Airlines want to board planes quickly. A short delay has knock-on effects, because the next flight is likely delayed and the next flight. Passengers miss their connections, bags don’t make their next flight either, and crew delayed on one flight delay other flights too (and may even reach their maximum duty hours for the day, leading to cancelled flights).
So the science of how to board a plane quickly matters a great deal to the bottom line. Southwest Airlines has said it would cost them 8-10 planes per day just to add “a couple of minutes of block time to each flight in our schedule.”
Every so often airlines tinker with their boarding process, trying to speed things up. Southwest tends to board quickly because the order in which a passenger boards determines where they’ll sit on the plane. So they show up at the gate 30 minutes before their flight and they line up in a usually orderly fashion. Airlines with assigned seating do not have that advantage.
One study found an optimal board process would be to board
passengers in a series of waves, with the first passengers called to board seated in window seats two rows apart—first 30A, then 28A, then 26A and so on. Next, the same for the other side of the plane (30F, 28F, 26F). The process continues with odd row window seats on either side, middle seats, and finally aisle seats. Each person can sit down within moments of one another without getting in anyone’s way. In field tests, it proved to be almost twice as fast as most conventional methods, and 20% to 30% faster than have-at-it, entirely random boarding—which is also faster than the method used by airlines. (He too would board slower passengers requiring assistance first.)
In the real world you can’t do that. Doug Parker explains that there are customer considerations, and you can’t just do whatever is best for fast boarding. Especially now you want to socially distance passengers during the boarding process, even if most airlines are no longer blocking seats and planes are increasingly full.
He explained in a meeting with flight attendants earlier in the month why American Airlines won’t move to ‘back-to-front’ boarding despite its intuitive appeal:
We have looked at that, we’ve studied it, and while it may seem better to have people go from back to front ..what you really want to do is window-to-aisle but if you do that you split up families and things.
When you do back-to-front there is just as much if not even more in some cases interaction with customers getting up and out of the aisle as there is with our process.
So what we choose to do instead is tell our frequent flyers – our elite customers – they can board whenever they like and then we use our normal boarding process.
And then we ask when you leave, because we have everyone actually window-to-aisle and they’ll leave properly..but we’ve seen no increase in the lack of close interaction by going back-to-front versus the process we use.
..We’ve studied this with operations engineers who go look and watch and we don’t see any material change and in some cases more interaction.
You can’t split up families, so the ‘theoretically best boarding order’ doesn’t work. And back-to-front leads to bunching as well. And since those don’t work out as well in practice as in theory, their regular boarding process stands.
This is why airlines all tinker with their process from time to time and never stop tinkering, because they’re never been able to do much to improve – with few exceptions.
In the early days of Southwest Airlines they struggled financially and returned one of their planes. They kept the bulk of their schedule despite having one fewer aircraft. And to do that they needed to turn planes in 10 minutes. Passengers were deplaning out the rear of the aircraft while new passengers were getting on. Southwest’s cabin crew even do light cleaning of the aircraft between flights.
AS much as it pains me to say this, this is one time where Discount Dougie is right-doing back to front boarding doesn’t do anything other than change who is stuck standing on the jetbridge waiting for traffic in front of them to clear. DL is doing this, even for it’s Medallion members AND C+ pax (who are told that by buying C+ they would get priority boarding); all this means is that by the time they get to the C+ section, the backup on the jetbridge goes almost to the gate. So much for ‘social distancing’. Anyone who thinks they’re going to catch the cooties boarding an airplane isn’t going to be getting on a plane, so stop with the cootie theater.
I rarely agree with Parker but he’s right on this one.
Back-to-Front would be faster than the current way in my opinion. Airlines won’t do it because the passengers seated more towards the front would be fuming that the “cattle class” sitting in the way back gets to board before them. All about perceived status.
In Europe I was often forward through the back of the aircraft why don’t we do it in the US ? Two boarding doors would fill a 737 in minutes
The problem isn’t HOW they load, it’s the people who are so slow getting seated. From taking forever to put their luggage up, to taking their coat off in the plane, to looking at every aisle to find their row while thinking 24 will be near the front. Add in people on the aisle buckling in when the window and middle are still empty, and it comes down to same lack of common sense and common courtesy that many lack.
These studies often fail to account for the fact that many people don’t comply with the boarding rules. In my experience 1 out of 10 passengers tries to board before their position because they don’t know any better or because they’re a self-important retard. It defeats the whole system.
Total bull.. they just want people to pay for the privilege to board first, dumbest con article ever
It’s all about carry on space. Elites like me are very angry when the bins are full because no status cheap ticket folks sitting in the rear are allowed to board early and fill up the front bins with their bags.
If FAs could police front bins this would not be an issue but they already have their hands full
@jcil
Those people in the front are paying for your lowest (inflation adjusted) cost tickets in history. Getting to board first when the plane is empty is one reason some are willing to pay so much for those seats that subsidize the people in the back.
Line everyone up by number like southwest with the last row window on left being number 1 and the right window seat.being number 4 and the next row left window bring number 7 etc. If you miss you spot on line you need to wait until everyone on board.
I disagree with all these comments. Your real issue is tha average passenger wants to bring on everything but the “kitchen sink”. How often have you seen a family of four bring luggage, stuffed animals and grandma’s ashes on board and all the overhead bins are full. Doug, ya can’t be that blind. Look at Alegiant, Spirit and Frontier Airlines business plan (thanks Ryan Airlines for the business model) for charging non loyal members. And Doug, AA is less desirable than the above mentioned airlines.
If people would just follow boarding procedures (and GA’s enforce them) this would not be a huge problem.
I agree it takes forever to wait for everyone to put the carry on up top.
It all got out of hand with the carry ons when the airlines started to charge for check bags.
Allow each customer one free check
Bag and charge everyone for the carry on $30 and allowed one personal item to carry on.
Than watch how fast plains get loaded
Just one mans opinion
I flew AA from ORD to BDL last night, full price in 1A. Not once did the FA ask me if I wanted anything to drink, etc. Parker, you have more problems than boarding order. I’ll stick with DL and UA, thanks.
I really don’t understand why researchers don’t take party size into account when doing their models. This isn’t a theoretical exercise, so there’s no point in pricing proving the fastest way to board if everybody flew alone.
