DL ad: Moo! Tired of the cattle call..
Sep 5, 2011, 5:41 pm
#61
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: ORD, MDW or MKE
Programs: American and Southwest. Hilton and Marriott hotels primarily.
Posts: 6,459
Sep 5, 2011, 7:52 pm
#64
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Blue Ridge, GA
Posts: 5,509
I board first (or close enough to it) on UA, CO, US, AA, and WN. The WN process is cleaner and more civilized because there are no gate lice to fight through. We're already queued *before* the process starts. On UA, we cram in a mob right up to the red carpet and then whomever squeezes out of that mob enters a queue of 2-3 people on the carpet.
Of course, this is all my perception: a better proxy for "civilized boarding process" would probably average time to turn around an airplane.
Of course, this is all my perception: a better proxy for "civilized boarding process" would probably average time to turn around an airplane.
Lufthansa boards international widebody's at -15 to scheduled departure and closes the door right on time. Both Atlanta and Frankfurt.
Sep 5, 2011, 10:16 pm
#65
Join Date: May 2006
Location: TUS/PDX
Programs: WN CP/A-List, AS MVPG75K
Posts: 5,798
Some were there a good 20-25 minutes.I'm always in zone 1 on DL so I don't usually hang around to see what everyone is doing after boarding starts, but pushing through that line isn't the most enjoyable thing in the world.
ETA: By the way, anyone who wants a good laugh, be sure to check out this thread from the DL page. It's currently 695 posts long.
Last edited by tusphotog; Sep 5, 2011 at 10:27 pm
Sep 6, 2011, 8:05 am
#66
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: MCI
Programs: AA Gold 1MM, AS MVP, UA Silver, WN A-List, Marriott LT Titanium, HH Diamond
Posts: 52,565
Read the UA and US boards in particular. Discussing mob queues is its own subgenre on both boards.
Good for them. I wish UA and AA would figure out what they're doing and copy it. (I also like it how LH loads F pax *last* at FRA and perhaps other places where they have an F lounge. I've only flown them once in F out of FRA and I was the last person to board a 744. ^)
Lufthansa boards international widebody's at -15 to scheduled departure and closes the door right on time. Both Atlanta and Frankfurt.
Sep 6, 2011, 8:54 am
#67
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Blue Ridge, GA
Posts: 5,509
Thai Airways also boards F last - even without a lounge. Same result. Fifteen minutes total.
Hope we can download video here!!
Sep 6, 2011, 9:27 am
#68
Join Date: Apr 2001
Posts: 775
The irony is that if you value, um, "class and dignity" (and consider a good F experience on a commercial airliner to be a proxy for that) you pretty much have to fly the *other* alliance partners of the U.S. legacies since none of the U.S. legacies operates a truly world-class premium product.
And when you are just comparing short-haul narrowbodies in the U.S., it's actually WN that has the more civilized, higher frills, and usually higher cost experience.
I board first (or close enough to it) on UA, CO, US, AA, and WN. The WN process is cleaner and more civilized because there are no gate lice to fight through. We're already queued *before* the process starts. On UA, we cram in a mob right up to the red carpet and then whomever squeezes out of that mob enters a queue of 2-3 people on the carpet.
Of course, this is all my perception: a better proxy for "civilized boarding process" would probably average time to turn around an airplane.
And when you are just comparing short-haul narrowbodies in the U.S., it's actually WN that has the more civilized, higher frills, and usually higher cost experience.
I board first (or close enough to it) on UA, CO, US, AA, and WN. The WN process is cleaner and more civilized because there are no gate lice to fight through. We're already queued *before* the process starts. On UA, we cram in a mob right up to the red carpet and then whomever squeezes out of that mob enters a queue of 2-3 people on the carpet.
Of course, this is all my perception: a better proxy for "civilized boarding process" would probably average time to turn around an airplane.
Sep 6, 2011, 10:18 am
#69
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Blue Ridge, GA
Posts: 5,509
On UA, I've seen people break out into fistfights over who cut in line for boarding. That doesn't happen in WN, where with the current system there is a clear boarding order number printed on every boarding pass. The idea that UA's boarding process is the more civilized one is silly, in my opinion.
They re-instated zone boarding June 8.
Beginning Jun. 8, United will return to boarding by zones. Among other things, this should directly improve the experience for the folks who purchase Economy Plus by ensuring they aren’t in the last boarding group. In addition, we’ve found a way for our combined airline to support zone boarding, and expect to introduce zone boarding to Continental in the coming year.
Also on Jun. 8, we’ll be adjusting our announcements to be simpler, shorter, and create better separation throughout the Elite boarding process. While all premier customers will continue to use the carpeted lane, we intend to manage this better through these new announcements. Uniformed Military and Global Services members will be invited to board as part of the preliminary announcement. Then we will board First Class along with 1K and Platinum members, followed by Business Class (on three-cabin aircraft), followed by Premier Executive and Gold members, followed by Premier and Silver members.
Scott O’Leary
Managing Director, Customer Solutions
United Airlines
Sep 6, 2011, 11:01 am
#70
Join Date: Feb 2008
Programs: SWA RR, CO One Pass, TAM Fidelidade, HA Miles, DL Skymiles, KLM Flying Blue
Posts: 1,165
I flew UA out of Hong Kong back to SFO earlier this year. They had us lined up in "zone" numbers. They lined us up just like the old days where SWA had 3 different queu, 1-30,31-60,61-90. Just like cattles.
Sep 6, 2011, 11:33 am
#71
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: MCI
Programs: AA Gold 1MM, AS MVP, UA Silver, WN A-List, Marriott LT Titanium, HH Diamond
Posts: 52,565
To conclude the thought: if it was feasible for United to have a 30-yard-long set of poles with numbers on them, with all 250 passengers holding BP's with unique numbers on them, I would love it.
No matter where you stood in the queue - Global Services down to basic Premier/Silver - it would delouse the entire boarding process.
No matter where you stood in the queue - Global Services down to basic Premier/Silver - it would delouse the entire boarding process.
Sep 6, 2011, 11:53 am
#72
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Nashville, TN
Programs: WN Nothing and spending the half million points from too many flights, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 8,043
Sep 6, 2011, 12:05 pm
#73
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: ATL
Programs: Marriott Platinum, Delta Kryptonium Medallion, National Executive
Posts: 1,889
Sep 6, 2011, 12:21 pm
#74
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Blue Ridge, GA
Posts: 5,509
I feel more secure when the foreign authorities know where a "person of interest" is sitting. I tend to believe variables in itinerary alerts, baggage screening and walk-up tickets on U.S.-bound flights actually exist.
Sep 6, 2011, 1:02 pm
#75
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Nashville, TN
Programs: WN Nothing and spending the half million points from too many flights, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 8,043
I wonder if any of those udderly orderly passengers can claim themselves as their own CP. 