Fastest Way To Load A Plane

[BLLB]

Thought the folks on this board would find this interesting. MythBusters researched the fastest way to load a plane.

https://www.yahoo.com/travel/what's...ne?-science-knows-the-answer-97816926397.html

Not sure if posting the link works, I've never done it before.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Direct link:

http://mythbustersresults.com/airplane-boarding

 

[CarolMN]

I didn't see any families or children in the control group. How many parents would let a small child board by himself/herself? Assuming the answer is not very many, I think the results would not be so good for the W-M-A method.

Too bad the airlines can't enforce a rule that lets those with carry-ons that fit under the seat board first and disembark first. IMO, it's the people who have to use the overhead compartments that slow things down the most.

 

[kamik86]

Wow so that study means that for those of us that don't mind southwest's no assigned seats it really is fastest to board.

The article did say that some were to be boarding small children. I wonder if the WILMA method took that into account (small children go with the parent they sit next to?).

 

[goofy4tink]

It's those folks that amble on, can't seem to figure out where their seat is, then have an issue stowing their things....'But honey, what if I need something from the bag? I need the opening facing out.' And that takes half the bin, making it hard for others in the row to find space. Or those who stand in the aisle, saying they're going to be sitting for the next three hours so standing for tight now, but blocking others
Then, there are those that stand in the aisle, making it impossible for others to get their bags down when on the ground. Or those who grumble about the slowness of others, but take their own sweet time getting their stuff collected and off the plane.
I'm not sure what the issue is....board, go to your row, stow your bags, sit down. Reverse it upon landing. Neither is the time to stand and chat, or to rearrange your stuff!

 

[kamik86]

One of the comments did have a good point though. Especially if everyone had the same seat assignment every time then the first try that they ran was a practice run for all the others. I wonder if you ran back to front again if it would go faster... just because by that point everyone knew where there seat was.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

I didn't see any families or children in the control group. How many parents would let a small child board by himself/herself? Assuming the answer is not very many, I think the results would not be so good for the W-M-A.....

This is a nonissue. I don't know of any airlines with this boarding method which do not allow families to board together, whether or not children are involved.

 

[sam_gordon]

One of the comments did have a good point though. Especially if everyone had the same seat assignment every time then the first try that they ran was a practice run for all the others. I wonder if you ran back to front again if it would go faster... just because by that point everyone knew where there seat was.

Except they didn't always have a seat assignment.

 

[CarolMN]

This is a nonissue. I don't know of any airlines with this boarding method which do not allow families to board together, whether or not children are involved.

My point was that I didn't see any families with small children in the tests. Maybe I missed them. If they didn't have families in the test, I don't think the results can be relied upon enough to make the judgments they made.

 

[bumbershoot]

I didn't see any families or children in the control group. How many parents would let a small child board by himself/herself? Assuming the answer is not very many, I think the results would not be so good for the W-M-A method.

The WMA method gets messed up in real life because they DO let parents and kids board together. But they don't STATE that on the ticket (or anywhere) so you get nervous and/or confused parents wasting the gate agents' time by going up and asking. And then all the groups of parents and kids who are boarding all wrong for WMA slow it all down compared to true WMA seating methods.

IRL it doesn't work because kids travel and they do let them on together. Changes it all.

Wow so that study means that for those of us that don't mind southwest's no assigned seats it really is fastest to board.

Which is why they do it that way!



My recent SW flight involved the worst examples of bin-space-hoarding. People have no problems putting their stuff in sideways and taking up ridiculous amounts of space with tiny items! So frustrating!

 

[seashoreCM]

Letting families board together does not detract that much from the window-middle-aisle method because everyone for that row sit down together.

Conclusions as to which boarding method is fastest cannot be drawn without several trials of each method where the test subjects have different seat assignments or seating zones each time.