Abey, I have done that in the Caribbean and some parts of Central America, and it works beautifully. But I have yet to see a jet bridge that would work for doors behind the wing. That means air stairs and having dozens of people walking on the apron at a busy airport. I shudder to think of the risk and discomfort due to noise, vehicles and inclement weather. For most of the airports I have been to in the US a jet bridge at the front door is the safest and most comfortable solution even if it is slower. Just my 2 cents.
they need to copy how ANA and JAL load their planes.
I don’t really believe their ‘data.’ Fly pretty much any LC carrier in Asia (Scoot, Air Asia, Lion) and they almost all board back to front, deal with large parties, and board in a fraction of the time it takes the legacy 3. But they don’t have entitled FC pax who demand their PDB that the FA brings while blocking boarding. If carriers insist on maintaining FC, just move the boarding door behind it like intl wide body planes – that will solve most issues!
Why don’t you guys ask the flight crews working all of these flights what they think? Management isn’t there to experience one nightmarish boarding after another. Back to front does work. Period. It’s very efficient. I’m a flight crew member. I’ve worked more than 12,000 boardings.
Else just do what WN does or board back to front by rows but prevent people from using overhead bins not near their seats. That would address the fear of not having enough bins for more premium boards (less of an issue with the new bin design). Personally the less time I spend in the plane seat, the happier I am…
The article completely fails to actually answer the question in the headline. Parker just substituted an entirely different question about window to aisle. *Of course* back to front would be faster.
But then you’d need to do front to back unloading, so there would be no premium seating.
The problem is all the bags passengers bring on board. So much stuff and the time it takes to put it away or get whstever they need from their bags.
If they actually cared about speed, they would make checked baggage free and charge for carry ons. Carry ons are the biggest time waster, both getting on and getting off.
They’d also use the rear doors. I’ve seen photos of airports in the 60s that would park the airplanes sideways to allow jet bridges at both ends.
And they could also stop scheduling a ERJ 45 with the same 30 minute advanced boarding as a 767. Great, all 30 of us are on in 7 minutes and now we have to sit here for another 25? Why?
I also disagree with the article. My last flight boarded rear to front. It was fast, effecient and effective. I was in Delta Comfort so I was toward the front and later in the boarding que. It worked, there was bin space and there were no waiting pile ups or conflicts. I heard several people commenting on why they didn’t do this all the time. Yes, as a normal Priority boarder, I did have to wait to board, but I didn’t have to stand in que waiting for someone to try and wedge an obviously oversized piece of carry on into a space any 3 year old could tell you it wouldn’t fit in. You can study this all day long with a bunch of high paid “engineers” and you know what, all they really need to do is to take a couple flights with us regular folks and see for themselves.
Maybe the flight attendant should do more to speed up the process. Some just sit and look.
But then Again they don’t get paid till the boarding door is closed
Charge for carry one while giving one carry on checked bag free, boarding speed will increase by an order of magnitude.
Move the jet bridge to the back.door and then go back to front. Then moving the jet bridge twice per flight may be an issue. What is all this sitting together as a family? When you book a flight you pick your seats on the seating chart. What’s the problem? Charge for overhead space period. If it fits under the seat in front of you your good. If not stick a price to it that makes them a premium option.. The bean counters can do better. Lower overall price and screw us with the asterisk. I travel with 1 checked bag OR 1 bag in overhead compartment depending on flight schedule.. My laptop comes on with me. Who wants to drag all that crap making connecting flights. Seasoned fliers have this handled and rookies would figure it out quickly. Also stops all that stupid standing up as soon as the flight lands. The people who have isle seats now have an ass in their face for 15 mins or are obligated to stand up also. Nice we can all armchair quarterback this thing.
Accept… my wife and I just took 4 flights on AA and were astounded how long it took to board. Most definitely the most unorganized boarding on all four flights we’ve encountered in years. Easily twice as long as Southweat, United or New Zealand Air.
AA used to be a decent airline. They all pretty much suck today. I fly 3x a year for vacation and I dread the whole process.
Charge for carry-on and let checked bags go for free…that’ll speed things up.
Was once on a KL flight out of CPH where the flight was so full I got an upgrade (intra-Europe OP UPs are super rare). The outstation gate agents boarded main cabin pax without rollaboards before those with them. Everyone was on that plane so fast, the FAs were amazed.
Never seen that again since then.
The ideal boarding order is therefore:
1. People for whom getting on board first makes a huge difference in everyone’s boarding time (reduced mobility, small kids — the FILO crowd).
2. People who know how to board a plane quickly (actual FFs, regardless of status/credit cards. If you want to include active duty military, fine: I don’t see them wasting time in the aisles).
3. People without overhead bin bags.
4. Everyone else.
On the other hand, what impresses me in the US is how much of boarding time is consumed by the reification of the celestial hierarchy of status, as several fine gradations of FF seraphim and cherubim are sent on separately, while the accursed ones are made to watch.
Too many people are bringing large bags on. No FA or passenger should have to help someone put a bag up. That means it’s too big for you to handle. I like Southwest way of doing boarding except for the bag issue which is ridiculous because they don’t charge to check bags.
Here’s my solution to the carry-on bag problem. Charge for carry-on bags and reduce the price for checked bags. Or, eliminate overhead bins. If your bag doesn’t fit under the seat, it must be checked. On a recent flight into DFW, the plane taxied for 30 minutes. Then, with AA’s COVID-19 deplaning procedures, the last rows took an additional 30 minutes to get off the plane. That was a ridiculous one hour after touch down on a two hour flight.
Back-to-front boarding worked great in 1970s,80s,90s. Carry-on baggage was not a problem then. It would work now if carry-on baggage was reduced. The number and size of baggage that get thru a check point today is hideous.Three free checked standard size bags/charge for each carry-on bag larger than 14″x12″x6″ (under seat). . In the mid 1960s I did have a man carry on a kitchen sink onto a M404.
If ALL Airlines followed Southwest example and did not charge for checked baggage people wouldn’t have to cram everything into carry-ons to take on for free. They simply put most of their stuff in the checked baggage and you have much smaller carry on like maybe a backpack for things like medication etcetera. So most passengers would not need overhead bin space. Airlines created this problem themselves by charging to check your bags. Southwest is the only one who got it right. And now JetBlue actually wants to charge for carry-on bags. They will lose customers over this.
