jasonvr

Just got my first taste of the "new and improved" Group 2 this week at SNA and DEN.... No sir, I don't like it. First time in who knows how long that I had to fight to find a space for my bag near to where I was sitting. So many people were huddled around the gate that when Group 2 was called it looked like half the plane boarded. How exactly is someone who has a credit card for a few hundred a year just as "important" as fliers who actually fly 50k (or heck, 25k) a year??? Status should mean something, and it should certainly mean more than having a credit card

Boghopper

I think they've made it abundantly clear how much much they value the "elites" (or parasites, or deadbeats, or overentitled babies, or whatever other terms they use at world HQ to describe the souls who don't buy F, J or Y/B fares). I guess they would rather have our $95 than our loyalty. I'm still puzzled by it, but can't mistake their actions.

DeaconFlyer

Just use your phone and start boarding with Group 1. Instant bump of "importance".

limey1K

So Group 1 has now become FC, 1K, Plat and anyone with a mobile BP?

I flew ORD-DEN 5pm on Thu and BG1 was approximately 40 people on a 752. That's almost a quarter of the plane. BG2 looked even worse. My guess is 60% boarded in these two groups.

dorisrpas

This boarding mess is just plain dumb. UA goes from one extreme to the other. They just don't get it. Should start with GA enforcing the carry-on limits and sizes, and the boarding groups. Having X number of boarding groups isn't the problem, the handling of those boarding groups is.

How about this, go back to 8 boarding groups (or whatever # works) that segregate and prioritize the elites appropriately, then CC holders, then passengers without status. After all, those are only numbers on a piece of paper.

In the boarding area, instead of two aisles, go to three aisles. One aisle is reserved for BG 1 (or whatever) to use whenever they arrive, so pretty much empty after the initial boarding period.

The other two aisles allow queueing up of the next two boarding groups. Have BG2 queue up in "this" aisle, and BG3 queue up in "that" aisle. Have one agent patrolling the queues to ensure only those with correct BG are in line and bags are not oversized pulling folks out of line if their bag needs to be checked.

Boarding starts with preboards, then GS/Military, then BG1, then BG2.
Once BG2 is empty, GA invites BG4 to line up in "this" aisles, proceeds to board BG3. Once BG3 is empty, GA invites BG5 to line up in "that" aisles, and proceeds to board BG4. Etc.

I will admit, I have no idea of Southwests boarding process as I have never flown them. And I don't really know what the problem is, in terms of why it takes so long for these planes to load passengers and ready to go. So maybe my idea is cracked.

I just have to think, it boils down to creating some flow that reflects the reality of the boarding groups and the process, and then actually enforcing that flow.

Like I said, I might be cracked.

StingWest

No, your idea is generally fine. There are a couple reasons that it may be hard to implement though:

(a) UA generally doesn't staff the gate with enough personnel to have one available to simply walk around the police the queues.

(b) They seem unwilling to turn people back if they try to board early (and there is no where to put them!)

(c) The number of people who think they are "elites" because they bought priority boarding via a credit card is huge. Feeling entitled but not really familiar with the queuing process perhaps, they line right up.

(d) There is sort of a UA culture now to start lining up early at the gate. Once a person knows that their ability to store a carry-on overhead is dependent on getting in line "first", this becomes their paramount concern.

milesmuncher

This happened to me earlier this week. Got to the gate right at the scheduled boarding time to discover that boarding was already almost finished. Ended up being one of the last people on board, and had to check my bag despite sitting in F.

vandrei

Oh, they don't value the F/J/Y/B fares either.

Flew out of BWI yesterday. The Premier Access and Global Services counters were completely unstaffed. UA employees walked past the counters oblivious to the growing line of premium and Premier passengers.

In contrast, the Economy ("kettle") counters were fully staffed.

As a former "kettle," my experience with UA over the past year has been mixed. I've flown in E-, E+, and F over the past year. Sometime I get amazing service. Sometimes I get the ice cream sundae. Once I got a CPU. A few times I've gotten aisle E+ with an empty middle seat. One time I spent a night on the floor of DTW because UA screwed up a non-stop IAD-ORD, rebooked me in Y for IAD-DTW-ORD, and then had IRROPS at DTW.

The one thing that has really marked my past year with UA can be summed up in one word.

Inconsistency.

UA needs to consistently value its high revenue *and* high loyalty customers (note that I said customers, not passengers) who either pony up the big bucks to buy F/J/Y/B fares or who fly UA/*A over other carriers and other alliances. And I'm talking actions here, not just words.

That's not to say that UA shouldn't also value the credit card holding "kettles" in E-. But, treating them like they're elites when they're really not isn't going to win them over, and it certainly won't win over the actual high revenue and high loyalty customers.

After all, if UA wants to compete with WN by being like WN, UA will lose.

jackal

That's actually a really good idea. No need for 5 lanes (or whatever the new design has); all you need is three:

-BG1 (available to use at any time)
-Current boarding group
-Next boarding group

After the Blue Carpet lane is boarded, then boarding alternates between the two other lanes. BG2 loads while BG3 lines up; after BG2 is done, the GA starts loading from the BG3 line while BG4 starts lining up in the lane formerly used by BG2.

This would need to be supported with a GIDS mounted above the two alternating lanes with a clear demarcation of which lane is which and which is updated as each new group is called. (At outstations without the resources to install GIDS, a replaceable placard denoting the same can be instituted in a sign mounted on the stanchion; the time required for the GA to pause boarding to replace the placard would serve as a perfect default pause duration between boarding groups. )

Also, I'd love to see the GIDS screen have, for example, an arrow pointing to Boarding Group 2 in the left lane, Boarding Group 3 in the right lane, and then a note below that saying "Boarding Groups 4-5, please remain seated."

dorisrpas

Yeah, no doubt you are right about this.

Agree with this as the current reality. And something that needs to change or there is no hope of it ever getting better.

I recently was at ORD where the GA had command of her boarding area. She repeated how boarding would go, what carry-ons are allowed, and even went so far as to say something along the lines of "And we will begin with BG1. For those of you unfamiliar, that is the number in the middle of your boarding pass that looks like a straight line up and down, like a stick."

And I would hope, that as time went on with any new reasonable boarding process that valued elites, the elites would get with the program, set an example for the the non-elites.

Hit the nail on the head. I choose to fly UA as my primary airline for a number of reasons. I just want what UA has said they would provide me making that choice.

Actions, not words. Consistency.

dorisrpas

Now it's perfect!
If I do say so on our behalf

Live4Upgrade

Being that UA has people's credit card numbers on file, how about charging $200 fine for boarding with the wrong group? It could be automated process tied into the bar code reader.

HQ should be happy for extra revenue. Group 1 should be happy because it will discourage gate lice.

Baze

This would upset all those 1K, GS who expect a clear lane when they get there after their group is called

dorisrpas

Assuming GS/1K are BG1, they would have their own clear lane to board whenever they arrive in the boarding area, even after their group is called.

exbayern

Is there anyone left by the time BG5 is called? I passed several gates this week where the GA announced that boarding group 5 was invited to board. They were speaking to an empty gate area.

I did have to chuckle when a LCC was boarding next to one of my UA flights, and the GA called for preboarding of those with special needs. Nobody came forward. Then she called for boarding with families. Nobody came forward (even though there were several children in the gate area) Then she just said 'EVERYONE come on up!' and people queued up nicely and boarded.

Meanwhile, over at the UA gate next door....