Airport Queue Etiquette - Good row last night.

podgemonster · 14-08-2013 03:15PM

Fly to Brussels once a month and this queuing to get on a plane is utterly ridiculous. And these people are buisness people with no luggage or kids, fly regualrily AND as it is Aer Lingus, the seat is already booked!!!

Hence I arrive whether it be Dublin or Brussels to find people in suits standing at an unmanned gate yet to open. This soon grows exponetionally as the Airport staff show up and finally the cluster of all mind-fúck occurs as the staff board people in zones (rightly so).

So you could be standing right at the top but if you are not in Zone A you aint getting on. But naturally the queuers don't get out of the way, they stand there and people with Zone A tickets are unsure whether to board or if they are skipping ahead of other Zone A.

I really don't see the panic unless you are a family and are flying Ryanair and want to sit together. But if you are alone or a couple with luggage that can fit under a seat why are you queuing for a flight which won't leave without you, has allocated seating and boards by means of a optimum way to fill the plan to reduce the length of time people spend quening.

People are idiots.

I usually grab a Glass of Leffe in Brussels airport but ironically the Irish gate is ages away from the bar so am constantly straining my neck back from my barstool to see if the queuers are still there, one day i will take a serious hopper.

Cee-Jay-Cee · 14-08-2013 03:21PM

A simple method of avoiding all that Shiite is to pay for priority boarding and after all the sheeple start queuing an hour before the gate even opens, walk to the front of them all and take your priority place ahead of them all.

I find it comical the way one person stands at the gate and all the sheep scurry to queue no matter how long off boarding time is. We were coming back from Spain earlier in the summer and were sitting at the gate area well in advance of boarding time purely because we had to get a bus to the airport and had no where else to go so went and sat at the gate area. I bet my wife I could get everyone to start queuing even though it was over an hour before boarding time, so I got my carry on suitcase and walked to the gate and stood there. Within 5 minutes there was about 40 others standing in the queue. I then lifted my bag and sat down beside my wife again and when the gate opened an hour later and they called priority passengers, I took my place ahead of all the sheep. Idiots.

OldNotWIse · 14-08-2013 03:26PM

CJC999 wrote: »

A simple method of avoiding all that Shiite is to pay for priority boarding and after all the sheeple start queuing an hour before the gate even opens, walk to the front of them all and take your priority place ahead of them all.

I find it comical the way one person stands at the gate and all the sheep scurry to queue no matter how long off boarding time is. We were coming back from Spain earlier in the summer and were sitting at the gate area well in advance of boarding time purely because we had to get a bus to the airport and had no where else to go so went and sat at the gate area. I bet my wife I could get everyone to start queuing even though it was over an hour before boarding time, so I got my carry on suitcase and walked to the gate and stood there. Within 5 minutes there was about 40 others standing in the queue. I then lifted my bag and sat down beside my wife again and when the gate opened an hour later and they called priority passengers, I took my place ahead of all the sheep. Idiots.

magic_murph · 14-08-2013 03:29PM

One advantage of getting on early - you get to place you bag beside the seat you are sitting. Handy to getting off quicker when arriving.

Even though all aerlingus have assigned seating there is still a large pertentage of people that will just sit anywhere then give you the evils for asking them to move.
It's like going to the cinema - how hard is it to sit in the seat you are assigned.
Especially worse if you have paid extra to pick your seat (ailse or close to the bathroom) no chance I am giving up that paid privilege.

If done right going through an airport and flying can be a chilled experience.
Done with muppets just causes stress

I Heart Internet · 14-08-2013 03:35PM

CJC999 wrote: »

A simple method of avoiding all that Shiite is to pay for priority boarding and after all the sheeple start queuing an hour before the gate even opens, walk to the front of them all and take your priority place ahead of them all.

Who's the biggest sheep, the people who queue early to get on the flight or the guy who the airline as gotten money out of to avoid those people?

BeerWolf · 14-08-2013 03:39PM

magic_murph wrote: »

Even though all aerlingus have assigned seating there is still a large pertentage of people that will just sit anywhere then give you the evils for asking them to move.

They can rightly feck off and go sit beside a screaming baby or unruly child!

Frank Black · 14-08-2013 03:46PM

vitani wrote: »

I've always thought that there's kind of an unwritten rule that if you're sitting in the seats beside the boarding gate, that you can just stand up when the boarding opens.

The main reason it's unwritten is that it doesn't exist.