Doug, your airline has better things to worry about. I’m switching to United. ✌️
I flew AA’s (awful) codeshare GOL in Brazil in November and they board 737’s (at least during COVID, a local told me) through both doors. Since I got stuck on the back of the plane, I found myself quite surprised to be walking up and down the back steps of the plane near the restroom in the back rows. It actually seemed pretty smart to me. Everyone in the back half of the plane boarded on that end, and vice versa. That said, anyone worried about “COVID Cooties” had no business being there because all you did was get close to people, touch people, and rub next to people. We also had to ride trams a total of 5 seconds (literally FIVE) around the terminal. That’s all beside the point. Anyone trying to avoid COVID just needs to stay home if that’s a concern. Period. But as for boarding, GOL did that part well. It was the only thing they did well. I won’t fly them again, but that’s a story for another day. For now, I’m glad to be Platinum on AA and will stick with getting on in Group 3, or whenever I want. I don’t know what actually works BEST, but I figure as long as people are not rubbing all over me and I don’t have to smell their B.O. (seriously), I am happy.
Try Qantus for efficiency. Gate opens 20 minutes before departure & closes 10 minutes before departure.
Front half boards via the jet bridge, back half via stairs at the back. Agent on the jet bridge directs passengers to the front or down the stairs to the tarmac.
I was on an A330 flight SYD-MEL. Gate opened 20 minutes before departure; 19 minutes later we were pushing back.
I agree. The problem is lack of enforcement of the carry on rule. I dare say more than 50% of the carry on bags, while they are able to be forced into the overhead bin doesn’t meet the sizing requirements and would not fit in the little sizing thingy near the gate. ONE CARRY ON AND A PERSONAL ITEM. THATS IT. NO EXCEPTION. Remember when a service animal was a dog trained to assist a disabled person? Well the airlines let that get so out of hand that people were bringing even pigs on board. NO. Absolutely not. Love and care for your passengers but they must pay for a pet sitter to watch their animals while they’re away. The same thing is happening with the carryon and the boarding process.
I’ve always said that back to front boarding is the most efficient and fastest .
Enforce the I carry on one personal per passenger at the check in desk. Position a flight attendant at the rear of the cabin at the start of the boarding process. Song your passengers down the jetway in that order(rear to front) and insist that LAZY PASSENGERS carry their bags to their assigned row and place them in the bin above their seat. As the first row at the rear is filled the attendant moves to the 2nd row and so on all the way to the front. Enforce the sizing and the number of carry ons and stop trying to chisel out a few extra dollars from people who are stupid enough to pay for early boarding so they can get on the aircraft an sit down somewhere that they will need to move to allow another passenger to get to his/her seat. Supervised boarding from rear to front works if you plan it. Line up your passengers in that order before you send them down the jetway and see if it doesn’t save time and aggravation.
I’ve done my fair share of flying, while in Peru I saw one of the fastest boarding routines and it kept the high paying people happy by boarding 1st and it was seating from front to back entering though the rear of the airplane. In Europe one of the discount airlines used to do the reverse seating from back of the plane entering from the front.
Free checked bags and charging for carry on has proven to be the way forward, and throw in back to front seating.
2 things:
-As a Euro, i always wondered why Biz Class pax are boarding first on a plane in America. It never made sense to me. Maybe some elite pax enjoy looking at the less privileged board their flight…
-Things really started to get messy when airlines started to charge for luggage while creating huge revenue. Some pax get on-board like if they were traveling with half of their wardrobe messing up any boarding process (looking for space, looking for help to load their stuff into the bins). Airlines are making tons of money with those baggage fees but were never able to deal with the consequences of pax bringing far more things than in the past with them on the plane.
those “studies” assumed every passenger is flying alone and didn’t mention the need to make 1st class feel better by letting them sit first.
why not backup the plane and use rear door to seat from front. families get seated at the same time and others start by window seat
Reply to David about using jetbridges for the rear doors:
United tried this in Denver in the early 2000’s, installing a second jetbridge at 4 of their gates in the belief that this would speed up the boarding process The way it worked was: Regardless of seat assignment, everyone entered through the same boarding door from the gate seating area, then proceeded down the jetbridge to the point where it split into 2 depending on which door you were to board through. At the split, the second jetbridge extended across the top of the aircraft wing to the rear boarding door. Presumably, if the data showed that this did reduce boarding times, UA would install these at most of their gates.
Unfortunately, there came a day when 1 of those rear jetbridges had a mechanical failure and it fell onto the wing of a 757, bending it significantly and probably damaging the leading edge slats, spoilers, flaps and landing gear. My guess is that kind of wing damage is not repairable and the aircraft had to be scrapped (anyone from UA maintenance that can provide more details on this?). Shortly after, UA removed the rear jetbridges and that ended the double-door boarding experiment.
Best video on the subject
https://youtu.be/oAHbLRjF0vo
Back to front is the way Thai VietJet boards. It is faster than front to back and cuts down on passenger interactions. When planes board front to back, passengers must file by those already seated exposing the standing and seated passengers to each other.
The fastest way to board is by boarding from the front and rear simultaneously. This is never done in the U.S. in my experience but is common in Asia, especially when boarding from the tarmac. Qantas used three jet bridges simultaneously to board its A380s.
Many airlines in Asia use two jet bridges — one for first/business and one for economy/premium economy — on widebody aircraft. This is faster and a great convenience for passenger in business and economy and it allows flight attendants to do pre-departure service without having to fight the flow of passengers marching back to coach.
There are better ways to board. Parker and most U.S. airlines (and from these comments, passengers) are stuck in their ways.
I am Gold on United so most often I am in EconomyPlus, and in the front of the plane. With the current back-to-front boarding on United I am in the *last* group to board. I have had bin space, but it’s not guaranteed. If I have a tight connection I don’t want to gate check my carry-on.
What is the point of status and preferred seating if I have to worry about bin space?
People are bringing 1 carry-on and 1 personal item. The gate agents are very strict about this, in my experience. The issue is the person at the back can put their luggage in the front, and I’ve seen it happen.
On international airlines they do have different procedures that often work better, but what I don’t think anyone has mentioned is the larger number of staff and flight attendants in international airlines. And they are supervising the boarding process and watching the bin space.
