Jan 9, 2018, 5:44 am
Last edit by: KARFA
Please use this thread for discussion, conjecture and speculation about the Group Boarding Process.
Experiences of the actual process in airports should be made in the dedicated thread:
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/brit...periences.html
Group Boarding Summary (courtesy chris1979)
NB. Customers with additional needs will be offered pre-boarding ahead of all the groups listed above.
Boarding priority for Executive Club Gold, Silver or Bronze Members or oneworld equivalents, will automatically be reflected in the group number given on their boarding pass. If they arrive after their group has been called, they can use the priority boarding lane to go through before the flight closes.
Please note that priority boarding will not be reflected for any other people travelling with an Executive Club Member on the same booking at the moment, but will be introduced in the coming months. In the meantime, the whole party can use the priority boarding lane and our staff will endeavour to board everyone together.
Pre-boarding
Families with small children
We invite families with infants under two and young children in pushchairs to board first, so that the whole family can settle in. Customers must arrive by the time specified on their boarding pass so that they are ready to board and we have enough time
to load their pushchair into the hold.
Customers requiring disability or mobility assistance
We will assist customers on to the aircraft ahead of other passengers so that they have time to settle in and get comfortable. Please contact us at least 48 hours before their flight so that we can make the necessary arrangements.
Experiences of the actual process in airports should be made in the dedicated thread:
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/brit...periences.html
Group Boarding Summary (courtesy chris1979)
NB. Customers with additional needs will be offered pre-boarding ahead of all the groups listed above.
Boarding priority for Executive Club Gold, Silver or Bronze Members or oneworld equivalents, will automatically be reflected in the group number given on their boarding pass. If they arrive after their group has been called, they can use the priority boarding lane to go through before the flight closes.
Please note that priority boarding will not be reflected for any other people travelling with an Executive Club Member on the same booking at the moment, but will be introduced in the coming months. In the meantime, the whole party can use the priority boarding lane and our staff will endeavour to board everyone together.
Pre-boarding
Families with small children
We invite families with infants under two and young children in pushchairs to board first, so that the whole family can settle in. Customers must arrive by the time specified on their boarding pass so that they are ready to board and we have enough time
to load their pushchair into the hold.
Customers requiring disability or mobility assistance
We will assist customers on to the aircraft ahead of other passengers so that they have time to settle in and get comfortable. Please contact us at least 48 hours before their flight so that we can make the necessary arrangements.
Boarding by group to be introduced [general discussion]
Nov 22, 2017, 9:53 am
#316
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Effectively grounded
Programs: BA GGL for a little while longer
Posts: 844
As much as I’d love to agree that’s just not the case. I’ve watched the turnaround for 12 years and on a weekly basis and although I know they’re short, the gate staff spend much of their time, once everyone has disembarked the arriving aircraft, standing waiting for the cleaning, security checking and what not to finish. What they should be doing instead of standing waiting is to start making announcements about how they’ll be boarding the aircraft, filling up the general boarding line from the back row of the aircraft to the front of the aircraft and going down the priority line ensuring those who are eligible to board first are actually standing at the front of the priority line. It really is not rocket science and they do waste a heck of a lot of time standing there doing absolutely nothing
At LHR, a single supervisor, during an 8 hour working day, could easily witness the boarding of 16 or so departures. As tomorrow there are I think 156 scheduled BA departures from T3 & T5 combined, that would be a very decent sample size of 10%. In a fortnight, they could probably witness pretty much every single one.
Their brief ? To ensure the new boarding process is being adhered to and report back if not - the gate staff in question to be held to account later and sanctioned if not performing. I think within a month, 90%+ of boardings would be compliant.
I see the whole sorry saga as an egregious management failure which speaks volumes about the lack of customer focus within the airline.
