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]
Jan 16, 2018, 5:42 am
#646
Ambassador: Emirates Airlines
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Manchester, UK
Posts: 18,600
I think they'd really struggle at MAN to make anything effective. The corridor is just too narrow to have proper groups. Maybe have 2 groups each side of the door going in opposite directions?
Jan 16, 2018, 6:05 am
#647
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 386
Flew on Monday's BA107 to DXB.....usual chaos at the gate (C62) with people lingering (or as some might say, queuing), when along comes a buggy that pulls up and completes the blocking of the walkway. Lanes 1 to 4 all laid out neatly, ready to go, when "First, Gold, Emerald" came the call (not "Group 1") leading to half the lingerers and most of those who had been sitting, jumping around jostling for position, but to their credit the BA gate team were insistent that those not eligible step aside and wait. Never saw if lanes 2-4 were used, but we live in hope, eh?
Jan 16, 2018, 6:24 am
#648
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 220
At MAN gates 142 and 143, there are barriers separating into 2 lanes, (Priority groups 1,2 and 3) and (groups 4 and 5). The corridor is too narrow to realistically allow anything else. Gate 141 remains an issue and is too confined to do anything really.
Jan 16, 2018, 6:45 am
#649
Ambassador: Emirates Airlines
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Manchester, UK
Posts: 18,600
Jan 16, 2018, 7:07 am
#650
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 220
Jan 16, 2018, 8:34 am
#651
Ambassador: Emirates Airlines
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Manchester, UK
Posts: 18,600
Jan 16, 2018, 8:46 am
#652
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Switzerland / Estonia
Programs: AY+ Platinum, BAEC Silver, airbaltic VIP, HH Diamond, Radisson VIP, IHG Diamond Elite
Posts: 6,525
On top of my head I could think of the GVA satellites to be challenging as well. Not much space there either for 5 separate lanes. ZRH should be fine. BSL too. In fact, BSL already does a good job with two priority lanes.
Jan 16, 2018, 12:07 pm
#653
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: 63,727
I've got a bit of a news update. LHR T5A is now fully on Group Boarding, so effectively shorthaul (which I would have thought would be trickier than longhaul). T5B will "probably" move next week, and perhaps T5C. Adding up the dots I think that Group Boarding should be network wide in about 3 weeks or so. I'm sure some will want to know why it's taking so long, and the answer is largely down to the fact that 3,000 people need to be trained in this in LHR alone.
EDIT: T3 is only doing a few destinations at the moment, LGW is doing most (all?) of them.
EDIT: T3 is only doing a few destinations at the moment, LGW is doing most (all?) of them.
Last edited by corporate-wage-slave; Jan 16, 2018 at 12:57 pm
Jan 16, 2018, 12:54 pm
#654
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: BAEC GGL/CR; Hilton Diamond; Mucci des Puccis
Posts: 5,576
First boarding pass of 2018, a quick jaunt for lunch in St Helier from LGW tomorrow. I find myself a proud member of GROUP 1. Missus is GROUP 5. No groups on the way back though.
Jan 16, 2018, 12:55 pm
#655
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: 63,727
Jan 16, 2018, 1:03 pm
#657
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: 63,727
Jan 16, 2018, 1:41 pm
#658
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: BAEC GGL/CR; Hilton Diamond; Mucci des Puccis
Posts: 5,576
I wasn't really expecting it to - I'm supposing I could guest her through, though it's not all that relevant on this occasion as neither of us will have any bags so we'll rock up as late as possible.
Jan 16, 2018, 4:01 pm
#659
Join Date: Jul 2013
Programs: BA GGL/CCR, Hilton Diamond *, IHG, Couples Romance Rewards
Posts: 2,346
We might need that marriage counselling too. Single PNR. The missus is dead scared of being turned away if she comes with me into the group 1 queue but the information I have from previous posts is that I can guest her onto the plane with me. We'll let you all know how it goes...
Jan 16, 2018, 10:48 pm
#660
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: London
Programs: BA GGL, HHonors Diamond
Posts: 194
On flight to Frankfurt from LHR at gate A13 yesterday morning, there were three signed queues - Group 1, Groups 2 and 3, Groups 4 and 5. Pre-boarding announcement was made asking everyone to get into their appropriate lines (which of course meant Groups 2 and 3 were effectively mixed up in their line). I was in Group 1 and this was clearly separate and called first and everyone in the line was checked to see if they were legitimately there. I hung around after Group 1 boarded to observe what happened next (no bags so no worries!) and as expected when they called Group 2, the line including Group 3, moved forward and everyone boarded together (which given they were all queueing together couldn't really have happened any other way). So effectively group 1 first then group 2 and 3 together, then groups 4 and 5 (albeit that each individual group were separately announced/called).