I am a flight attendant and I believe the major issue is carry-on bags.
Several points to ponder:
What are you looking for in your bag that you are up 5 times during boarding blocking the aisle to find!
Why do you open the one bin that’s closed while the one next to it is completely empty?
Why do you expect someone else to lift your oversized, overweight bag into the bin?
Why do you place your bag in the forward bins while sitting in the back while customers in the front are now forced to find an empty bin in the back?
Why do you think that your seat in row 10 would be in the back of the plane?
And (nothing to do with bags) but aren’t there restrooms in the terminal?
American airlines stink. They won’t do front to back because of the first class. They made me stand on the ramp to board along with all the other coach passegees where the wind comes through in Flagstaff back last feb. Or March while they served the first class passengers alcoholic beverages at freakng 6 in the morning. So this is why they won’t do front to back.
I was on my first Frontier flight last week. They charge $48 for a carry on (with 1 free personal item) but $46 for a checked bag. I thought it was genius. Way fewer people chockerblocking the aisles putting their 50 lb carryons in the overhead – apart from the caste system of preferred passengers this is the biggest issue. Charge more for a carry-on or require carry-ons to be checked at the gate. Also board families/groups with kids under 6 yrs first (or board right after preferred class) and assign family seats in the back rows when possible. This gives parents plenty of time to get settled while everyone else is boarding, easy access to the potty and attendants, and deplaning last. This would have been so helpful for me when I had little ones, and much less stressful trying to please all the other passengers. This also solves another kid issue many passengers have with noise and crying. Also I alway choose to board last no matter where I sit. Who wants to get on a stuffy plane EARLY to sit in a cramped seat, unless you like to stare at the other germy humans as they walk by sniffling and breathing on you (and bumping you with their giant carry on!)?
Airlines run optimization models to determine all aspects of their operations. This includes boarding. What is being optimized is profit, not boarding time. Profit includes premium boarding. Boarding time is merely a constraint. Inefficiency is inherently baked in to sell premium boarding options.
Abey..Yes EU does 2 doors and it works…. If board back to front..people still cannot find their seats in the back and cause a bottle-neck anyway…
The solution is to remove fees for checked baggage, and to charge fees for carryons.
Every flight I take now, people take massive carryons, knowing full well it will be taken to the cargo hold for free once they reach the gate.
The problem with slow loading is people being stupid and greedy. That simple. THEY want to make sure they get their space overhead, so instead of reaching their seat, sitting down, and waiting with their carryon on their lap, they stop in the middle of the aisle, hold the entire plane up, while they try and cram their massive carryon into the overhead compartment, simply so you don’t get a crack at a spot before they can stand up again.
Try it sometime. Wait until they do last call, then “board”. Watch how long you still stand, because people can’t sit their butts down. Stop the madness, and get planes boarded in ten minutes.
I don’t understand why back to front doesn’t work. People still get out of their seats?
What? Why does it matter if a few get out? No one would be wanting to go behind them bc they aren’t sitting back there.
i agree with the above statements. charge for carry on and free checked luggage..
I know southwest still doesn’t charge but people still bring bags on. so if you charge for carryon they may just check it free.
American ceo is a dumb ass. Lying thru his teeth. Back to front is always faster. Was in passenger service over 20 years. Even as first class passenger I prefer the back to load then get on. Do not need to watch every one stopped and then take a step.
Totally agree about carryons
Rules usually not enforced, so many have huge suitcases that often don’t fit, need help putting them up and getting them down.
As a retired gate agent for said company who’s CEO says it doesn’t work, let me just say, it does work! I can board a full 757 in 15 mins boarding from back to front! Even once they changed and boarded top tiers first there were several times I was in a time constraint and told my passengers in order to get out before a crew went illegal I was going old school. No one complained when we were boarded and door shut in 15 mins. Only people who barked were the top tiers because they didn’t get their acknowledgement! Just go back to basics! Allow those first 2 bags free at checkin and charge at the gate for too large of carry ons. The only problem I see with that is they think 1 person working a flight now is ok and it’s NOT! Too many things go wrong!
We fly often to Hawaii because we have family there. You can tell many of the passengers do not fly often just by how they act. When we flew Hawaiin Air in Dec./Jan. one of their covid protocols was to load from the back to front. I was amazed how quickly everyone boarded. The flight we take is usually about 95% full. This this flight was about 80% capacity but everyone got to their seats quickly and we began pushback a few minutes early!
I don’t buy the line that back to front does not save time.
I have to agree with many of the comments. The CEO is full of it and doubling down in dumb. I have moved from the gate to the cockpit and travel as a passing passenger enough to be top tier on several airlines. Back to front, with some leaning to outside to inside is much quicker. AA’s 9000 boarding groups is ridiculous. It is a nod to their frequent flyers and credit card holders, nothing more.
I’m my past life I flew CRJ-200. It would take 30 minutes to turn a 50 seat plane. SW does a 150-180 seat plane in 25. When I was in a time bind I often came to the gate to get boarding old school but quickly without the gate agent getting in trouble.
Back to front works! We have flown a lot and it works!
How about…
No carryons first.
1 carryon second
2 carryon third
2 carryon + backpack, shopping bags, etc last.
Without fail the people who take longest and hold things up are those with large or extra carryons.
Back to front is definately better. Your standing in line waiting to board, by the time you reach the back seat, I’ve had to put my ONE bag 5 rows ahead of me.WHAT! REALLY PEOPLE! people boarding in the front take MUCH LONGER to put their bags up & some end up in the back area taking up my space which has happened several times. Front seat passengers still get on the plane, they NEED to get on last. The CEO is talking without HIS BRAIN & everything he said doesnt make SENSE!
Like the first commenter said, they are clearly optimizing for profit rather than efficiency. Many people select airlines based on the cost of the ticket so the airlines try to keep the ticket costs low. Then they try to make up for it by shaking you down for as much cash as possible after the ticket sale. In order to create motivation to pay for premium boarding, they create a scarcity of overhead space with their otherwise irrational policy of charging for checked bags before the gate but making it free at the gate. This motivates people to try and board sooner and some people are willing to pay for it. A related consideration is that they want to keep their customers such as business travelers who are relatively price insensitive. Again the artificially created scarcity works here. They can make the so-called elite travelers feel special with privileged boarding status, and many of those people will select the airline that makes them feel the most special. Since all commercial airline travel has been made miserable to maximize butts per square inch they have to get creative on how to convey a sense of privilege. I never understood why boarding early was a good thing. Although I am active duty and can usually board after the first few groups of special people, I prefer to wait until last call to minimize time in the uncomfortable seats.
