Originally Posted by
iahphx
OK, so if I don't want some unlikely but really frustrating thing to happen to me, I have to make sure I'm at the Easyjet gate at 6:30 am for my 7 am flight.
Which will undoubtedly annoy me, because the odds that I REALLY need to be there precisely by that time seem extremely low.
Mainly it depends on the airport/gate layout.
At GVA, the gate never opens until the inbound aircraft has arrived and unloaded, because there is no holding pen beyond the boarding card scanners. At LTN, at about half the gates there is a pen (in which case if you're not in the pen by T-30 you've got a good chance of being told to get lost) and at about half there isn't (in which case if they haven't physically started boarding yet you might get away with it). It's been ages since I flew out of Gatwick and I can't remember what the layout there is.
Personally, I'd aim for T-60 in your case and get a leisurely breakfast if you turn out not to need it. Stressful travel never works for me. If you want more kip, get to bed earlier
Neil