Why don’t airlines board planes starting with the back rows then move forward?
In: Engineering
I don’t know, I wait until the last possible time to board no matter where I’m siting, i don’t want to board any sooner than I need to
They did a lot of studies on this. Because how fast they can board a plane actually has a big impact on how quickly they can leave which increases revenue. The problem with back to front is that people take time to put their luggage up top and get themselves situated before they sit down. Meanwhile someone who is further towards the front of the plane could be doing the same thing at the same time, but they’re not on the plane yet now. They also tried outside inside assuming that this would keep people from having to get up to let someone else into the window seat, but it equally slowed things down. Basically the most efficient method is to stagger people that are more towards the back with people that are more towards the front in a variable pattern that essentially looks like random. So they eventually figured out that random is really the best way to do it.
Some airplanes will board the front and the back at the same time in which case you obviously only board if you’re in the back half of the front half of the plane. (Like they have a stairway in the back and the gate bridge on the front).
This is why they have boarding zones the way they have it. You could have special status that gives you earlier boarding, but you probably still got stuck with a seat near the back of the plane or whatever. it lets them give out the incentive of early boarding as a paid add on or a perk for miles/credit card, and it actually helps promote random boarding.
Good question. I’m sure people in first class love everyone’s luggage and asses in their face as they board.
Allegiant does. While they don’t necessarily go row by row. They have boarding groups that break it up that way.
Something not very many people are talking about the fact that it would be very hard to fit
You want to give people MORE reason to bitch and complain?
Just flew out of burbank airport and you board and exit from the front and back at the same time. First time I have seen that.
Because people are greedy, stupid and lazy and want to sit down first. You know how puppies or kittens all eat food from the first bowl they see instead of the bowl placed in front of them? Humans are just like that.
It sounds good on paper, but doesn’t work in reality. It took something like 18 min to board from the back to front instead of 20 min for the zones or free for all we have now. Less aggravation for the gate agents and constant telling customers to site down and wait for their row to be called.
there is a certain subset of people who can’t fucking relax until they get on the plane and sit down. I’ve always suspected part of the inertia to the most optimal loading format is these people would get more agro
Cause people will put their carry on suitcases at the front of the plane or somewhere before their seat, and it will be chaos when people at the front will have up out their carryons in spaces behind them.
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