTW. Major reason I take one. DL had a chaotic boarding process (not unthinkable) and did their thing on calling the priority classes to board (disabled, followed by military).
The flight was running way late and was a 757, using, like they all do, door number 2---with the 1st class pax entering by the same door, but taking a left turn to their seats.
What happened was the disabled pax (wheelchairs and other stuff) was so backed up that, even though they left a buffer of time between the disabled and the F group, the line backed up for nearly 15 min out the ramp. I was one of the F pax.
My venture is that if they simply got the left-turning F pax on first (who normally board efficiently, I will argue) that would be about 24 pax who could have gotten on expeditiously. Granted, there can be a F-pax who is a wheel chair case or in need of help.
I think this is a preferred priority for a 757 flight, using door 2. For flights where everybody goes through the forward door 1, it probably makes no difference. It's not slighting the disabled or military, I think it is in the interest of efficiency.
Oct 30, 2014, 7:57 am
#4245
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: gggrrrovvveee (ORD)
Programs: UA Pt, Marriott Ti, Hertz PC
Posts: 6,091
I agree in principle that being in F doesn't automatically equate to being over-entitled or having a "do you know who i am?" attitude.
Last edited by WineCountryUA; Oct 30, 2014 at 12:42 pm Reason: deleted "quote" from a deleted post