Priority Boarding/Screening lanes

[Flywithd]

I have been on 2 flights so far this year and Priority Boarding they called upon Gold and Platinum members but also those guests who need assistance, the elderly and families traveling with children. Might explain why the Priority Boarding is getting crowded but I like the idea of allowing these people to enter the aircraft through priority boarding

Have to disagree with you too, MEL - BNE last week, 12 people held up the PB lane, staff walked guests onto plane, didn't board until 5 minutes later when the other check in staff stopped boarding normal pax and started boarding the priority lane.
Guests needing assistance and children should notify and board via the general lane IMO, priority lane should be kept for what is described.

 

[bullerdude]

Have to disagree with you too, MEL - BNE last week, 12 people held up the PB lane, staff walked guests onto plane, didn't board until 5 minutes later when the other check in staff stopped boarding normal pax and started boarding the priority lane.
Guests needing assistance and children should notify and board via the general lane IMO, priority lane should be kept for what is described.

That's a difficult one - Family with small children have been boarded first for most of the flights I've been - except some people don't understand the meaning on small children...

I would think that it should be more like:

- Disabled (Wheelchairs / crutches etc)
- Priority Lane (or at any time)
- Families/Kids
- General

 

[bullerdude]

After all, I'm 25 and always in jeans and t shirt, never a suit. I can imagine it would annoy other WP's?

I know the feeling - I'm 23 and also always wear jeans/t-shirt when travelling. So every now and then I get a number of odd looks at various places from priority boarding to sitting in row 3.

 

[straitman]

My experience is that despite the promises ON the OOL web site that they are non responsive. My wife is not keen at all to ever travel out through OOL due to the appalling treatment she received at security last time through.

 

[Flywithd]

That's a difficult one - Family with small children have been boarded first for most of the flights I've been - except some people don't understand the meaning on small children...

I would think that it should be more like:

- Disabled (Wheelchairs / crutches etc)
- Priority Lane (or at any time)
- Families/Kids
- General

Anything over 5 is not small to me, and that's being lenient. I like your system there but we should keep the Priority lane separate from the rest, like it should be. Disabled, family then general can still board in normal lanes simultaneously while the Premium boarding lane is kept for status pax.

Left lane
- Disabled (Wheelchairs / crutches etc)
- Families/Kids
- General

Right lane
- Priority Lane

needless to say if the standard is 2 staff scanning, the staff member for the general lane should stop and board the assistant required pax meanwhile the staff on the left hand side should keep boarding Premium lane then commence boarding general lane. J, WP and SG have always been invited to board first but it still doesn't stop the staff to board the general pax before the pax in the Priority lane.

 

[SilverShadow]

I know the feeling - I'm 23 and also always wear jeans/t-shirt when travelling. So every now and then I get a number of odd looks at various places from priority boarding to sitting in row 3.

I agree with your sentiment there. I am in casual wear for flights pretty much 99% of the time and would always get some looks from people especially as I sat in row 3. Guess I won't have too much to worry about now that the best I can do as VA Gold is row 7 but at least other perks are there.

My 2 cents in on this is that there was one time that they called for families with children and those needing special assistance and there was a family travelling with one of their kin who was blind who came to the front. There were about 20 of them and they were all trying to board first but the well-trained staff handled it by asking only the person/s that were needed for this blind man's immediate assistance.

I think the funniest thing was the looks from all the other priority passengers thinking that they might just let them all on at once..... common sense prevailed at the end of the day though!

Only other time I've seen actual queue jumpers was in Brisbane and saw 2 out of the group of 4 get away with it and the other 2 shuffled to the back of the line

 

[PDog]

Appalling in Sydney tonight. Priority Queue out to the passage way, pax in front of me discussing that they weren't even gold, but 'didn't matter'. Don't think the attendant even checked. & no they're not in J. Will send feedback to VA, as until tonight it's been fab.

 

[MadFairlane]

A gold DYKWIA attempted to push past me today in Perth... spun my carry on around so he could see my plat tag and that pulled him up

But it is hard being a young FF... too many people assume you shouldnt be there

 

[Flywithd]

Appalling in Sydney tonight. Priority Queue out to the passage way, pax in front of me discussing that they weren't even gold, but 'didn't matter'. Don't think the attendant even checked. & no they're not in J. Will send feedback to VA, as until tonight it's been fab.

You should pulled a DYKWIA and cut ahead of them, I know I would of if its a benefit you get.

 

[PDog]

Lol, possibly, but after a long couple of days away, I was too tired to deal with that! Policing that queue is not my job- as a plat in J my role is to spend as little time as possible at the gate.
I was expecting them to be turned back quick smart as I've seen in the past, but not today.

 

[Flywithd]

They are getting wiser and staff are getting lazier. :/