I could have made that connection!
 

There is probably nothing I can do about this whatsover so this is probably just a moan, but I feel like LH could have done much better here. I booked to fly MAN-FRA-HAJ today and while the first leg landed on time there was another plane late leaving our gate so we were parked for around 20 minutes. I phoned LH-UK from the plane and they said there was no reason why I shouldn't make it. I asked to be connected to the gate but they said they couldn't do that. We docked at a B gate and my connection was A04, but I was hand luggage only so I went as fast as I could. I felt my phone buzz on the way but ignored it. When I got to the gate the boarding signage was off the electronic screens, i.e. boarding finished. The staff knew who I was ("Are you the passenger from Manchester?") but they said that the gate was closed, nothing they could do and the plane was at a remote boarding site and they couldn't get me there. I phoned a colleague who had connected from BHX-FRA-HAJ on the same connection. He said the bus hadn't even opened its doors yet. I told the gate staff this and asked them to book transport to the plane, but they refused. It turns out that my phone buzzing was LH having already booked me onto the next FRA-HAJ flight.

So this bothers me for a few reasons.

1. Other pax on MAN-FRA were met by a transfer service. Why did they not extend that to me?
2. Why not transfer me from the gate to the plane? I'm not asking for an S-Class limo service - anything would do.
3. They knew I was in the terminal and on my way, so why not be prepared?
4. Why didn't they issue my new ticket before I left the plane or the B gates? I wouldn't have had to run through FRA (I've just had surgery...).

I realise that the cost to them for bouncing me to the next flights is precisely zero (other than what I am about to eat and drink in the SEN lounge) so why bother going above and beyond for me, right? The kicker is that the alternative flight is due into HAJ 2 hours and 40 minutes after my original flight, so I can't even claim EU261 :D

Hard to tell. Perhaps you were the only one on FRA-HAJ while there were 15 people for MAN-FRA-FCO (or any other Schengen flight). Perhaps the other passengers were connecting non-Schengen to non-Schengen and were directly bussed to the departure gate/stairs. Perhaps there was no later connection for those and not picking them up by bus would haved meant paying for overnight (hotel and meals). They didn't have another bus left, the number of busses on the tarmac is strictly limited. Could be a lot of reasons.

But it is not that unusual they do not pick up a single pax for a non-Schengen to Schengen connection if there is a later flight to the destination is available. Dispatching that bus and perhaps holding the connecting flight is probably much more expensive then just rebook that pax on the later flight and pay out EC261 compensation (or as in your case, not even that). Makes sense for LH.

As said before, you have to clear passport control. And as also explained, probably cost prohibitive or didn't work out to traffic limitations.

Prepared for what? Hold the bus from the gate to the plane? Sure, that would be the only thing they could have done. But might be that the bus had to leave due to the traffic limitations and not screw up everybody's schedule. Or that they couldn't hold the flight as in turn it might have missed its departure slot. FRA is a very complex system, disturbing that for one pax (again, where alter connection was avaiable) makes no sense.

Because they waited for you to arrive. What would you have said if you arrived at the gate in time but they already booked you to the next one denying boarding? They rebooked you, when the gate closed and it was obvious you missed your connection. That is quite reasonable as well, is it not?

Ah, so you arrive less than 3 hours later. Not the end of the world, to be honest... nothing to see here. These are things which happen in air travel every day to hundreds of people. Just live with it and move on.

I guess my most frustrating experience ever, was to bussed from a remote stand to the terminal, passing by the plane parked two stands to the left.... and then miss the buss to that said plane. I could have easily just walked over but instead had to wait for 6 hours in FRA. :/

Ah, too bad :D

That's FRA for you.

My worst experience was arriving from ZRH and connecting to EDI. We arrived one and a half hour late in FRA and I had to run over to B to a Bus gate where I was told the gate closed 10 minutes ago.
Now the most insulting thing was that the plane to EDI was literally the one parked next to me when I arrived! I MEAN COME ON! But they didn't use the Z Gates but had a gate in B and drove the pax to the plane by bus... Great system. So instead of walking literally to the plane next to me (and making it) I had to run several kilometers (At least it feet that way) and missed the flight anyway. (Keep in mind that after I arrived at the B gate it still took 20 minutes until the plane to EDI pushed back as per FR24). The next flight to EDI was six hours later and at least I got 250.- Euro in compensation and a 30.- Euro meal voucher. But still, it's so frustrating.

Last week I missed a connection at FRA due to delayed flight and saw my missed flight being pushed back from the stand and wasn't happy that the captain wouldn't stop taxing and open the door to let me out and run across the apron to board my connection!

That has happened to me many times. As you say it is especially infuriating if they offer direct bus transfer to other connections, but let you run a sprint only to inform you that the flight is closed (with the bus still at the gate!).

Frankfurt is horrible, also because UK flights usually arrive in B and require not only passport but also security control if connecting to Schengen. I always assume misconnect if less than 2h connection time. Flights from LHR are often late. In that case budget for a possible overnight stay and € 250 261/2004 comp.

If punctuality is critical pay extra for a MUC or ZRH connection, depends on your utility function

MUC, ZRH, VIE, WAW, CPH are all very nice airports for connections. But to be honest, with the new (not that new anymore) satellite terminal in MUC, I get more and more frustrated with MUC. Too many times I had to run to get my connection because I had to get from G/H to K/L with like 10 minutes time before doors closed or vice versa. And often enough, rushing down the stairs to the train I just saw the train doors closing and had to wait another 4 minutes out of the few I had left.

The hard part is, you never know if you will need a G to K/L transfer or not. If your flight arrives in K/L and leaves K/L, all good. Same for G/G connections but like I had last time, arriving H via bus from remote stand, leaving K via bus to a remote stand... that is stressful.

So, for me MUC has lost first place to ZRH and CPH, second to WAW and VIE and is now on 3rd place close to FRA on 4th. I find FRA not too frustrating, for me it works out most of the time just fine. Even with reasonable short connections.

My usual Sarajevo flights normally arrive at I or M (which means having to go through security again) and I've never been stressed whilst connecting to virtually any gate (being an avid runner, though, my walking tends to be pretty brisk ;)). As I reported the other day, we recently arrived at the far end of I with a substantial delay and was still able to get a drink & a pretzel at the lounge when my next flight was already boarding. Warsaw is great but LOT's [poor] reliability in terms of on-time performance is widely known to more-or-less everyone here so even an hour could suddenly become a fairly risky 'affair' (and chances of getting a remote stand are always very high indeed). By all means, MUC above all for me, CPH & VIE following straight after.

G