Good idea but ppl cheat. How many times have you seen ppl try to get on with an oversized bag? The time it’ll take for gate agents to deal with this is time they could be on board.
All it takes is one slow person to slow the process down.
Gates should be configured so as to also use the rear door of the aircraft. I know SWA does that in Burbank.
If the issue is to minimize boarding time, then reverse the bag charges:
1. Offer free checked in bag
2. Charge for the carry on (except backpack or personal item)
And for goodness sake: board BACK to FRONT!
It’s that simple.
Stop the nonsense & excuses… people see right through that
Post carry on restrictions & enforce them! By the time you deplane & get to baggage claim the wait time, if any, is minimal!! These huge, cumbersome carry ons are ridiculous!
Not believing boarding back to front is not more efficient…
I am a 35 year employee with AA. We used to board from Back to Front a long time ago but they quit. From Parker all the way down, USAir Executives don’t know how to run an airline. It would Boggle your mind to see the stupidity that is in charge and the decisions they make. The only conclusion I can come up with is there setting it up to fail and they’re right on track. Can you say bankruptcy number for 4 or is it 5
Back to front boarding works. What doesn’t work are the egos of premium passengers.
This CEO is a liar and could care less about social distancing. It’s a known fact that American Airline flight are packed to capacity with no consideration for the times we live. Also I agree with other posters front to back is the best boarding scenario as well as, charging for carryons. I would also go as far to say, if you don’t have any carryon you should be allowed to de-board the plane first.
It’s simple, really. Airlines do not listen to customers…they look at dollars and profits. They will say whatever they think we need to hear. Back to front boarding works. It’s simple. It really does work. Anyone who says otherwise is a profit talking head.
I am fine boarding last. I carry only a small soft bag and by boarding last I don’t have people climbing over me and jostling me. I do get frustrated that airlines don’t enforce carry on bag limits since I pay for my slightly too large bag while others check them at the plane door for free.
No matter what you think someone else believes the opposite and can prove it.
Facts are meaningless anymore
I remember when they always boarded back to front. I don’t necessarily remember if it was in fact faster, but it probably was somewhat.
It’s really all about the overhead space. Frequent Flyers want their space and if the plane boards back to front they might not get any.
Also, I have flown first class occasionally and it never seems to amaze me how long it takes first class passengers to get into their seats. It seems we are constantly waiting in the jet bridge for them to get out of aisle and get settled. When I see people behind me when I’m already to my seat, I step into my row and let as many people go by as I can before trying to get my bag into the overhead storage bin.
How about a hybrid system where the Frequent Flyers board first and then all others board back to front? Or are they already doing that?
This guy is a complete liar. The reason they board people in the front first has everything to do with first class and social status. Google that shit
Forget about different boarding groups.Enforce the carryon rules and size restrictions at the gate. It might mean have a low paid employee to check the sizing at the entrance to the gate area and if it is too large it is checked with the gate agent before the boarding process begins and then board from back to front. Did anyone ever think about the fact that the rear of the aircraft actually arrives first.
Delta did back to front and it worked great.
Can’t split families up? For goodness sake, I can board a plane withou my husband standing next to me! I have been saying this for years, board from the windows, in. Board parents with children and a window seat first. There, done!
The only problem with any of these loading methods is always going to be the “HUMAN FACTOR”. It’s never possible to get everyone on the plane to do so in an efficient and timely manner. Sometimes I wonder where these peoples heads are when all they have to do is follow the rules, and keep their heads in the game for just the time required to put your bag up and sit down. I cant tell you how many times I’ve watched people go all the way to the back of the plane looking for their seat, only to realize they are sitting in row 6. If people got their heads out for at least 30 min. during the boarding time, things would go much faster no matter what the boarding order is.
The flyers have spoken the president is full of BS
Do the exact opposite of what you’re doing now.
Handicap people, people with children, first class passengers should board last since they take the longest.
Handicap people usually have an isle seat so if they board last they won’t have to get up again to let people in.
Make boarding last the “special” seating.
I agree, charge $35 for carry-ons, free for 1st checked bag, $10-20 for 2nd checked bag.
Free to check all kid related items like strollers, etc, and they don’t count as the 1st checked bag. Charge higher ($45) bag fees at the gate too, to encourage checking them at ticketing for $35 and this will speed up security too.
Change up the baggage handling too so bags hit the carousel faster which will encourage people to check more bags and not carry on. Instead of loading all bags on one train, divide up into smaller trains but more of them. Incentives the baggage handlers to get bags to the carousel faster.
Then do back to front and window in loading.
If that still isn’t fast enough, give free food to people that can get seated in under a minute. Think timer app!
Back to front definitely works, I’ve been a gate agents for several years and it’s the fastest method to board. Less passengers standing in the jet bridge and aisle. Families will not be split up if they are seated together from check in or gate seat changes.
I do believe carry ons is hectic, people would do anything yhe avoid paying that baggage fee. With the carry ons people tends to hold up the aisle from everyone else. Especially when it’s time to exit the plane as well. Charge for extra carry ons watch how quickly carry ons go down to 1 bag to no bags.. Lol. Back to front makes the most sense and no one skipping over the other trying to get to the seat… Excuse I’m in the back… Ohhh, my seat in the front… Smh. Total waste of time.
Why worry about social distancing in line to board when once you are in the plane they pack you in like sardines? But ooooh bit God forbid you let your mask slip past your nose. American flight attendants lose their minds and threaten to charge you criminally and not let you fly American ever again for something that is not even a LAW.
Tweak the plane schedules A little for few more minutes load time..Load back to front.. Limit, 1 CARRY ON… And get it done.. Not rocket science.
Why is it difficult to follow those simple rules? I’d applaud the flight attendants who booted your assumed privileged ass. Take a bus.
