Jan 9, 2018, 5:46 am
Last edit by: Genius1
Please use this thread to document experiences of the new Group Boarding process in airports. I think it's well known how the previous boarding system works, so just the new process please, so that other travellers can gauge its effectiveness.
For discussion, conjecture and speculation about the scheme, please use this thread: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/british-airways-executive-club/1878043-boarding-group-introduced-general-discussion.html
For discussion, conjecture and speculation about the scheme, please use this thread: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/british-airways-executive-club/1878043-boarding-group-introduced-general-discussion.html
Group Boarding 2018 - first hand experiences
Jan 23, 2018, 4:07 pm
#182
Join Date: Jun 2015
Programs: BAEC silver
Posts: 55
Mco-lgw-gla on 19/ 20th
Our experience returning from mco on fri 19th to lgw.
New barriers at gate since my last return on 2nd dec 2017 same gate 80 departure. No group number on mco-lgw boarding pass but group 2 ( me) and group 3 (hubby) both on same PNR on our lgw-gla ones given at check in.Read upthread that this is normal until update is completed.
Boarding mco-lgw
Assistance and people with children under 2 called first , it being outwith school holidays there wasnt the usual half a plane walking to the front. Next was gold/owe and club, next was PE ( no silver) we were travelling in that cabin
New barriers at gate since my last return on 2nd dec 2017 same gate 80 departure. No group number on mco-lgw boarding pass but group 2 ( me) and group 3 (hubby) both on same PNR on our lgw-gla ones given at check in.Read upthread that this is normal until update is completed.
Boarding mco-lgw
Assistance and people with children under 2 called first , it being outwith school holidays there wasnt the usual half a plane walking to the front. Next was gold/owe and club, next was PE ( no silver) we were travelling in that cabin
So joined the queue , no need for passport or boarding pass only photograph taken and the gate opened. Dont know the order called for the remaining passengers but would have thought that silver should have been called along with PE.
On a side note with the amount of families with young children I think the egates will be a nightmare in the school holiday.
lgw-gla gate 4 20th jan
Even with the group numbers on the boarding passes the flight was called as gold/CE , silver and bronze and then everyone else. Unsure if LGW are suppose to already be doing it by groups but werent on Saturday.
On a side note with the amount of families with young children I think the egates will be a nightmare in the school holiday.
lgw-gla gate 4 20th jan
Even with the group numbers on the boarding passes the flight was called as gold/CE , silver and bronze and then everyone else. Unsure if LGW are suppose to already be doing it by groups but werent on Saturday.
Jan 24, 2018, 4:44 am
#183
Join Date: Mar 2017
Programs: BAEC GGL
Posts: 261
LHR-YVR last week. They didn't call by group but called by status. This was strictly enforced despite the congregating. I felt like I was at some sort of government agency and people were just funnelling to try their luck at each announcement. "Maybe they will not notice I have no status and let me on the plane!"
Jan 24, 2018, 4:46 am
#184
Join Date: Mar 2017
Programs: BAEC GGL
Posts: 261
I did LAX>LHR on Monday evening, Group boarding announced multiple times and, while a large 'audience' formed around the gate to wait, it worked pretty well for group 1 at least, no idea what happened after that though...
Oh, they also had some nice new signs, but only 'priority boarding - groups 1-3' and 'general boarding - group 4-5' which seemed slightly pointless.
Oh, they also had some nice new signs, but only 'priority boarding - groups 1-3' and 'general boarding - group 4-5' which seemed slightly pointless.
Jan 24, 2018, 4:50 am
#185
Moderator, Iberia Airlines, Airport Lounges, and Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2010
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold; Flying Blue Life Platinum; LH Sen.; Hilton Diamond; Kemal Kebabs Prized Customer
Posts: 63,857
Group Boarding is in a soft launch stage, so neither LGW nor MCO are involved at this stage. See wiki for more information.
This also applies to all longhaul departures from LHR - T5B and T5C are not yet rolled out, nor is LHR T3, though some flights are going to use Group Boarding on a selected basis.
