What do you do when pax don't show at the gate ?
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I'm sure many pax get caught out by the delay at passport control/hand luggage screening...
I arrived at Stansted once with loads of time to spare. As there was NO queue at Passport control I went for breakfast. Twenty mins later the queue was almost out of the door of the terminal. It took ages to get through. Just made the flight ok without holding it up but others wern't so lucky. Perhaps they should make an announcement when the queue reaches say 10 mins?
On one ocassion I arrived two hours before my short haul flight only to find it was delayed for several hours, grrrr. They didn't know which gate it would be when I checked in and the airport _appeared_ to have separate passport control gates for A1-10, B1-10 etc. When it finally appeared on the board I found that channel was closed (heck the whole airport was almost closed)! I had to hunt round to find a member of security staff to let me through. Then as I _ran_ to the gate I was met by irate cabin crew who wanted to know where I had been. I had to reminded them it was they who were late not me.
I arrived at Stansted once with loads of time to spare. As there was NO queue at Passport control I went for breakfast. Twenty mins later the queue was almost out of the door of the terminal. It took ages to get through. Just made the flight ok without holding it up but others wern't so lucky. Perhaps they should make an announcement when the queue reaches say 10 mins?
On one ocassion I arrived two hours before my short haul flight only to find it was delayed for several hours, grrrr. They didn't know which gate it would be when I checked in and the airport _appeared_ to have separate passport control gates for A1-10, B1-10 etc. When it finally appeared on the board I found that channel was closed (heck the whole airport was almost closed)! I had to hunt round to find a member of security staff to let me through. Then as I _ran_ to the gate I was met by irate cabin crew who wanted to know where I had been. I had to reminded them it was they who were late not me.
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out of our control most times
i find that it is difficult to get anyone to actually look for the bags and just today in PMI, four pax late, with multiple bags. started looking for the bags and then pax show up before all the bags are located. then the agent comes into the flight deck telling me that pax are already on board. not much since in getting them off and sit waiting for their bags to be found. we pushed with one minute to spare. but then the push back tug driver then noticed that he had a flat tire and then we had to wait for another tug.
do you as captain go downstairs and help (or force them to look for bags?) i have a few times and have jumped up into the hold to help look for the bags and never found any that match the number!
and that might be why the bag people are not very motivated to look in any timely manner.
i ask the agent to get the names and make some note as to their lateness, but i suspect that nothing is done. i have had names in my hands, and give them to an agent, and something inside tells me that the list finds it way to the first trash bin in sight.
i made a few PA's as the last pax boards, but i don't think that does any good either.
so my conclusion is that until the airline management get motivated enough to make a practice of penalizing the guilty passengers, not much will change.
sometimes, it ended up being a cock-up at the gate rather than any actual missing pax.
do you as captain go downstairs and help (or force them to look for bags?) i have a few times and have jumped up into the hold to help look for the bags and never found any that match the number!
and that might be why the bag people are not very motivated to look in any timely manner.
i ask the agent to get the names and make some note as to their lateness, but i suspect that nothing is done. i have had names in my hands, and give them to an agent, and something inside tells me that the list finds it way to the first trash bin in sight.
i made a few PA's as the last pax boards, but i don't think that does any good either.
so my conclusion is that until the airline management get motivated enough to make a practice of penalizing the guilty passengers, not much will change.
sometimes, it ended up being a cock-up at the gate rather than any actual missing pax.
Paxing All Over The World
B Sousa: Yep, I mean the drunk and disorderly, no offence intended to those in your situation.
stator: Useful feedback. My guess is that you are correct, no one wants to be the first to move against this problem. We have seen some effort about handbagage and this might be next. Thatb said, EZY have just opened the gate a bit on hand luggage weight.
It needs some wannabee management spark to calculate the annual cost of late pax.
stator: Useful feedback. My guess is that you are correct, no one wants to be the first to move against this problem. We have seen some effort about handbagage and this might be next. Thatb said, EZY have just opened the gate a bit on hand luggage weight.
It needs some wannabee management spark to calculate the annual cost of late pax.
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Before we hang the poor guy, sometimes its not really the pax fault. A gate change can really bugger things up, you can arrive at the gate early, usually a transit pax, and they announce a gate change in some language that no one can understand, you sit there thinking this is an empty flight, how wonderful! Then 400 screaming irrate pax's at the real gate or onboard calling for your head
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******
Still a mystery how people can check bags then miss the flight first thing in the morning. Perhaps they have checked in bags the previous day, then don't make it to the airport on the morning itself, for whatever reason. Getting sloshed seems unlikely at that time.
Momo
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Well. maybe it is is due to the line being too long at Costas coffee???
