At American Airlines gates at three U.S. airports, passengers who attempt to board before their scheduled group will get an audible ‘ding’ when their boarding pass is scanned.
Then a gate agent will tell them that it is not yet their turn to board, and that they should wait their turn.
The trial program, currently being used at Albuquerque International Sunport, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Tucson International Airport, according to CBS News, is meant to stop people from crowding gates before they board and to ensure people with priority boarding passes get the perks they paid for.
“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,” an American Airlines spokesperson told air travel blog View from the Wing.
A poster on Reddit flying out of Albuquerque earlier this month witnessed the new system in action. Poster Rich_Ad6606 wrote that “several people ahead of me when trying to scan their boarding pass got an error beep. The gate agent proceeded to tell them ‘sir/[ma’am] you are group 5, please step aside.’ Was awesome to see this enforced.”
There is still some discretion allowed under the new system. American Airlines told CBS News that, for example, if a family member in a later boarding group wanted to get on the plane with other family members in an earlier group, the agent at the gate can choose to let them do so despite the beep.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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