Sitting down near the queue is not queuing.

Glad they got pulled up on it.

OldNotWIse · 14-08-2013 03:54PM

I Heart Internet wrote: »

Who's the biggest sheep, the people who queue early to get on the flight or the guy who the airline as gotten money out of to avoid those people?

The people who queue early.

pauliebdub · 14-08-2013 04:15PM

CJC999 wrote: »

A simple method of avoiding all that Shiite is to pay for priority boarding and after all the sheeple start queuing an hour before the gate even opens, walk to the front of them all and take your priority place ahead of them all.

.

So you can stand in the same stairwell with the sheeple who didnt pay for priority boarding right behind you waiting to be let on to the tarmac to reach the plane. The priority boarders are always the ones to be seen running towards the plane to try and get some value for what they paid :rolleyes:

I Heart Internet · 14-08-2013 04:19PM

I was talked into getting priority boarding on a Ryanair flight once. But I then realised I'd actually be boarding ahead of the disabled, those with babies and the very old and thought, "this is a bit ****ty".

pauliebdub · 14-08-2013 04:20PM

Pageant Messiah wrote: »

Tired and weary late last night coming back from hols I heard an argument break out behind me.

The crux of it was this ...

A standing queue had formed at the boarding gate up to an hour before they actually decided to start boarding (about 20 minutes after gate was meant to be closing) This may have influenced the short tempers.

Anyway the argument developed between two parties.

Group 1 - had been standing in the queue with their bags etc (as a comic aside it had to be pointed out to half of them that they had queue jumped when joining as they kind of barged in)

Couple 2 - had been sitting at the boarding gate (there was 2 rows of seats either side of the queue) and had been sitting there long before I and Party 1 and the other 100 people behind us had arrived and joined the queue.

The couple stood up from their seat as the boarding actually started and stood into / beside the queue which at that point stretched another 100 plus people back. Party 1 took offence and told them they should not have joined the queue there and should have joined it at the end. Couple 2s stance was that they were in the queue from beforehand having arrived and sat down on the seats they occupied an hour before hand and that effectively everyone else who joined the standing queue had skipped them.

The row got quite heated - to the point where party 1 announced they would get their car sick kids to sit beside group 2 on the plane and make their flight miserable. Disgusting. At that point I lost all sympathy for group 2 and applauded the couples stance to not budge an inch.

Who though do you think was right ? Is it acceptable to sit down in seats and expect to step into the standing queue at the point it passes your seat ? I personally would have thought that couple 2 should have at least placed their carry on bags in the queue that had formed in front of them. The fact they had them with them at the seats made things ambiguous. But as I said the group with the kids were absolute gimps in the way they acted.

Group 1 were being childish, but it's impossible to maintain an honest queue at boarding anyway, especially if the congested seating area is very near the boarding gate, people often converge into the side of the queue rather than walk backwards to the end of a long line.

x43r0 · 14-08-2013 04:38PM

CJC999 wrote: »

I bet my wife I could get everyone to start queuing even though it was over an hour before boarding time, so I got my carry on suitcase and walked to the gate and stood there. Within 5 minutes there was about 40 others standing in the queue. I then lifted my bag and sat down beside my wife again and when the gate opened an hour later and they called priority passengers, I took my place ahead of all the sheep. Idiots.

This is brilliant!

Jimoslimos · 14-08-2013 04:42PM

Sir Humphrey Appleby wrote: »

Prebooked seats, no queuing:D

salacious crumb wrote: »

Plus, why bother queueing in the first place? If you fly with any airline that doesn't allocate your seats for free, and you want to make sure to sit with your friends, family, sweetheart or sugardaddy, pay the extra couple of quid for priority boarding...

CJC999 wrote: »

A simple method of avoiding all that Shiite is to pay for priority boarding and after all the sheeple start queuing an hour before the gate even opens, walk to the front of them all and take your priority place ahead of them all.

These posts were brought to you today by the Ryanair marketing department.

It'll be a cold day in hell before I pay extra for "Priority Boarding".

pauliebdub wrote: »

So you can stand in the same stairwell with the sheeple who didnt pay for priority boarding right behind you waiting to be let on to the tarmac to reach the plane. The priority boarders are always the ones to be seen running towards the plane to try and get some value for what they paid :rolleyes:

I remember waiting to board a Ryanair flight when the call for boarding (priority first of course) was made. Of course the usual throng of non-priority passengers had gathered around the gate anyway. One woman (priority boarder running a bit late obviously) was stuck trying to make her way through the crowd, "Excuse me, can I get past please, excuse me..." The call then came for all remaining passengers..."LET ME THROUGH NOW - I HAVE PRIORITY BOARDING!!" and all politeness was forgotten.

