Originally Posted by exAC
I haven't seen cost figures for awhile, but the addition of the overwing cantilever made the price twice what the single bridge was priced at.
Plus aircraft damage from placing the extra pathway goes up.
Sit at the back of a B737 sometime and time the difference between when the first passenger gets off and when you get off. The difference is only a few minutes. That does not have any help in turning an aircraft faster.
How many times have you waited for departure because the passengers were still boarding? Vast majority of the time the wait is for baggage to be loaded. The cantilever bridge does not speed up baggage loading.
The time for movement of people on and off the airplane is cut by half with double bridge in my experience. The fact that the flight attendants can seat pre-boards through the front while the back is loading makes a big difference.
Baggage loading is not a big problem at most stations. Usually have the numbers and the bag doors closed by the time the flight attendants are ready.
The doubles are great in helping to make 20-30 min turns.