Ben and Jerry

Why do you need to keep this group together at all times? It's a jetway and it only leads to the plane, nowhere else (unless your travellers are particularly adventurous and try to get onto the tarmac). On the plane they have their assigned seats, and I think they can count till 4?

this applies to all this preboard shenanigans: whoever is eligible, gets to go. 1, maybe 2 additional persons (one to guide, the other to carry luggage).
Everyone else in the party can wait for their boarding zones. Being separated for a couple of minutes won't kill you, and your seat next to them will be right there when you get on the plane.

N615HL

Just last Monday, ATL-SEA 105 people on the upgrade list for 5 seats...you really think all the diamonds were upgraded??? No it was a mad rush of 75+ when PREM was called which in turn made a the paying (and upgraded) PAX have to fight a crowd and wait in the jet way to get on board. Theirs more than overhead bin space, for instance, I theorize the rapidly fading PDB is a result of the boarding disaster.

Last night SEA-ATL: I counted at least 18 people boarding with the "Children and Elderly" including a couple 30 somethings who didn't appear to be with anyone else or have have any problem walking or carrying the book bags on there back. No clue to what "disability" they had, other than wanting overhead bin space.

Yellowjj

I really don't understand the fascination with this but since you would like to know.

5 Disabled/ 3 Healthy

1) The main person is my 92 year old grandmother who suffers from mild Alzheimer's. She appears completely healthy and in her late 60's. However she is in the stage of her life where she is a wanderer, so yes. If you take your eyes off her for a few seconds she is liable to exit on the jetway stairs and walk onto the ramp. I physically have to be either in the back of her or holding her hand because her mind alters in a snap and she becomes unruly. She is also a touchy, feeling person now with children. Sounds nice, but then you never know how people may react to a total stranger pinching their child cheeks or patting them on the head. She also refuses to use a wheelchair because as she told the gate agent "Wheelchairs are for old people" lol . I had to apologize and explain her mind goes back decades sometimes.

2) The other 4 have various problems, (lung condition, partial paralysis, metal rod and plate due to accident and hearing and sight problems). None can lift anything. All 60+ in years.

As such the 3 healthy persons do the carrying of any luggage including lifting. We would qualify for pre-boarding no problem and actually are asked if we want to when they call me up to check on the POC documentation, but only one person seems disabled with a walking device. I have personally seen people give dirty looks as everybody else appears healthy and looks 20 years younger than their actual age when we did it once, so I just decided to not bother. If I was on the other side of the spectrum, I probably would feel the same way if I see 8 persons and only 1 has a cane. It is what it is.

So to answer you, no one is gaming the system. It's just my choice. Everyone qualifies and we are asked if we would like to pre-board and/or need wheelchairs

airplanegod

I think part of the reason it's so chaotic (not just with Delta but also with UA, AS, AA/US, and coming soon to B6) is because people are scrambling to get overhead bin space. That's probably why I see "gate lice" whenever I board a legacy airline flight. B6 doesn't do it so much better, they board by rows, but it becomes a free for all, pushing, shoving, and arguing included.

IMO I know i'm going to get shot down for this but the best airline in the US with boarding is WN. I know not everyone likes the idea of no assigned seats, but everyone stands with the podium and follows a single file line into the plane. There is no pushing, shoving, trying to get past 50 different people crowding the gate, and there isn't 50 different groups/zones. It all works out.

Ben and Jerry

You have a clear cut case to use pre boarding, with those numbers. Thanks for clarifying. If i would see your group with all 60+ people I would not think twice of it.

But if you can preboard, i strongly suggest you actually do, for precisely the reason you mentioned what happened during PREM boarding: you are part of the rush. You chose this option yourself, so you need to live with it. (I do not condone people overrunning other people in the jetway though). To choose the option that comes with that risk and then complain you don't like is inappropriate.

My comment on preboard shenanigans was meant in general about the boarding process: we all know the cases of the families of 10 with 1 baby in a carseat (or often not even that).

