Palma airport/ ryanair

adam88

Hi all. Just a quick few observations on my recent visit to Palma.

Firstly we were loaded through the air bridge and it took for ages. I can see now why mol wants both doors used. Why is the air bridge used in Palma. Is it a security issue. I always questioned the safety if having up to 188 passengers loose on an active apron.

This brings me on toy second question while waiting for our flight we were in the A block. The incoming passengers were delivered into our area. I thought that was one of the cardinal rules about airports and arrivals and departures were never allowed mix. As this was a holiday flight, it was no surprise that a few people knew each other and sure they had to stop to talk to each other. Very suspect

highlydebased

Some airports insist they use them- Malaga and Alicante being two I've experienced. There are probably more.

galwayjohn89

adam88 wrote: »

I thought that was one of the cardinal rules about airports and arrivals and departures were never allowed mix. As this was a holiday flight, it was no surprise that a few people knew each other and sure they had to stop to talk to each other. Very suspect

I thought that was only from a immigration point of view. I know every airport in America i've used arriving as a domestic passenger everyone mingles same with plenty of other airports such a Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok (only came to mind as I traveled there last week)

kub

OP I am not at all doubting what you are saying re Ryanair and air bridges.

But I for one would love to see a RYR attached to a bridge.

Fagashlil

adam88 wrote: »

Hi all. Just a quick few observations on my recent visit to Palma.

Firstly we were loaded through the air bridge and it took for ages. I can see now why mol wants both doors used. Why is the air bridge used in Palma. Is it a security issue. I always questioned the safety if having up to 188 passengers loose on an active apron.

It's a regulation that in most of the Spanish airports we fly into airbridges must be used, only exception I can think of straight off is MJV and the occasional canaries, usually ACE when the airport is busy. Used be a nightmare trying to get people to move to the back to sit, at least now with assigned seating they can board from 33-1.

Jack1985

FR do indeed use air bridges at different airports, off the top of my head they include: Alicante, Barcelona-El Prat, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote (Although when busy you will probably be remote), London-Gatwick, Malaga, Menorca (Mahon), Palma Majorca, Tenerife North and Tenerife South. Only reason I know the airports is they require single airbridge use especially at major AENA airports, Gatwick allows airlines to use a rear Stairs on top of the airbridge to increase the pace of boarding times.

Regards Palma it is indeed an interesting feature to see arriving passengers into the same area as departing passengers only on the A module at PMI, the reason for this is the flights using this module are only arriving from Ireland and the UK, hence the risk of those passengers wanting to depart back home is fairly low since there arriving on holiday.

But I for one would love to see a RYR attached to a bridge.

Here's a pic from Gatwick.

homerjay2005

was in Palma myself this week and noticed it was strange alright that passengers were coming in and then going out of same gates and completely mixing together, same happens in gates 200 in Dublin.

lovely airport though in Palma though of course people still were queuing up about 45 minutes before their flights which is something i cannot figure out.

Julius Seizure

homerjay2005 wrote: »

was in Palma myself this week and noticed it was strange alright that passengers were coming in and then going out of same gates and completely mixing together, same happens in gates 200 in Dublin.

lovely airport though in Palma though of course people still were queuing up about 45 minutes before their flights which is something i cannot figure out.

I suppose this is why the 200 gates are one way; once you're in there the only way out is on a plane. You can't go back to the departure area.

homerjay2005

Julius Seizure wrote: »

I suppose this is why the 200 gates are one way; once you're in there the only way out is on a plane. You can't go back to the departure area.

you could in theory go out via baggage!

LXFlyer

There are plenty of airports where incoming and outgoing passengers mix - by no means restricted to Spain.

knipex

lxflyer wrote: »

There are plenty of airports where incoming and outgoing passengers mix - by no means restricted to Spain.

Changai one of the busiest airports in the world allows passengers both arriving and departing to mix.

All have passed through security clearance so no problem..

Terrontress

knipex wrote: »

Changai one of the busiest airports in the world allows passengers both arriving and departing to mix.

All have passed through security clearance so no problem..

Don't planes which fly in to some parts of Terminal 1 in Dublin have arriving and departing passengers mingling? Maybe it has changed recently but I have definitely arrived to the octagonal area and walked up the escalator I came down to leave that morning.

Gatwick's domestic arrivals used to come in to the same area as departures until a year or so ago.

View Profile

As a passenger connecting without checked luggage I find this mingling of arriving/departing passengers quite useful especially if your connection flight is from the same terminal.
I really don't see why this can't be more widely used within European airports.

Also the whole schengen/non schengen thing seems to be a dinosaur of an arrangement. We are all EU buddies so why segregate the Paddies and Brits from the rest of Europe?!

Julius Seizure

View Profile wrote: »

As a passenger connecting without checked luggage I find this mingling of arriving/departing passengers quite useful especially if your connection flight is from the same terminal.
I really don't see why this can't be more widely used within European airports.

Also the whole schengen/non schengen thing seems to be a dinosaur of an arrangement. We are all EU buddies so why segregate the Paddies and Brits from the rest of Europe?!

Because the UK didn't want to join the Schengen (even though we did) but if they didn't and we did we would need land borders with the north, so instead we formed the Common Travel Area with them. Which is why IRL-UK flights are all classed as domestic (and you technically don't need a passport). Same for the ferry and Enterprise etc.

View Profile

Julius Seizure wrote: »

Because the UK didn't want to join the Schengen (even though we did) but if they didn't and we did we would need land borders with the north, so instead we formed the Common Travel Area with them. Which is why IRL-UK flights are all classed as domestic (and you technically don't need a passport). Same for the ferry and Enterprise etc.

Which is a load of bollex when I arrive into Dublin from the UK and I still have to go through passport control.

And on another departure from the original thread (sorry, im having a rant) why in Dublin do the fancy expensive new automatic passport machines only operate monday to friday from 9-5?? Does the machine need weekends off to spend with the family.

markpb

View Profile wrote: »

And on another departure from the original thread (sorry, im having a rant) why in Dublin do the fancy expensive new automatic passport machines only operate monday to friday from 9-5?? Does the machine need weekends off to spend with the family.

That always cracks me up. You couldn't make up something like that.

kub

markpb wrote: »

That always cracks me up. You couldn't make up something like that.

You can be assured that some trade union is responsible for that as staff probably earn more outside of the hours which that machine operates.

knipex

knipex wrote: »

Changai one of the busiest airports in the world allows passengers both arriving and departing to mix.

All have passed through security clearance so no problem..

On scrap that

Just remembered that changai do security clearance at the gate...