One of the many small benefits of business class or airline status that ease the travel experience comes down to avoiding the boarding bottleneck.
Instead of trying to balance one’s carry-on bag as someone in front of you holds up the line by moving around items in the overhead compartment, those who board first can come in without crowding and get first pick of overhead space. The convenience factor is enough to push some people to try to sneak in early before their zone is called (either by faking disabilities or simply coming up early in the hopes that the gate agent won’t bother sending them back.)
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In an effort to crack down on the latter, American Airlines (AAL) is testing technology that will beep if someone attempts to scan their ticket before their zone has been called.
AA says new software offers ‘greater visibility into boarding progress’
As first reported by aviation website View From The Wing, the technology to allow for this has been quietly getting tested at American Airlines gates in New Mexico’s Albuquerque and Arizona’s Tucson over the last few months and will soon also be rolled out to D.C.’s Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA).
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"We are in the early phase of testing new technology used during the boarding process,” American Airlines said in a statement on the new software. “The new technology is designed to ensure customers receive the benefits of priority boarding with ease and helps improve the boarding experience by providing greater visibility into boarding progress for our team.”
At the moment, gate agents are the ones who need to turn down passengers who try to board early and do not always have the time or desire to argue as a long line of other travelers forms behind.
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American Airlines also said that it is pleased with how the software has worked at select airports so far as it both informs the passengers that they cannot pass without the chance to argue with the gate agent and physically prevents them from doing it by not opening the gate.
With ten zones ranging from a special one for ConciergeKey members who spend over $50,000 a year with the airline to Group Nine for basic economy, American Airlines has one of the largest number of zones out of any airline.
Delta, which formerly called its boarding zones by names like “Pre-Boarding” or the “Main Cabin” to differentiate itself from other airlines, went back to a basic system ranging from Zone One to Zone Eight in order to decrease confusion around which zone one is in.
The airline had initially switched to the name system in 2019 over what it said would make the travel experience feel more “personal” but did not see it wield the results it had expected.
"This transition to numbered zones will provide customers more clarity into the boarding sequence and make the boarding process more intuitive — especially for infrequent travelers and/or customers who might face a language barrier at the gate," a Delta spokesperson said in April 2024.
