Originally Posted by
Aliquot
Why is this an issue? Is it really that important to get the privilege of sitting in a metal tube 30 seconds longer than some other guy? I can see being angry if it gets to the point that groups 6-8 are called early enough that they get on in front of you, because that is when overhead space becomes an issue. The airlines have hit marketing gold with this boarding thing. A "perk" that people will spend thousands of dollars a year to "earn" that costs the airlines nothing.
If I know the flight isn't full I usually wait until the line is gone before I get on.
Since you asked.......
For some reason, AA now boards planes anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes prior to the established boarding time. Since Flight Attendants rarely prevent Y passengers from placing their luggage in the overhead F cabin bins, an F cabin passenger that expects to place their carry-on baggage in the F cabin needs to leave the lounge super early, stand at the gate in the "cluster", and then schlepp onto the plane (aka ugly metal tube) much earlier than a sane person would desire.
If established AA protocols were actually enforced by management and followed by line employees, none of the foregoing would be necessary. The chances of that taking place are similar to the chances of a snowball being thrown in hell.