Paying extra for the stress and hassle of making sure you get your money's worth.

homerjay2005 · 14-08-2013 04:42PM

people who queue for flights are idiots, end of.

desbrook · 14-08-2013 04:48PM

homerjay2005 wrote: »

people who queue for flights are idiots, end of.

Except at least they are queuing to sit down. People who queue to get off planes are only rushing to stand for 20 minutes plus waiting for their luggage which is totally random anyway! !

Mint Sauce · 14-08-2013 04:51PM

Ryanair has introduced some kind of culture of queuing at airports. I usally fly with Aerlingus, where you have assigned seats, so really no need to queue.

However, people will still seem to stand for as long as it takes. One Christmas Eve, last of the day flying out of Knock, about 30 people in the departure lounge, including staff, one group of people started queuing, flight delayed, but update in 20-30 minutes, said group stayed standing by gate till update. Flight was eventually delayed by 2-3 hrs, long enough to get the regulatory refreshment vouchers. Same group of people started queuing again when the flight was called, so little people on the flight you could have sat one per row.

Again, assigned seats, 30 people on the flight, why queue.

omega666 · 14-08-2013 04:54PM

pauliebdub wrote: »

So you can stand in the same stairwell with the sheeple who didnt pay for priority boarding right behind you waiting to be let on to the tarmac to reach the plane. The priority boarders are always the ones to be seen running towards the plane to try and get some value for what they paid :rolleyes:

Avoid the backlog from dopes blocking the aisle while putting thier bags away in the overhead locker. Avoid The Panic as you realise the only seat left is beside a crying baby. To watch the look of disgust on the faces of the people at the top of the queue as you stroll past after they've been standing there for the best part of an hour. All for the price of a pint.

gobnaitolunacy · 14-08-2013 05:01PM

Mint Sauce wrote: »

Ryanair has introduced some kind of culture of queuing at airports. I usally fly with Aerlingus, where you have assigned seats, so really no need to queue.

I'm pretty sure this queue nonsense pre-dates Ryanair, it's always been the case for as long as I remember.

wtlltw · 14-08-2013 05:01PM

I was at Manchester airport recently waiting for my flight back to Dublin.

Ryanair called the flight to Ibiza, looked at the queue it was empty, people just strolled over, went got a coffee, etc.

Meanwhile, Dublin flight gets called and the queue is already packed and everyone's ready to lynch any queue hoppers. Pure comedy

salacious crumb · 14-08-2013 05:02PM

Jimoslimos wrote: »

These posts were brought to you today by the Ryanair marketing department.

It'll be a cold day in hell before I pay extra for "Priority Boarding".

Me either. What I said was if you fly with an airline that doesn't allocate seats and you want to be sure of sitting with whoever you're travelling with, pay the extras. I never have and never will. In a later post I also said that I wait til the queue dies down and then get a seat in the first couple of rows. I frequently travel with my girlfriend, who like me, doesn't stand in queues and doesn't pay for priority boarding, and we can actually travel on the same plane and not sit beside each other for a couple of hours

ronan45 · 14-08-2013 05:02PM

Why didnt you film it for youtube for us all to larf at ?

conorhal · 14-08-2013 05:03PM

I Heart Internet wrote: »

I think you confused the two groups somewhere near the end of your story!

My question would be - is the plane going to leave without any of ye?? Answer: No.

People who queue for an hour (or even 10-15 minutes) to get on a plane THAT WON'T LEAVE WITHOUT THEM are utterly idiotic.

I have some sympathy for the sitters....the standees seem more childish than them.

My advice: sit in the bar or sit quietly and read your book and then go and claim your seat without queing like a f@nny.

Hear! Hear!

I'll never understand the wierd phenomenon of the 'Eager Beaver' and the 'Queue Lemming'.
You see it on busses too, the bus may be a full 5 minutes from it's final stop in town, but the eager beaver who's determined to first off the bus heads for the exit anyway and then you'll get a load queue lemming immediately joining them. Then they all stand uncomfortably on the stairs getting rocked all over the place. We're all getting off at the same stop, just bloody sit there until the bus arrives and stops, what are you saving yourself by that discomfort, 30 seconds?