N615HL

The only thing I like about WN is if your in group C and you try to board during group A they are going to turn you around and send you back. They really do have 50 different groups: You will be assigned a boarding group (A, B, or C) and position (1-60+) upon check in. Your unique group and position combination (for example: A35) will be displayed on your boarding pass and represents a reserved spot in the boarding group at the gate

I personally wouldn't mind seeing Delta use a similar system, only with assigned seats. For example:

A1-30 = First/Business Class
A31-60 = Diamond
B1-30 = Platinum
B31-60 = Gold
C1-30 = Silver & C+
C31-60 = AMEX
D1-30 = Zone 1
D31-60 = Zone 2'

the only issue is DL would have to be like WN and actually enforce it, so when kettle #1 sitting in 43B and assigned to boarding number D18 comes to the scanner during the B group, the gate agent must turn them around, and that seems to be impossible at DL -at least on a consistent basis

Or Mom, Dad, and 7YOD, 8YOS, 10 YOD, 12YOS, 14YOS, & 6 carry on bags.

Crazyhotelguy

My boarding peeves....

Agents who just say "boarding zone..." Without a destination or flight number. This has caused a mad rush in airports with gates in close proximity like MCO, LGA, LAX.

Pre Board abusers.

Children / family abusers. It should be car seat only.

GA who lets 3 pieces of carry on by.

GA that does not close the general boarding lane before calling PREM.

GA who just lets anyone board without regard to zone enforcement.

GA who does not stop a huge garment bag from boarding...

I am sure that I will think of a few more...

miraclebear2003

I think I have to agree with all of these. As a fellow MCO traveler, children can certainly be a "problem".

A week ago Thursday flying up to LGA we were standing in the sky line behind a guy who had 3 items (he was first in line). He paid no attention to the GA announcement about 1 personal item along with your carryon. I was pleasantly surprised when she would not let him board without combining 2 of his items. We boarded as he stood there fuming.

I see you refer to closing the general boarding lane. Returning to MCO on Thursday, we were first in the sky lane since we were in the bulkhead. The problem was that the GA decided to board the wheelchairs, strollers and those needing extra time through the sky lane. The boarding area was pretty crowded since our flight was late already and this made it difficult for some of these people to get through. I have never seen this before.

MSPeconomist

Maybe the 30-something couple were thinking about getting pregnant.

filmdave

My two cents on the boarding zone names is that the real confusion comes from combining names that don't mean anything and numbers that are misleading.

Groups could be:

Special Assistance Boarding
Diamond - includes F, J, D1
Platinum
Gold - on smaller flights, gold gets platinum zone
Silver - includes EC+ and Amex
Zone 5
Zone 6

Amex would get to market preferred Silver boarding zone, and Delta would preserve aspirational Gold and higher benefits to those new Silver members. Going to all numbers would be a problem for the Amex marketing, but Silver still sounds pretty good if you're a vacation flyer with no status.

The Zone 1 on the boarding pass is so misleading and, in my opinion, one of the biggest causes of gate lice. ("I'm zone 1, I must be boarding any minute now").

And, of course, you still need the GAs to announce zones clearly and enforce them firmly.

sethb

It's faster to mix the Diamond Y pax with the F pax, because the former just walk through F so more people can be stowing luggage simultaneously.

Besides, the numbers can't be known until the last second, and people can print their boarding passes a day early.

N615HL

They were both males, so regardless of "Love Taking Flight" I don't think either of them were getting pregnant anytime soon.


100% your average vacation flyer see's zone 1 and they think they are in the first group to board.

rucksack

I never said I thought all of the diamonds were upgraded. Rather, I was making two points:
1. Routes with lots of business travelers tend to clear more upgrades (since corporate policies typically prohibit purchasing first), and therefore the proportion of "paying" first class customers is lower.
2. Diamonds that don't get upgraded aren't much of a bother to the paying first class customers because they don't take up the overhead space in first and don't significantly slow down the boarding process.

Separately, I've had a PDB whenever I've been in first lately.

sethb

Not necessarily. If they FCM heavily, sometimes people will pay out of pocket, other times F costs less than Y and some corporate policies aren't stupid.

flyerUSA

on long trips, when i've checked my bag - the best time to board the plane is dead last when the gate is about to close. i will get there as they are making an announcement for my name. almost like i require a special invitation. by that time, everyone is on board, mostly seated, not being annoying, i get to sit right down and skip all of the stupid fussing and commotion and made-up special needs and bin fighting and all of it.

and to delta's credit, i really have noticed a major improvement in baggage claim lag time. often my bag is there by the time i get out of the airport, or i'm waiting maybe 5-10 minutes max.

this leads me to think....just check my carry-on. and board dead last all of the time.

checking bags is the new carry on. try it!