Remember being stuck for nearly half an hour at their outlet on the dep lounge in BHX early in the morning for a 0645 FlyBE dep to GLA. I made the flight well in time - but the bus which took us to the aircraftt got delayed due to a nice old gentleman boarding the wrong bus - he was to to board the EDI flight from the next gate. We still thought we would depart on time after boarding, but only to be told after about 20 min by the pilot that he arrived late being a last minute replacement having been called in from home after the original captain couldnt make the flight. He also subsequently explained that we missed our ATC slot so there was further delay. But all the same, being properly informed by everyone concerned meant there were no complaints.
Compare this with Indian domestic services when the reason for delays almost inevitably is "LATE ARRIVAL OF INCOMING AIRCRAFT". A remarkable and perfectly correct statement which explains nothng! After all why talk more when u can get away with less!
Still a mystery how people can check bags then miss the flight first thing in the morning. Perhaps they have checked in bags the previous day, then don't make it to the airport on the morning itself, for whatever reason. Getting sloshed seems unlikely at that time.
Momo
*******
Well. maybe it is is due to the line being too long at Costas coffee???
Remember being stuck for nearly half an hour at their outlet on the dep lounge in BHX early in the morning for a 0645 FlyBE dep to GLA. I made the flight well in time - but the bus which took us to the aircraftt got delayed due to a nice old gentleman boarding the wrong bus - he was to to board the EDI flight from the next gate. We still thought we would depart on time after boarding, but only to be told after about 20 min by the pilot that he arrived late being a last minute replacement having been called in from home after the original captain couldnt make the flight. He also subsequently explained that we missed our ATC slot so there was further delay. But all the same, being properly informed by everyone concerned meant there were no complaints.
Compare this with Indian domestic services when the reason for delays almost inevitably is "LATE ARRIVAL OF INCOMING AIRCRAFT". A remarkable and perfectly correct statement which explains nothng! After all why talk more when u can get away with less!
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Folks will remember what it was like at HKG last year in the middle of the SARS thing - the W terminal area (gates 40-80) virtually shut down.
Why then with monotonous regularity would pax mistake seat numbers (say 60D) as gate numbers and trundle off to Gate 60 which is a) dark, b) empty, and c) devoid of anything resembling an aircraft; and then sit there waiting for a,b and c to magically change.
Got to the point if missing pax were from seats in R40 thru 60 we'd just send someone out to the W terminal and be sure of finding them.
Why then with monotonous regularity would pax mistake seat numbers (say 60D) as gate numbers and trundle off to Gate 60 which is a) dark, b) empty, and c) devoid of anything resembling an aircraft; and then sit there waiting for a,b and c to magically change.
Got to the point if missing pax were from seats in R40 thru 60 we'd just send someone out to the W terminal and be sure of finding them.
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do you as captain go downstairs and help (or force them to look for bags?)
Sly Lowlife Freight
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oopps! guilty of this once in my life, drove from Indianapolis to Cinncinatti last year and checked in nice and early. Me and the guy with me then went for a beer, walk around the shops etc and I was surprised to hear us being paged, sauntered up to the Delta desk to get a good shouting at and told to run to the gate because we're holding the aircraft. Couldn't work out why the flight had been brought forward - we were halfway home before we worked out that cvg is an hour ahead of ind! - I always check the local time now.
I'm sure that the ground staff wouldn't mind the Captain going down and helping find the bags. They'd probably be a bit p!ssed off if he started trying to organise things that they are more practised in, or started throwing his weight around 'forcing' them to look for bags.
Of course if it works both ways and they can go up to the flight deck and start twiddling switches when the a/c is tech??
Of course if it works both ways and they can go up to the flight deck and start twiddling switches when the a/c is tech??
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yesterday after putting out calls for this passenger he came running to the gate as i was taking the tag no. to the loaders for offloading. despatch was on the stairs waiting to close the door. i jokingly clapped my hands,and he caught what i meant. When the a/c was closed up in comes despatch to say the no.1 had put out an announcement for the whole a/c to clap as he came onboard. oops
on friday our flt to man was delayed by a couple of hrs. whilst at the gate it was delayed for a further 15mins due a no show at the gate.
It turns out that the passenger opted to fly with another carrier but as he had no bags didn't feel it was important to inform the ckin staff. ANNOYING!
on friday our flt to man was delayed by a couple of hrs. whilst at the gate it was delayed for a further 15mins due a no show at the gate.
It turns out that the passenger opted to fly with another carrier but as he had no bags didn't feel it was important to inform the ckin staff. ANNOYING!
Lady Lexxington
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Why, oh Why, oh Why do I bother telling pax the boarding time, only to have them turn up late to the gate stating "oh, but it doesn't go until XYZ time and now i've missed my flight." As the a/c pushes back into the distance!!!
The boarding time is to help us get everybody to the gate on time and then commence a smooth turn round without having to play the bags or pax first game.
sorry about the rant but there it is!!
The boarding time is to help us get everybody to the gate on time and then commence a smooth turn round without having to play the bags or pax first game.
sorry about the rant but there it is!!
I either tend to ignore airport shops and go straight to the gate, or I make my best to allow plenty of time for wandering around at the airport before I go to the gate.