Nov 23, 2017, 1:55 am
#318
Join Date: May 2017
Location: Glasgow and Asia
Programs: BAEC Gold, Hotels.com Gold
Posts: 510
So out on GLA-LGW on sunday was Tensa'd off for lanes and boarding by group. LGW-GLA and I'm sitting about 8 seats from the door (usual gate crowd hanging around) and they call..... This is boarding only for CE. I stood up and walked to the door briskly (anticipating a stampede as usual but they all held back), but the announcer had only given it about 5 secs before talking a big breath and said... "AND also GCH, SCH, BCH. So I don't know if it was a deliberate pause to allow club in 1st or just a pause for a deep breath. Then It seemed as if the whole plane was at by back rushing through the door.
Nov 23, 2017, 1:59 am
#319
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 7,464
So out on GLA-LGW on sunday was Tensa'd off for lanes and boarding by group. LGW-GLA and I'm sitting about 8 seats from the door (usual gate crowd hanging around) and they call..... This is boarding only for CE. I stood up and walked to the door briskly (anticipating a stampede as usual but they all held back), but the announcer had only given it about 5 secs before talking a big breath and said... "AND also GCH, SCH, BCH. So I don't know if it was a deliberate pause to allow club in 1st or just a pause for a deep breath. Then It seemed as if the whole plane was at by back rushing through the door.
Nov 23, 2017, 4:25 am
#320
Join Date: Jan 2017
Location: Aberdeenshire
Programs: BAEC Silver
Posts: 153
This would save the the hassle when people have to move to let someone into a window seat
Nov 23, 2017, 4:31 am
#321
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 1,197
There was that mythbusters episode where they tested a bunch of different options. Maybe it was in that?
Nov 23, 2017, 4:57 am
#322
Join Date: Jan 2017
Location: London
Programs: BA Silver
Posts: 114
This reminds me, when I was flying back from Venice last Wednesday. I heard a gabled call over the PA, assumed it was priority boarding so I headed to the priority queue. My boarding pass didn't scan (angry beeping) and they asked if I had Priority. I said yes and pointed to the silver card on my backpack. They did some sort of manual override and send me on my way. In hindsight maybe they were adhering to the 'correct' boarding of CE and Gold first? I have no issue waiting for a call for silver but I could barely make out the announcements. It does bode well for the future though.
Nov 23, 2017, 6:04 am
#323
Join Date: Feb 2008
Programs: BA (GGL/CCR)
Posts: 1,256
So I’ve just boarded from a15 (16:40 to FRA) and the gate agent sent back 4 (yes that’s right: four!) individuals at different points of the line ahead of me.
I only heard the final one be sent back but she said “sir we’re only boarding Gold or Business Class passengers at the moment you are silver can you please wait a couple of minutes until they’ve finished”.
So either the apocalypse is about to begin or gate agents have started to enforce the existing rules I’m assuming in preparation for the changes as I’ve never seen anyone sent back before let alone a Silver. Both agents did it as well 3 got one and 1 person the other (the silver) which was also surprising to me. When I have seen some of the rules enforced I’ve never seen them enforced by both agents consistently.
I only heard the final one be sent back but she said “sir we’re only boarding Gold or Business Class passengers at the moment you are silver can you please wait a couple of minutes until they’ve finished”.
So either the apocalypse is about to begin or gate agents have started to enforce the existing rules I’m assuming in preparation for the changes as I’ve never seen anyone sent back before let alone a Silver. Both agents did it as well 3 got one and 1 person the other (the silver) which was also surprising to me. When I have seen some of the rules enforced I’ve never seen them enforced by both agents consistently.
Nov 23, 2017, 6:22 am
#324
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Canary Wharf, London
Programs: MyWaitrose, IC Spire Ambassador, Hilton Diamond & BAEC Gold
Posts: 2,685
I've noticed BA have started to enforce priority boarding in order recently, and not just call out for CE, Gold, Silver, brown, blue all at once. Shame they only seem to have started doing it now the system is about to be changed.
Nov 23, 2017, 6:26 am
#325
Moderator, Iberia Airlines, Airport Lounges, and Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Feb 2010
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold; Flying Blue Life Platinum; LH Sen.; Hilton Diamond; Kemal Kebabs Prized Customer
Posts: 63,823
My boarding pass didn't scan (angry beeping) and they asked if I had Priority. I said yes and pointed to the silver card on my backpack. They did some sort of manual override and send me on my way. In hindsight maybe they were adhering to the 'correct' boarding of CE and Gold first?