It reall baffles me when it comes to airports, I always fly aerlingus which means that I always pick my assigned seat when I print my boarding card at the kiosks in the airport, so why would I stand in a queue for half an hour to board, like you say, the plane not going anywhere without me and queuing won't save me any time or get me a better seat, so just read the paper and relax!

shanered · 14-08-2013 05:06PM

There is no right or wrong only the laws of the jungle

wtlltw · 14-08-2013 05:08PM

ronan45 wrote: »

Why didnt you film it for youtube for us all to larf at ?

Just book a ticket for a very cheap flight, it's a common occurrence

FTA69 · 14-08-2013 05:09PM

I used to queue at Ryanair flights for the simple reason that you are more likely to get a seat near a door. I never had checked in luggage so I could grab my bad and get out post haste. If I didn't queue, I usually ended up in the middle of the plane on a middle seat and had to wait ten minutes while everyone pr*cked about getting their bag down.

Queuing for an assigned seat is ridiculous though.

corktina · 14-08-2013 05:10PM

Deleted User wrote: »

I mostly fly aer lingus and I always book the front window seat. They have to make room for your bag because it can't be on the floor in those seats. Extra leg room and first of the plane. No queues. Worth every penny of the extra tenner!

In answer to the OP. I think really group 2 would be right, if it had been a huge group of people trying to hop in front of them then yeh - fight your case. But it was one couple, and group 2 came out of it sounding silly (by your account anyway).

ha! I'm in the UK now and on the way over was in row 2...the nice people in row 1 put there bags under their own seat and I had nowhere for my feet....

Pacing Mule · 14-08-2013 08:36PM

I Heart Internet wrote: »

I think you confused the two groups somewhere near the end of your story!

My question would be - is the plane going to leave without any of ye?? Answer: No.

People who queue for an hour (or even 10-15 minutes) to get on a plane THAT WON'T LEAVE WITHOUT THEM are utterly idiotic.

I have some sympathy for the sitters....the standees seem more childish than them.

My advice: sit in the bar or sit quietly and read your book and then go and claim your seat without queing like a f@nny.

Edited OP to make it clearer.

Was in the queue early myself due to needing to guarantee a row of seats together as we had a child and a 4 month old baby with us too. Also I think it's fair to get on early with a baby to allow everyone else as much chance as possible to sit away from us and punish the stragglers

It was indeed a Ryanair flight for those asking and it was a 4 hour one at that.

Frank Black · 14-08-2013 08:42PM

corktina wrote: »

ha! I'm in the UK now and on the way over was in row 2...the nice people in row 1 put there bags under their own seat and I had nowhere for my feet....

But that's your space for either your feet or bag.
I would have kicked their bag out - it would have been moved to an overhead locker by an air stewardess.

Tazio · 14-08-2013 09:19PM

Deleted User wrote: »

I mostly fly aer lingus and I always book the front window seat. They have to make room for your bag because it can't be on the floor in those seats. Extra leg room and first of the plane. No queues. Worth every penny of the extra tenner!

In answer to the OP. I think really group 2 would be right, if it had been a huge group of people trying to hop in front of them then yeh - fight your case. But it was one couple, and group 2 came out of it sounding silly (by your account anyway).

Totally agree with you there! Aer Lingus front left seat always.. no matter what flight... it's the only way to go...

"A1" is my seat!

Also, I always board nearly last too... don't like sitting on a plane a minute more than I need to.... especially it's going to be a long one...

T

bruschi · 14-08-2013 09:42PM

pauliebdub wrote: »

Aer lingus have an excellent process for boarding, calling it out boarding by section. Start at the back 10 rows, then the front and finally the middle section. Sorts out the mad scramble you see with other airlines. There are always muppets who stand at the gate even though there is about 40 mins before boarding commences.

would generally always be the last to board, but having recently had to travel with an infant, getting on early was a must, sorting out bags and baby food etc. and settling the child before flight starts.

the muppets who burst on ahead even though they clearly ask for people with disabilities or kids to board first really annoyed me. In particular on one flight when a load of people queued up, and the staff wouldnt let people on who werent with kids or in the last 10 rows, so what do these fools do? just stand like idiots in the same spot blocking up the whole gate and looking bemused when they show their boarding card and the hostess says we are boarding rows 30 plus, you are in row 15.

Airport Queue Etiquette - Good row last night.

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