The obvious next step is to do away with boarding passes and start using a boarding app that tells you when to board in 30 second windows. If you miss your 30 second window, you are put in another seat. Then the airline will track passengers and their relative requires boarding time to optimize on where to place slow boarders vs fast boarders. There is an easy technological solution to all of this. In the case that a person doesn’t have a smart phone, the airline will rent out a device to them. This gives the added advantage of advertising and a traveling media center in the airport. Why this is not a thing already is beyond me.
Some years ago I pre-boarded a JetBlue flight as a courtesy because I was was a pilot with another major carrier. I sat in the middle of the cabin and was in a good position to watch the boarding process. Hands down it was the most efficient and fastest boarding I’ve ever seen are any of the airlines I’ve flown with over the 34 years I was a commercial airline pilot. They boarded back to front. They had flight attendant strategically placed throughout the cabin and when somebody would stop to put their luggage up in the overhead a flight attendant would ask what their seat assignment was. As soon as the flight attendant found out that their seat assignment was all the way in the back and they were putting their luggage in the front they were told to take their luggage back to their seat. I have seen no other boarding model as quick and efficient as this.
On Air Force 1 the most important person always boards last. And that’s the way it is in most business air flights.
I like the comments about charging for carryon.
But I think they really need to not allow some to bring two full carry on.
Also, if everyone had one carry and personal that they place above thier seat. Should be plenty of room for the carry on.
Simple!
Design seats so it opens and your carry on goes inside it. Only one type of bag is designed to fit in the seat. Any other bag is not allowed and must be checked. Itll save time on using the overhead. Remove the overhead altogether.
Amazing how so many here, 100% actually, feel the AA CEO is delusional and double-talking a very non-scientific process. This CEO is exactly what our airlines do not need. Their sense of service and commitment to customer satisfaction has become nothing more than wordplay. I am bashing SWA lately directly through rheir Dallas hearts for their wordplay justifying opening new routes (being abandoned by other airlines for their limited profitability) while they’re crushing their loyal loyal customer base, by abandoning long held profitable routes they say are not profitable anymore, that are full virtually 100% of the time!!! Their justification actually contradicts what they’re saying, while they’re saying it! This CEO did the same in his quoted reasoning. A sure cure is returning to nobody gets past the gate with an obviously oversized piece of carryon. Nobody gets to add more than one bag/person into the overhead. Nobody is allowed to bring more than one carryon/personal bag per person past the gate with the exception of assisting children or health/age compromised individuals. It is super simple. What isn’t simple is getting our employees of today to actually do their job in toto. The airlines should be hiring and staffing a division of retirees who fly singularly and assess the entire process of boarding/unboarding/customer service by randomly flying all routes as a “secret passenger”, something akin to the Flight Marshal program. It would begin to clean up the messes created by their own employees. All previous comments are spot on about this CEO. I wonder if he has any idea, that we have no idea, how he became a CEO of an Airline.
This has me thinking back to airline travel of many years ago. Carry-on baggage was very generally lmited because checking a bag wasn’t very expensive. You brought just enough essentials to accommodate you for a day just in case the airline misplaced your luggage and your bag wouldn’t be delivered until the following day. No one brought on laptops to work or entertain themselves. Blankets, pillows and magazines were routinely handed out. Often row seating in the rear of overseas flights was open and you could actually stretch out for a good sleep when traveling coast to coast and overseas. Meals were actually served hot, glasses were actually glass, dinnerware was actually metal.
Today’s travel is tiresome, crowded and my fellow passengers are more self-centered and rude. Travel used to be special and not a very commonplace experience to everyone. I know that this may sound elitist, but I miss it being more of something special.
I think back to front is way quicker loading and unloading. How many times do you see someone having to find overhead space go 5 rows behind them to find room and then further delay the process of unloading as well. Never understood why people want to be first on the plane only to have 80-100 more people bump you as they struggle to get to the back of the plane.
My suggestion for order of boarding: 1) board people with NO CARRY ONS first…starting with back rows. These people travel light, with personal item (purses, backpacks, briefcases that fit under their seats). I travel like this… we sit down immediately. 2) People with carry ons, back to front, so they dont clog up the aisles in the front as people try to move past them. UNLOAD: People with NO carry ons in bins exit front rows first. Then people with stuff in bins exit same… front rows first. Bottom line: people with no carry ons to put in bins get on and off planes fast and should enter and exit first.
If airlines were more efficient at not losing passengers’ luggage, I would feel more comfortable checking mine. So instead I depend on overhead and a personal item under the seat, and I make sure carryons meet airline restrictions.
Please add me to the list of those that want overhead abuses to be stopped. It’s unfortunate that self-restraint is not used by too many passengers which causes the problem.
First of all, actively enforce the size restrictions. These out of compliance should have their bags checked no, ifs, and or buts, with only essential medical equipment/medicine permitted for that passenger to enter the cabin.
Additionally, the economic incentives, such as carry-on fees should be added, also with size restrictions in place and enforced.
One other area to help I this would be for the crew to lead be example as my wife and I have observed that the crews will oftentimes fill up overhead space, usually toward the back with their own luggage, and without regard to size limits.
Back to front is the slowest of boarding methods tested by myth busters 6 years ago.
https://youtu.be/ss1S3-Kv6R8
What that exec said is total B.S.
Its his political attitude that gets in the way of public safety. They also can justify it by Americans understanding capitalism calls for them to offer boarding to people that will pay to board first.
So for a year we have all.been adjusting to the new norm…..post covid
Restrictions that will stay with us for years to come!
I see no reason why you would not continue to wear your mask in such a confined place as:
*Tin Can Air Plane
Just look.at the statistical data for regular seasonal flue in 2020…… MASKS are essential to air travel.
Save time install UV Blue Lights in the the planes.
Went from few planes, nobody complained time, to full on loaded schedule worried extra safety time…. Where are your Priorities MR. CEO
Parker is obviously kowtowing to frequent fliers, business travelers and first class fliers.
Back to front boarding is more efficient and logical.
David said it best. Its appeasing the haves n their demand to b regarded as haves. Then the plane goes down n all of a sudden everyones equal.
The way of undertaking of political garbage in terms of the entering resume of things that a political and garbage of opening up to the college of indeed of ones self of one another of political tomorrow times of a garbage in terms of open things of political controversies of ones another in terms of opening up to the right theories of great political and thoughtful of ideas and great things of great resumes of great things of open theories of great things of great windows.
Everytime I’ve flown your way. The front people boarding first have plugged the aisle preventing everyone (uncluding families) from moving past them. Don’t families usually get seats close to one another? Our family always does especially when children are involved. I taught college & high school Physics, Math, Astronomy & Computer Programming for over 38 years and believe I know about efficiency enough to know the way you think is fastest way of boarding the plane obviously is NOT the fastest way. If you afraid of breaking up families, don’t. Let families board from back to front as they’ve already decided as a family whose by the window or aisle no matter what their ticket says. Why should all the back seated people continueing wait as people who sit in the front aisles block the aisles. Boarding, back to front, could be almost as fast as deboarding, front to back, is only common sense. If you deboarded the way you board you’d have mutiny on you hands. Those who are first become last and those who are last become first, it’s biblical besides. The back get on first and off last and frequent fliers would appreciate the efficiency besides. I do admit when I fly with my wife she’s scared the flights overbooked and she will not get a seat unless she fights to be the first in her group on the plane but when I fly alone, I’m relaxed and don’t care if I’m the last one on the plane and the last one off the plane. I’ve literally given the shirt off my back to strangers many times and traded the best seat on the plane for the worst seat many times also; so I am not your ordinary flyer. I know you have your real reasons but to say your breaking up families doesn’t hold any weight if you let families load together no matter where they sit (usually together I bet) and do back to front loading and front to back unloading. (Period)
Parker is spewing BS. Back to front works. How many times has he stood there in the cabin and watched the process? Zero would be my guess. Once or twice for a photo op at most. As a 24+ year major airline pilot I’ve seen it hundreds of times and our cabin crew have seen it more than I have. Back to front works. Period. Stop wasting time on “studies”. Make it happen.
I have flown all over Asia and they board front and rear. Very efficient. They should all take lessons from Singapore airlines
I recently flew American. I have flown Delta throughout the pandemic. My last flight was American and it was awful for boarding. Seats are small and you have no choice but to touch the person next to you. Plane itself was filthy
Yep Doug Parker is full of crap.
Back to front is most efficient and fastest. Delta does it and it works.
Usair retired
Back to front boarding works best. Front to back exiting works best too. I suggest that airlines charge for carry-on bags and make firts bags checked through free. This puts time consuming overhead storing of bags into an expensive luxury category. Less overhead bags will speed up the boarding process.
Why wouldn’t first class want to be boarded last anyways? It means they don’t have to rush to the gate.
Let’s face it. You want ppl to board fast? Have all luggage checked. That’s what takes so long and why ppl want to board first. So they have can find room to put their luggage close to them.
Back to front doesn’t work and I say that with 36 years of airline experience. So all the above who say otherwise….
Why doesn’t it work? Simply put: we’re herding humans with all their belongings, inexperience’s, attitudes, experiences, health conditions, stuff bags, last minute items they want out of their bags as they reach their rows, etc.
Say you board the last rows, 25-30. On an single aisle aircraft that’s 6 rows of 6 or 36 humans. Now, the first person on is 26D, aisle seat. He/she leads the group on and stops at 26D and starts putting their items away. 35 people behind him/her are stopped. He/she sits down and a few passengers pass by and arrive at their seats and everyone stops behind again. This is also blocking passengers in rows 20-25 who are now backed up too.
At 26D, the passenger in 26F has arrived. 26D must get up and move into the aisle to let 26F in and everyone has to stop again to allow this action to happen.
Meanwhile, rows 15-19 have been called and are backed up in the aisle waiting for all these little “transactions” to take place. And don’t forget the slow elderly passenger. The first time traveler. The mother with a baby and baby bags. The uncooperative child. Etc.
Back to front doesn’t work because of these inconsistent transactions and variables in these groups. A shot gun approach, while also not completely efficient, is more efficient than a straight back to front system.
As I have informed management of a particular airline, “boarding is what boarding is”…there are too many variables to tackle to make it more efficient.
I think they should have boarding based on experience and history. The more times you fly, the closer to the early part of boarding. You know what to do, you’ve seen the cretins who bring on too much luggage, and you know how to get out of the aisle while stowing your smallish carryon, while putting your Starbucks on the floor so as not to spill it while taking your laptop out of your under seat briefcase.
BAM!
1st class and “elite” boarding is the problem. 1st class passengers are up and down while the rest of the passengers are boarding. Furthermore, the 1st class flight attendants are blocking the aisle sevring coffee and wine during boarding.
Keep these people off the plane until last. Give them a litte area in the waiting area and they can drink all they want there.
Then board back to front. That AA exec doesnt know what he’s talking about. Fly economy and find out what is really going on.
They should do the faster version but charge a small amount if people want/need to board together
Several years ago I was in Houston with 110 youth athletes. The planes were all delayed so you can imagine the scene at the gate this Friday afternoon. The gate attendants freaked when they saw our group knowing there were so many impatient travelers wanting to get out ASAP. I went over the the gate attendant and asked she just give me 10 minutes and I’d have the kids on the planes faster than she could wink. I lined the kids up by seat…highest number first then by seat…A,B,C F,E,D…overhead goes in immediately and then get right into you seat. I explained the process to the gate attendant and she actually let us on after the Elite groups. With all 110 in their seats already, they let the other passengers on with the “normal” back to front. The usual mess with people standing in the aisles, putting luggage in the overhead and then having to get back out into the aisle when the window guy showed up. While the airlines may not be able to randomly replicate that, maybe the ticket should have a number like Southwest but rather than random seating, they number you by your place in line, including the Elite fliers using my formula. It definitely worked and made the gate attendants VERY happy as well as the of 100 passengers on that flight.
I fully agree with American Airlines CEO Doug Parker: many, many different patterns of boarding have been tried by many airlines. I know: I have flown millions of miles, all over the world, on multiple airlines. I’ve see many different boarding processes. Some, that should be much faster, have been much less than optimal. Some are a bit faster, but overall my impression is the same as Mr. Parker’s: the boarding process is more or less optimal the way it is today.
What seems to help the most is what American (and some other domestic carriers) is doing: expanding the size of their overhead bins to facilitate more luggage storage. Their overheads on the new 737 MAX8 are GREAT !! Same for their overheads on the international 777-300ER and on the 787’s. That speeds up boarding dramatically (so quick and easy to stow a rollaboard bag).
I think in this case that Doug Parker hit the nail on the head. And it is to American’s advantage to have board flow as smoothly and quickly as possible.
Marshall Spearman
First you want to watch insanity then boarding and deboarding it is. You are dealing with grown adults (majority of the time) and they still cannot find their seat even looking at a boarding pass with the number on it with the corresponding number below the overhead storage. Next enforce the carryon rule. One item to fit under your seat. No overhead luggage. I have seen passengers come with baggage they cannot lift and stand in boarding passengers way waiting on someone to help them all the while blocking the other passengers from getting to their seat.. And one of the above commenters is correct. They get to their seat and have to take out, laptops, tablets, magazines, etc. before taking their seat. Next you have the inconsiderate jerks who board first, put their luggage in the front overhead bins and go to the back of the plane to their seat. Then the passengers in the front don’t have a place to put their luggage as these inconsiderate jerks have taken all of the space so the flight attendant is tasked with opening all of the bins to try and find space, if there is none then it has to be checked. You will never solve this problem as long as you are dealing with these inconsiderate “Karen’s/Ken’s. And one last thing not related but I am sure most people agree with it. Take a bath, wash your nasty feet if you are going to wear flip flops or sandals. Put on clean clothes, don’t show up looking like you spent the night in a dumpster. Keep your shoes on, no one wants to see or smell your nasty feet. And last don’t put your feet on the person in front of you arm rest and don’t interfere with the persons in back of you space.
If you look at traffic flow studies you will see that a slow driver or accident can cause ripples in the traffic patterns long after they have left the area. Planes have some similar problems with one inexperienced or inconsiderate flyer causing a slowdown for those behind them. And the airlines do share blame in not enforcing baggage policies while increasing bag fees that causes more flyers to not check bags.
Anecdotally, I had never experienced passengers backed all the way up the jet bridge to the ticket scanner before back to front boarding.
Let’s be real here. The most efficient boarding would be ripping out an entire column of seats so that one person could pass another.
Back to front boarding is the most efficient that I have experienced because passengers are not blocking the aisle at row 10 trying to put carryon luggage that is too heavy for them to lift into the overhead bin meanwhile backing passengers up on the jet bridge. Further if airlines allowed first checked bag for free rather than announcing at the gate that the flight is full and overhead space will be limited (then offering to check wheeled carry-ons for free at the gate) boarding would move a lot more effectively. In the past three months I have witnessed multiple flights where people show up at the gate with 2-3 wheeled carry-ons knowing that they will be allowed to “check” the bag at the gate for free because the flight is full and therefore they will avoid paying the fee to check their luggage through the normal procedure where they would have to pay for the checked bag. I flew last month and I stopped counting at the 15th person who checked their bag for free at the gate.
Worked for a company who manufactured passenger aircraft interiors. Just have passengers view films of what happens to overhead luggage during a crash and see how those big items become flying missals. Add to that that they are strewn abo0ut the cabin making it impossible for anyone to safely get by to emergency exits. I suggest all bags be checked except those that can fit under a seat. Airlines can lower the weight of the aircraft by taking out the overhead bins. Personal Service Units would still be installed for light, air and emergency mask deployments. Less fuel, more spacious feeling for the passengers, etc. At least enforce the size limit on carryon luggage (in fact, make it smaller). Like stated earlier, passengers attempt to thwart the checked baggage dilemma but it shouldn’t be at the cost of other passengers not to mention the crash risk of those items falling out of the bins.
Doug Parker is an idiot. His lousy boarding/disembarking is the reason I missed my connection at Dallas because of their waiting period between group offloads. I do everything I can to avoid AA.now as my connecting flight left 10 minutes early which means they already gave away my seat on that flight and the next two flights were oversold by over 10 people each, I finally gave up, walked away from a paid AA flight and flew Delta. I never appreciated how good Delta’s service was until then.
Why does this man still have a job? A loser CEO for a loser airline. I suggest start using more than 1 door, use the back, pull the steps up and let people on and off. If you’re too old or too lazy to use this option then use the regular jetway.
If you cannot break up families, why not make families board last? Use the window to aisle technique, then board families.
Airlines have it all backwards…….they should CHARGE for “carry-on” suitcases and allow all suitcases to be checked as baggage for FREE.
Boarding with your suitcase is more “convenient” and so there should be a charge NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND!
It would also make all boarding faster!!!!!
I’ve always been mystified why anyone who paid extra for a front seat would want to be boarded first, and then get elbowed in the head or bashed in the face by shoulder bags of the other 200 people who then have to squeeze past them to get to their seats in the back.
If front-to-back boarding were really more efficient, then deplaning back-to-front would be more efficient also. But they don’t do that, because it isn’t.
Back-to-front boarding, and front-to-back deplaning, is clearly more efficient. The only reason for front-to-back boarding is to put on a show of privilage for those to bought more expensive tickets.
I agree with the comments about carry-on luggage — that’s is a BIG part of what slows down boarding. Checked baggage should be free, and ONE carry-on per passenger, that fits under the seat. Additional carry-on bags should be charged a fee.
Once upon a time, you used to be able to check a bag or two for FREE, so long as it wasn’t over the weight limit; we need to get back to that.
Front-to-back boarding is ridiculous — it’s like trying to fill a glass from top to bottom.
This has to be some of the silliest crap I’ve read… bact to front loading would definitely be the most efficient and cost effective way of boarding. The CEO needs to stop with with that bull crap and think as a CEO!!!!
Agreed on the non-sensical response by this CEO. The charging of onboard bags should be after the 1st with a limit of 2, stricter and enforced size requirements of ALL onboard baggage, 1st bag checked free, and the back to front boarding, period. Agree also with how does the justification of having front passengers board and subjecting them to the perennial rudeness of later boarding passengers. There needs to be a qualified/quantified study to lay this subject to rest. Publish results, and prove that front to back makes any sense.
Back to front. It’s a no brainer. It’s 2022 people, let’s make it happen.
Numerical order Back to front with A and F seats first, then B and E, then C and D. You miss your spot in line, you board the next flight; if there’s room. If not, you get shuffled to the Flight For Dummies a.k.a. the Tedeye to your destination. Guarantee after the first year of complaining by everyone, it will become the New Norm. 😉