Jan 24, 2018, 4:59 am
#186
Moderator, Iberia Airlines, Airport Lounges, and Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2010
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold; Flying Blue Life Platinum; LH Sen.; Hilton Diamond; Kemal Kebabs Prized Customer
Posts: 63,857
My LHR-NCL 19:40 hrs flight was delayed yesterday - a delayed flight crew stuck on a previous ABZ flight and the departure time wasn't updated on the monitors. So despite arriving at T-21 minutes as usual (so 19:19 hrs) they hadn't started any boarding! Most annoying, I try to arrive when boarding is more or less over. However Group Boarding was in place so I had the unusual experience of being the first to board. There were two gate agents and while one agent made the announcement about group 1 boarding, the other agent switched on the biometric gates and then came to the front of Group 1 to check boarding passes. Now the strange thing was that there only three of us boarding in Group 1, and I knew the other two passengers as regular NCL commuters and therefore Gold. But there were 6 of us in Club Europe so there should have been about 8 of us in Group 1. From what I can see there was no gate hovering and boarding was completed in under 10 minutes anyway.
Jan 24, 2018, 6:45 am
#188
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: London Stratford, E7
Programs: BAEC Gold! Thanks to FT
Posts: 3,385
Friday boarding BA1442 to Edinburgh. Boarding popped up at 0810 for 0850 departure so left GF at 8.15 for stroll to A6. Arrived at 8.23 to see flight closing with nobodl6 in group 1 line and about 20 people in group 4-5 line using all 3 automatic gates. I went straight to group 1 lane and agent at head of group 3 held one person back so I could use next free machine, Boarding completed 8.33.
Seems a whole lot more organised though with the time on BP is boarding time and I wonder if they are trying to encourage people to get to gate earlier. If consistently applied should be a great improvement.
Email address on various pillars inviting people to feedback on new boarding proces. Can’t see that mentioned here and can’t remember what it was.
Seems a whole lot more organised though with the time on BP is boarding time and I wonder if they are trying to encourage people to get to gate earlier. If consistently applied should be a great improvement.
Email address on various pillars inviting people to feedback on new boarding proces. Can’t see that mentioned here and can’t remember what it was.
Jan 24, 2018, 7:14 am
#189
Join Date: May 2017
Location: Glasgow and Asia
Programs: BAEC Gold, Hotels.com Gold
Posts: 510
Last week GLA-LHR group boarding. Working perfectly. PVG-LHR and LHR-PVG working perfectly. Although I'm Gp1 I saw how everyone was being orderly.
Monday. GLA-LGW. Orderly and working well.
LGW-GLA. This is a call for Club and Gold members. I stand up form seat and make way to the throng at the entrance.... i'd only taken 2 steps and about 2 seconds pause, "and silver and bronze". Cue the inevitable scrum fmorpeople that had formed the normal "radial queue". Bit of a bun fight.
Ended up with the lady who should have been on 2D having to sit in 4D on the flight because everyone was getting on the plane and she couldn't get back to her seat.
Then by the time they got to row4 they had run out of Chicken salad, but that is another thread.
Monday. GLA-LGW. Orderly and working well.
LGW-GLA. This is a call for Club and Gold members. I stand up form seat and make way to the throng at the entrance.... i'd only taken 2 steps and about 2 seconds pause, "and silver and bronze". Cue the inevitable scrum fmorpeople that had formed the normal "radial queue". Bit of a bun fight.
Ended up with the lady who should have been on 2D having to sit in 4D on the flight because everyone was getting on the plane and she couldn't get back to her seat.
Then by the time they got to row4 they had run out of Chicken salad, but that is another thread.
Jan 24, 2018, 7:24 am
#190
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Newcastle
Programs: BA GGL/CCR
Posts: 26
My LHR-NCL 19:40 hrs flight was delayed yesterday - a delayed flight crew stuck on a previous ABZ flight and the departure time wasn't updated on the monitors. So despite arriving at T-21 minutes as usual (so 19:19 hrs) they hadn't started any boarding! Most annoying, I try to arrive when boarding is more or less over. However Group Boarding was in place so I had the unusual experience of being the first to board. There were two gate agents and while one agent made the announcement about group 1 boarding, the other agent switched on the biometric gates and then came to the front of Group 1 to check boarding passes. Now the strange thing was that there only three of us boarding in Group 1, and I knew the other two passengers as regular NCL commuters and therefore Gold. But there were 6 of us in Club Europe so there should have been about 8 of us in Group 1. From what I can see there was no gate hovering and boarding was completed in under 10 minutes anyway.
Like you I was surprised at how few there were in Group 1, given the unforeseen late boarding. Indeed, absolutely nobody gate hovering at all.
Jan 24, 2018, 10:35 am
#191
Join Date: Jul 2017
Programs: Mucci Chevalier des Internautes Amables; BAEC
Posts: 971
Just experienced this in AMS for the first time. The call to the lounge came in good time to reach D24 before boarding had actually started (although the screen suggested it already had).
The boarding lanes were split into Priority 1 2 3 and Economy 4 5. The call for Group 1 came out, and maybe 3-4 people sided out of the Priority queue and made their way forward. The gate agent was checking, and stopped one couple where the person who, he asserted, was on the same booking but a different group. The gate agent was being pretty strict...I don't know what happened thereafter as I quietly excused my self past whilst they searched for their booking reference, and was the first person on the plane (well, in Y!) which was rare. By the looks of it, late arrivals (normally me!) will still be able to identify the priority lane in any case.
Worked for me...and a huge improvement over the boarding experience at T3 5a yesterday.
The boarding lanes were split into Priority 1 2 3 and Economy 4 5. The call for Group 1 came out, and maybe 3-4 people sided out of the Priority queue and made their way forward. The gate agent was checking, and stopped one couple where the person who, he asserted, was on the same booking but a different group. The gate agent was being pretty strict...I don't know what happened thereafter as I quietly excused my self past whilst they searched for their booking reference, and was the first person on the plane (well, in Y!) which was rare. By the looks of it, late arrivals (normally me!) will still be able to identify the priority lane in any case.
Worked for me...and a huge improvement over the boarding experience at T3 5a yesterday.
Last edited by TheJayHatch; Jan 24, 2018 at 1:21 pm
Jan 24, 2018, 11:22 am
#192
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Hong Kong
Programs: BA Gold, DL PM, , Hilton Diamond (from being in a bed), SPG Plat, MR Plat
Posts: 922
Really well done this morning at EDI from gate 9. Only two of us in group 1 initially. Boarding was very efficient. The tense barriers set up now at Gate 11 look like something from an immigration line or something though. Must be taking it seriously.
Jan 24, 2018, 11:30 am
#193
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Surrey UK
Programs: BA GGL/CCR, Avis Presidents Club, Majestic Platinum*
Posts: 136
LHR to GOT on 21/1 from A8
Left CCR with a shopping mission to complete which I couldn’t so arrived at gate before boarding underway. Group lanes very clear and no one hovering by group 1 so sat down at the gate ( novel experience) and boarding commenced 5 min later and seemed all rather orderly - no rush and whilst load was light esp in J we were ready to go and pushed back 5min early and arrived 15 min early . Let’s see how GOT works on Friday
Left CCR with a shopping mission to complete which I couldn’t so arrived at gate before boarding underway. Group lanes very clear and no one hovering by group 1 so sat down at the gate ( novel experience) and boarding commenced 5 min later and seemed all rather orderly - no rush and whilst load was light esp in J we were ready to go and pushed back 5min early and arrived 15 min early . Let’s see how GOT works on Friday
Jan 24, 2018, 12:35 pm
#194
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: SW London
Programs: BAEC Silver; Hilton Diamond;a miscellany of other hotel non-statuses
Posts: 3,607
I arrived at LHR gate this morning as rather full G2&3 was invited forwards, and headed down the now empty G1 lane as per BP. Auto gates all had a red cross on them, and I stood waiting to be called to desk. However, that didn't happen and G2&3 got a few more through before I DYKWIAed it and stepped forwards 
. Minor glitch, and it would be nice if they'd been scanning both queues better.
. Minor glitch, and it would be nice if they'd been scanning both queues better.
Jan 24, 2018, 8:04 pm
#195
Join Date: Sep 2013
Posts: 525
Interesting, I did LHR>YVR last week and thought they managed it better than in the past - they had a priority boarding area penned off and checked boarding passes letting people into it so no funnelling, lots of people turned away though. I'm not sure who they were admitting to that area but it was relatively civilised when they called First & Gold...