And sometimes the GA boards zones 1 and 2 together, which is sort of annoying in a place like ATL where half of the passengers on any given narrow body aircraft are liable to be Medallions.

They really need to clean up the zone-deflation. Soon everybody will board in "zone 1" but you will have premium/super premium/secret double premium board earlier.

Right now:

Old/slow/kids: zone -1
Premium: zone 0
Not so premium elites: zone 1
Ghetto elites (silver): zone 2
The masses: zone 3-99 by rows

And did I mention they need to put the scanner between regular and premium boarding lanes? Otherwise the gate agent has a hard time getting to the premium line.

I like it! I may have to change my screen name...^

Haha, yup, that's the way it is on UA. Boarding group 1 is actually the 3rd group to board on domestic, 4th on int'l. It's not even the first group to board over the "regular" (i.e. non-red) carpet.

UA int'l boarding order:
-F, GS, 1K via red carpet
-C via red carpet (sometimes, depending on GA/flight, 1Ks board here)
-1P & *G via normal lane
-Boarding group 1 (2P, 3P, *S) via normal lane
-Boarding group 2 (windows)
-Boarding group 3 (middles)
-Boarding group 4 (aisles)

UA domestic is basically the same, but with F/C/GS/1K all lumped together in a single group. And on rare occasion, even as a 1K in F, I've been told to wait for GS pax to board first (even though this order is contrary to policy).

Sounds like DL is trending the same way...

Why is this such a big deal anyway, unless everyone on the flight is premium you will get on board and have enough room for a carry-on.

"Slow".... that's the one that gets me. Sometimes the GA will call for pax traveling with small children and "anyone else who needs a little extra time." It's amazing how many perfectly normal, ambulatory people jump up to get in line when they do that, They seem to get "want" mixed up with "need."

Actually, you raise an interesting point.

Being a relatively new GM on DL, I have an associated question: with SkyPriority boarding, are we allowed to "cut the line" once non-Elite boarding has started? I've used this benefit with the red carpet on UA multiple times, on tight connections, etc, when otherwise I would NOT have gotten on the plane in time to have enough room for my carry-on.

Well if it makes you feel any better, my flight home last week had the GA in ATL board FC, then announce general boarding, completely skipping the whole zone concept.

There were quite a few upset Medallions, but she didn't notice or care since she was neither looking nor speaking to anyone as she scanned BPs.

I had the same thing happen PDX to ATL last Saturday. GA announced PREM and then everyone else. Full flight too. Glad I was in FC.

Sky Priority passengers may use the designated SP lane at any time during the boarding process (after first/business class has boarded). Therefore, yes, SP passengers are allowed to "cut" the general boarding line.

It is a factor when putting out $3K for a BE ticket and having to start with an RJ (with FC) and therefore limited bin space. After this investment, I want to keep critical gear with me on that first leg and not worry about abuse, delay at the connecting hub or worst yet as told on FT that the gate checked rollerboard would be lost. It is not an appealing option to try and repack my gear since I have purchased luggage that relies on this model.

On the other hand, the situation is quite different for me on domestic runs (sLUT fares) where luggage is changed to deal with those realities.

I think technically, the answer is yes as long as there is a SP lane. Sometimes I hang out in the SC a bit too long and when I get to the gate, general boarding is in process. When that happens, I just blame myself and get in line with everyone else. YMMV.

Ditto about the inconsistency of boarding depending on the GA. Likewise sometimes the GA boards Zone 2 together with general non-elite boarding, which annoys me. Really, securing OH space is the ONE guaranteed benefit for Silvers vs non-medallions I realistically rely on. Who cares if I secured a "preferred" seat if I can't count on the OH space?

[QUOTE=cmn.jcs;14613143]Yes it does:

"...Silver Medallion members and SkyTeam Elite customers can begin boarding in Zone 2 using the Sky Priority boarding lane when traveling in Economy Class."
QUOTE]

I honestly don't think DL had made the above clear to its GAs, and the fact that Zone 2 ticketed passengers do not have "Sky Priority" on their BP's doesn't help. When elites "cut the line" in the SP lane after their Zone has been called, GAs automatically look for the "SP" on the BP. I highly doubt some internal mental switch is triggered after Zone 2, where GA's consciously start looking for both "SP" AND Silver Elite or SkyTeam Elite on the BP's. GAs simply equate anything related to SP, including the lane at all times during boarding, to Gold and up.

I've had the personal experience of trying to use the SP lane after Zone 2 was called and conspicuously being told that I needed to be SP and then grudgingly being let through as if I were receiving a favor. So, at least in practice, IME another thing Silvers have lost is the ability to "cut the line" if they arrive late.