Be at the gate AT LEAST 30 min before departure?
 

Just came back from a trip on KA, and found the above note on my boarding pass - AT LEAST printed in CAPS and all. I don't recall KA (or CX, for that matter) employing such a policy before - no more mention of "boarding ends 10 mins before departure" in small letters either. Not exactly an unfrequent traveler here, but these things always unsettle me when I'm sitting at the lounge. On both flights, boarding did not start until 10 minutes before departure, so I had to sit around the gate for 20+1 mins.

When did they change this, and does anyone know why? Did they have that much trouble with late PAX that would require them to change their policy?

I think they've been pretty consistent about the 30 minute message http://www.discuss.com.hk/viewthread.php?tid=9976491 . Except in reality they don't start 斬客 til 10 mins before departure, and recent CX HKG experience shows if I'm at gate 10 mins before departure I normally have to wait (I normally aim for at least 10 and preferably 20 - if I'm 20 mins these days I really have to wait)

I noticed this immediately when I was handed my boarding pass in HKG and would have sworn it was not there three weeks ago.....:confused:

Not on the boarding passes but elsewhere. Did they delete the departure time yet?

On 16AUG my BP printed "NO LATER than 20 minutes" (from TPE) but on 20AUG it printed "AT LEAST 30 minutes" (from HIJ).

You'll know they have deleted the departure time from boarding passes if there's news about a Gwailo breaking down in front of the check-in counter at HKG, sobbing, yelling, and screaming uncontrollably...

Hah, looks like that's when they changed it. @:-)

The PSB wants to make sure they have enough time to grab you before the flight.

No use. Those get to gate late will continue to get to gate late... Until they get offloaded once

I am sorry, but they certainly need to stop changing things as they like and start to be consistent.

The e-ticket that their booking engine sends clearly states:

BOARDING TIME – PASSENGERS ARE REMINDED TO ARRIVE AT THE BOARDING GATE AT
LEAST 20 MINUTES BEFORE DEPARTURE. PASSENGERS ARRIVING AFTER THIS TIME MAY
NOT BE ACCEPTED FOR TRAVEL AND NO RESPONSIBILITIES WILL BE ACCEPTED IN SUCH
CASES.

and that

11. NO AGENT, EMPLOYEE OR REPRESENTATIVE OF CARRIER HAS AUTHORITY TO
ALTER, MODIFY OR WAIVE ANY PROVISION OF THIS CONTRACT.

I don't remember the last time they started boarding 30 minutes before departure anyway.

It may simply be an idea by a consultant specialising in cost saving so that passengers spend less time in lounges and hence they can save a dollar or two on F&B.

Well in LHR don't they have 30 minutes conformance? That will override e-ticket.

It's both a cost saving initiative and a CYA initiative too. Hong Thai has been sending pax to airport 3 hours before departure for some time on similar motivations. Another unequal term (we don't get a refund if the flight is >3 hours late).

Agree, LHR is not an agent, employee or representative of the carrier and hence I guess they have the authority AUTHORITYto alter, modify or waive any provision of the contract (i.e. asking you to be at the gate 30 mins before departure). With LHR being 1 of the many outports served by KA/CX, I guess they are not supposed to use a blanket rule for all flights. So if another port decides passengers should be at the gate 45 minutes before departure, I don't think it will make sense for KA/CX to change all the BPs to show 45 minutes.

If one was on a holiday with Hong Thai, as long as Hong Thai has provided him/her with the transportation/accommodation/meals and have taken him/her to the tourist attractions stated in the brouchure (with reasonable deviations for traffic/weather/others), I guess he/she will not have much say when they arrive 3 hours at the airport before departure.

You can argue this is like a post-contract condition, like Thornton v Shoe Lane Parking (such conditions won't be effective for the first-time contract but will be for contracts thereafter)

I would imagine it will be construed as a stricter of term ie LHR 30 mins if they have it, 20 mins for other airports.

Hong Thai isn't a a contract term (since you don't decide the itinerary anyway), just an annoying practice. Something I get around by doing my own holidays.

I got caught out with this on a DOH flight when the Pier F front desk staff told me at 6.10pm that my flight was delayed for a while due to technical issues, yet at 6.30pm it was already closed and as a result I missed my flight. No compensation whatsoever despite the lack of an announcement and my reliance on their promise to do so.

I never pay attention to that statement... I'll (try my best to...) manage my own time to reach the gate right at the time when boarding starts

Lounge staff has never been so caring to me... :( Always just let me move to the gate and wait there....

But did they say the boarding is delayed or what? If boarding has started then there's no reason to keep staying in the lounge... Also if they know you're in the lounge gate may call the lounge to call you out as this should be faster than unloading your bag (if any)

p.s. BTW was the flight oversold? :p

Just came back from SIN last night, same message on the BP. On the screens in front of the gate however it said "boarding gate closes 10 minutes before scheduled departure". This seriously annoys me, who's the authority here?! :mad: