Initial satisfaction earned after carefully reviewing cheap traveloptions, such as cheapairplane tickets, discount hotel rooms, and cheap vacation packages, canbe dissipated after arriving at the airport only to face a bewildering set ofboarding rules and groupings.
On some flights as soon as boarding begins there is a rushto the gate as travelers jockey for position to beat others onto theplane. Airlines have so many differenttiers of boarding groups, based in part on their different levels of elitestatus members, and their co-branded credit card customers, that the result isfrustration, crowding, unpleasantness, and stress.
American Airlines, the countrys largest airline, rolledout what it is calling a simplified boarding approach for flights on March 1st. Passengers are now being called on to boardstarting with Group 1, which includes first class customers and active dutymilitary. The process goes through Group9 which includes fliers who bought tickets on Americans new no-frills BasicEconomy fare class.
Interestingly, American notes that its revamped nine groupapproach is a change in name only which only underscores how complicatedboarding has become. Americans priorboarding grouping had Group 1 actually be the fifth group called forboarding, following the airlines elite frequent fliers and first and businessclass passengers who were subdivided into four groups of their own who boardedearlier.
Currently passengers board in the same order as before,with boarding starting with Group 1 running through Group 9. Boarding groups are printed on passengersboarding passes. American will continueto start with a pre-boarding call for passengers requiring extra time to enterplanes.
Delta Air Line, USAs second largest airline, isexperimenting with its boarding process. Deltas change impacts the physical location, unlike American Airlines,where the different groups stand as they line up to board the plane.
This test is running at Deltas busiest hub, Atlanta, wherethe airline has placed branded pillars at gates in Atlantas B Concourse. Each pillar has been labeled with acorresponding boarding group. There is apremium pillar for the airlines first class passengers and Diamond levelfrequent fliers and SKY for most other frequent fliers with elite status,followed by Zone 1, Zone 2, and Zone 3.
Deltas expressed intent is to take the hold room feelout of the gate space for waiting passengers. Deltas goal is to implement an enhanced boarding process at additionalairports this year depending on whether customer feedback proves to bepositive.
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