Nov 23, 2017, 6:36 am
#326
Suspended
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Mexico City
Programs: Life Miles, Miles and more
Posts: 518
The elephant in the room is of course, do too many people get priority boarding for any efficient process to work? And when so many people have it, is it even priority, or just a fig leaf airlines throw to make people feel special? Would it not be better to limit it to fewer people and make the whole process more efficient?
Nov 23, 2017, 6:39 am
#327
Moderator, Iberia Airlines, Airport Lounges, and Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Feb 2010
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold; Flying Blue Life Platinum; LH Sen.; Hilton Diamond; Kemal Kebabs Prized Customer
Posts: 63,823
In the test I watched (some years ago) as soon as you allow couples to board together you lose the advantage over totally random. Typically one person sits down quickly but the second person will then block the aisle flapping around.
Nov 23, 2017, 7:03 am
#328
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: NB, Canada
Programs: Fairmont, Amex MR, Marriott
Posts: 2,531
The so-called WILMA method is supposedly the only method that can board an aircraft faster than totally random (and random is faster than Groups but that's for another day's discussion). However it is impractical since few couples are prepared to be split up, with one spouse/partner going on perhaps well before the other.
Maybe she just does not want to be seen with me?
Nov 23, 2017, 7:03 am
#329
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Switzerland
Programs: AY+ Platinum, SK Gold, BAEC Silver, airbaltic VIP, Radisson VIP
Posts: 6,531
There is also another project which works with an algorithm:
https://ddyna.aero/
https://ddyna.aero/
JUST-IN-TIME SEAT ALLOCATION
Passengers get their seat when they go through the gate. This enables DDynaBoard to optimise the order and arrangement of seat assignments just-in-time. An algorithm evaluates possible seats and chooses the best one.
Passengers get their seat when they go through the gate. This enables DDynaBoard to optimise the order and arrangement of seat assignments just-in-time. An algorithm evaluates possible seats and chooses the best one.
PASSENGERS BOARD IN A RANDOM ORDER
When boarding starts, passengers start queuing. There are no instructions or rules to follow. Sequence does not matter. They show their boarding pass to the gate agent and get their suitable seat.
When boarding starts, passengers start queuing. There are no instructions or rules to follow. Sequence does not matter. They show their boarding pass to the gate agent and get their suitable seat.
Nov 23, 2017, 7:26 am
#330
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: London
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 26
I'm on BA1448 to EDI today and having turned up to the gate a touch before boarding was about to begin (flight was a little delayed) I got to see the whole process. Club and gold called and the whole priority line proceeds to surge forward. Silver then called about 5 seconds after and then bronze so in reality basically no differentiation. By the time I'm on there is virtually no space in the row 1, 2 or even 3 headbins even though I was present when boarding started and was in the queue (although probably around 30 people deep).
This is a very full flight but I was honestly surprised to see that there would be so little space for bags so quickly, a first for me but then maybe I just wasn't fast enough. Either way I think the key factor with the new system will be, as so many others she said, enforcement.
Also I have a question, if the flight were to leave from one of the e-gates, would the gates automatically decline someone from a boarding group that hadn't yet been called? It's perhaps a touch harsh and honestly I'd rather come to the gate last and avoid it all like CWS seems to, but I do get a little worried about the lack of overhead space especially when deliberately travelling HBO. I guess worst case scenario is the bags disappear a little further away. First world problems and all that..!
This is a very full flight but I was honestly surprised to see that there would be so little space for bags so quickly, a first for me but then maybe I just wasn't fast enough. Either way I think the key factor with the new system will be, as so many others she said, enforcement.
Also I have a question, if the flight were to leave from one of the e-gates, would the gates automatically decline someone from a boarding group that hadn't yet been called? It's perhaps a touch harsh and honestly I'd rather come to the gate last and avoid it all like CWS seems to, but I do get a little worried about the lack of overhead space especially when deliberately travelling HBO. I guess worst case scenario is the bags disappear a little further away. First world problems and all that..!