Jan 19, 2017, 11:05 pm
Last edit by: WineCountryUA
Source: United Boarding Process
We encourage you to make yourself comfortable while you wait for your group to be called, and we’ll let you know when we’re ready for you to board. Late arriving customers in Groups 1 and 2 are welcome to continue boarding through the blue lane at any time.
* Customers who have purchased a Basic Economy ticket will be in the last boarding group, except for Premier members, Chase Cardmembers of qualifying cards and Star Alliance Gold members, who will still receive their priority boarding.
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Pre Sept 2018 process
Pre-Boarding
General boarding (Window Seats, then Middle Seats, then Aisle)
Customers who have purchased a Basic Economy ticket will be in the last boarding group, with the exception of Premier members, Chase Cardmembers of qualifying cards and Star Alliance Gold members, who will still receive their priority boarding.
Note: If you’re traveling with a companion and one of you has a higher boarding status, you both may board with the earlier group.
Note: Self Boarding Gates are being tested at the following gates...
sUA Boarding Times by Aircraft (AFA)
Previous thread: United's Current Boarding Process (with Wiki) [Revised, May 2013]
New changes (effective 18 Sept 2018)
You will see some new boarding lane signs in the gate area that will guide you through the boarding process. There will now be two lanes that are color coded : to begin, Group 1 will board through the blue lane and Group 2 will board through the green lane. The remaining Groups 3-5 will then board through the green lane when called, and Groups 1 and 2 can continue to board through the blue lane .We encourage you to make yourself comfortable while you wait for your group to be called, and we’ll let you know when we’re ready for you to board. Late arriving customers in Groups 1 and 2 are welcome to continue boarding through the blue lane at any time.
Boarding groups
Pre-boarding
- Unaccompanied minors
- Customers with disabilities
- Active members of the military
- United Global Services® members
- Families traveling with children age 2 and younger
- Premier® 1K® members
Group 1
- Premier Platinum members
- Premier Gold members
- Star Alliance™ Gold members
- Customers seated in premium cabins: United Polaris®, United First® and United Business®
Group 2
- Premier Silver members
- Star Alliance Silver members
- Customers who have purchased Premier Access® or Priority Boarding
- United℠ Explorer, Club, Presidential Plus℠ and Awards Cardmembers
Groups 3 – 5
- Economy Plus®
- United Economy®
- Basic Economy*
* Customers who have purchased a Basic Economy ticket will be in the last boarding group, except for Premier members, Chase Cardmembers of qualifying cards and Star Alliance Gold members, who will still receive their priority boarding.
Pre Sept 2018 process
Pre-Boarding
- Unaccompanied minors
- Customers with disabilities
- Uniformed members of the U.S. military
- Families traveling with children age two and younger
- United Global Services® members
- Group 1: Premier 1K, Premier Platinum, Business/Polaris Business, and First/Polaris First.
- Group 2: Premier Gold, Star Gold, Premier Silver, Star Silver, MileagePlus Presidential Plus, Club, Explorer and Awards, purchased Premier Access
General boarding (Window Seats, then Middle Seats, then Aisle)
- Group 3 - Window Seats
- Group 4 - Middle & Aisle Seats (Aisle Seats on UA Express)
- Group 5 - Basic Economy
Customers who have purchased a Basic Economy ticket will be in the last boarding group, with the exception of Premier members, Chase Cardmembers of qualifying cards and Star Alliance Gold members, who will still receive their priority boarding.
Note: If you’re traveling with a companion and one of you has a higher boarding status, you both may board with the earlier group.
Note: Self Boarding Gates are being tested at the following gates...
- IAH - Gate C25/C26 - See Post 2960, Includes YouTube video from CO777DAL
- IAH - Gate E4 - Old test from pmCO days, See Thread Here
- BOS - Self boarding gates are now back in *LIMITED* use at least at gates B25 and B26
sUA Boarding Times by Aircraft (AFA)
Previous thread: United's Current Boarding Process (with Wiki) [Revised, May 2013]
United's Current Boarding Process (with Wiki) [2016-forward]{Archive}
Feb 11, 2018, 8:18 am
#796
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Houston/DC
Programs: UA 1K, 1MM
Posts: 564
While this may be true, I have found that I have been conditioned to not want to wait 10-20 minutes for the process of recovering my bags at the carousel. My time is too valuable to wait that long, when I could be that much closer to wherever I need to be. As a Plat I get 3 bags free, but would prefer not to check any if I can help it. I suspect there are more than enough FF that feel the same way and is a consideration in any BG process.
Feb 11, 2018, 8:32 am
#797
Join Date: Feb 2012
Programs: Hertz PC
Posts: 657
What drives me nuts is the fake disabled...
You get the convoy of wheel chairs and other disabled that "Magically" sprint off the plane at the destination. I say if you disabled and you pre board you have to be the last ones off the plane. I think that would stop a lot of the fraud.