However a couple of issues a) the slow check in procedure (not pax faults allways) and b)the understanding by some SLF that this immediate boarding may mean 15 or more minutes wait at the gate -> so why bother?
Back to my hole to fight the minor cold and cough I am having since Friday!
Rwy in Sight
However a couple of issues a) the slow check in procedure (not pax faults allways) and b)the understanding by some SLF that this immediate boarding may mean 15 or more minutes wait at the gate -> so why bother?
Back to my hole to fight the minor cold and cough I am having since Friday!
Rwy in Sight
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Sometimes it's really not the pax his fault he or she holds up an aircraft. The airlines sell sometimes unbelievable short transit times. Even up to 50 mins transit time. This is at AMS i am talking about which is a big single terminal airport with some huge walking distances. So it happens that the bags make it , but the pax don't due to getting lost, not able to walk that fast or liking the big tax free shopping area.
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That short is OK so long as the airline handles it well. Cathay at HKG allow 45mins as the minimum legal connecting time, but if you arrive off a flight with a connection less than about 90 mins then you will find a person holding a sign with your name at the end of the airbridge and they will make sure that you get to the new gate. This sort of things is what sorts out the premier airlines from the rest.
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Lexxity
I can see where you're coming from, but pax do learn by experience.
easyJet, at STN domestic term, have a habit of setting the FIDs to Final Call, before the aircraft has even landed.
This certainly gets pax to the gate ...... but they are highly p!ssed off with the long wait and no doubt resolve to ignore the screens in future.
The trouble is that they then take this learning to other plces, where this practice is not used and troubel starts.
I can see where you're coming from, but pax do learn by experience.
easyJet, at STN domestic term, have a habit of setting the FIDs to Final Call, before the aircraft has even landed.
This certainly gets pax to the gate ...... but they are highly p!ssed off with the long wait and no doubt resolve to ignore the screens in future.
The trouble is that they then take this learning to other plces, where this practice is not used and troubel starts.
Another problem are the announcements in the lounges being generally a bit on the late side. At Arlanda, if you're on a BA flight, you need to get moving (well, going to the loo and then leaving!) when the screen announces boarding, not wait for the announcement. LHR T4 can be a bit that way, too. We all know why - I suppose if you're a frequent enough flyer to have access to these lounges, you should have enough 'nous' to not be late.
Thread Starter
easyJet, at STN domestic term, have a habit of setting the FIDs to Final Call, before the aircraft has even landed.
If only BAA acted as real airport managers, rather than shopping centre developers, they would ensure that all their tenants acted in a responsible and accurate manner in all information aspects. But they couldn't care less and the tenants thus take their cue from them.
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SLF is and should be told to be at the gate 30 mins prior to departure.
Trains and buses dont page customers, I dont know why airlines do.
Recently I had a couple of CC on days off using staff travel, they turned up in the middle of the bag search with a couple of fresh coffees in hand. We let them on but sent a quick email to staff travel so hopefully they lost there benefits as they really should know better.
Trains and buses dont page customers, I dont know why airlines do.
Recently I had a couple of CC on days off using staff travel, they turned up in the middle of the bag search with a couple of fresh coffees in hand. We let them on but sent a quick email to staff travel so hopefully they lost there benefits as they really should know better.
wirgin blew
>SLF is and should be told to be at the gate 30 mins prior to departure.
SLF already spend enough sitting around waiting. Or at many gates, standing, because there aren't enough seats - and plenty of SLF hog two of the few that there are, using an extra one for their carry ons.
Nevertheless, the airline isn't run for the benefit of the employees, as some like to think, and you do need to consider the SLF who are actually doing the paying. Admittedly, they're not paying enough in general, because air travel is too cheap these days, which is why the service the SLF get isn't generally anything like as good as it was 20 years ago.......
In any service industry, the customer is nearly always right, and even if he isn't, it's probably worth letting him think he is....unless you don't want his future business. Maybe if it's the ''once a year to Ibiza" charter flight, you don't mind too much, but the regular scheduled airlne business is another matter. We do have some choice still!
>SLF is and should be told to be at the gate 30 mins prior to departure.
SLF already spend enough sitting around waiting. Or at many gates, standing, because there aren't enough seats - and plenty of SLF hog two of the few that there are, using an extra one for their carry ons.
Nevertheless, the airline isn't run for the benefit of the employees, as some like to think, and you do need to consider the SLF who are actually doing the paying. Admittedly, they're not paying enough in general, because air travel is too cheap these days, which is why the service the SLF get isn't generally anything like as good as it was 20 years ago.......
In any service industry, the customer is nearly always right, and even if he isn't, it's probably worth letting him think he is....unless you don't want his future business. Maybe if it's the ''once a year to Ibiza" charter flight, you don't mind too much, but the regular scheduled airlne business is another matter. We do have some choice still!
Thread Starter
SLF is and should be told to be at the gate 30 mins prior to departure