You get the convoy of wheel chairs and other disabled that "Magically" sprint off the plane at the destination. I say if you disabled and you pre board you have to be the last ones off the plane. I think that would stop a lot of the fraud.
Feb 11, 2018, 9:25 am
#798
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Denver, Colorado
Programs: IHG Spire, Hilton Honors Gold, Marriott Titanium, Mileage Plus Gold
Posts: 1,736
What drives me nuts is the fake disabled...
You get the convoy of wheel chairs and other disabled that "Magically" sprint off the plane at the destination. I say if you disabled and you pre board you have to be the last ones off the plane. I think that would stop a lot of the fraud.
You get the convoy of wheel chairs and other disabled that "Magically" sprint off the plane at the destination. I say if you disabled and you pre board you have to be the last ones off the plane. I think that would stop a lot of the fraud.
Last edited by l etoile; Feb 11, 2018 at 11:04 am Reason: Rule 12
Feb 11, 2018, 1:43 pm
#799
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 622
I think you read the first part of my suggestion about F boarding last, and then didn’t read the rest—where I suggested a solution to the exact issue you raise.
Feb 11, 2018, 2:01 pm
#800
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 57,616
Put an FA in the last row of F during Y boarding, with the OH bins in F closed, and the FA can just tell everyone 'nope, can't put your bag there', and bin space for F passengers will be fine.
Feb 11, 2018, 3:28 pm
#801
Join Date: May 2011
Programs: UA GS, UA 2MM, HH LT Diamond, Bonvoy Titanium
Posts: 1,803
I watched four late boarding F passengers have to check bags last week because BG3 or 4 people stowed their bags in the F cabin with the FA watching them do so.
Last edited by limey1K; Feb 11, 2018 at 4:38 pm Reason: Clarity
Feb 11, 2018, 5:56 pm
#802
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Los Angeles, California
Programs: United, American, Delta, Hyatt, Hilton, Hertz, Marriott
Posts: 14,807
Premerger, I was on a CO flight. The guy who ultimately sat beside me watched a coach passenger take a spot in the FC cabin. He took that passenger’s bag out, put his in and then gate checked it. He put the receipt in the overhead locker. Gutsy. Not something I’d do.
Feb 11, 2018, 9:34 pm
#803
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,417
Premerger, I was on a CO flight. The guy who ultimately sat beside me watched a coach passenger take a spot in the FC cabin. He took that passenger’s bag out, put his in and then gate checked it. He put the receipt in the overhead locker. Gutsy. Not something I’d do.
Feb 11, 2018, 10:01 pm
#804
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: New England
Programs: American Gold, Marriott Gold, Hilton Silver
Posts: 5,644
Misplaced or not, it doesn't give Mr FC the right to handle or remove someone else's property.
Feb 12, 2018, 2:14 am
#805
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: PWM
Programs: AA Plat
Posts: 1,336
And for an excellent reason. Not only is that bag now presumably checked in Mr. FC's name -- meaning he'll be the first person approached if it contains anything it shouldn't -- but it's also going to show up in baggage claim at his destination, not the person's whose property it is.
But I agree it's not great form!
Feb 12, 2018, 8:12 pm
#806
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Denver, Colorado
Programs: IHG Spire, Hilton Honors Gold, Marriott Titanium, Mileage Plus Gold
Posts: 1,736
What everyone else since your reply said plus we already have a bunch of FA's who minimally do their job or don't do it. The only thing I trust 100% is boarding first before coach can poach the spaces.
Feb 13, 2018, 12:19 pm
#808
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: New England
Programs: UA 1K; Kimpton Inner Circle, Marriott Platinum; Hilton Diamond
Posts: 51
I'm at ORD and I see a new boarding process down by the B24 gate. The gate agent says it is a test. A sign shows two choices...Main and Bypass. It seems that UA will board each group as they call them up but no longer at some gates will you have Groups 1-5. They say it's to improve experience and getting people on the plane faster.
Feb 13, 2018, 1:15 pm
#809
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: RNO
Programs: AA/DL/UA
Posts: 10,778
Its NOT only the disabled that get wheel chaired to the gate. ANY non UM person who needs assistance, including the perfectly able bodied elderly who need help navigating to the gate or help navigating the terminal automatically gets put on a wheelchair. We asked for assistance for my 85+ year old grandmother who was traveling alone to be taken to her gate. They showed up with a wheelchair. She looked at the the wheelchair and told the guy I can walk. THEY insisted that she take the wheelchair. Saw this happening many times at the checkin desk when help is requested for a senior traveling alone. This wheelchair and pre-boarding was engineered by the Airlines who decided to pre-board ANYONE who needs even minor assistance, including the elderly who only need help finding their gate. [Overly personalized comment removed by moderator.]
Feb 13, 2018, 3:15 pm
#810
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: New England
Programs: American Gold, Marriott Gold, Hilton Silver
Posts: 5,644
I like the cattle pen boarding lanes better. The gate lice can hang out in their own boarding groups.