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>>> Of course, I am opposed to jet bridges on principle. I prefer the classic, drive-up airstairs. Some of the international stations I fly to still employ tho

>>> Of course, I am opposed to jet bridges on principle. I prefer the classic, drive-up airstairs. Some of the international stations I fly to still employ those old-timey stairs, and I always get a thrill from them. The stairs also have fewer failure modes.

ghaff 5y ago
They're also terrible for people with mobility issues and you're exposed to the elements.
- Symbiote 5y ago
  They're also impractical for larger planes — you'll only use stairs on an A320 or B737. I've disembarked from a B777 via stairs following an emergency landing. The stairs were narrower than the ones for a smaller aircraft, and much more wobbly. We were limited to 3 people at a time on them, so it was very slow. The 777's door is also considerably higher up, about 5m vs. about 2.5m. Size comparison: https://imgur.com/gallery/bxyI0Er https://imgur.com/gallery/bxyI0Er
toast0 5y ago
I love the stairs, and especially when they bring stairs to the front and the rear of the plane, but they're not great for people with mobility challenges. I guess dual jetbridges could be an option to speed boarding and deboarding, but I've never seen that happen.
- mmcconnell1618 5y ago
  How about triple jet bridges for an A380? https://youtu.be/64JXmuYZ7pA?t=55 https://youtu.be/64JXmuYZ7pA?t=55
  - toast0 5y ago
    Yeah, but I'm probably never flying on one of those. Almost all my flights are on narrow body planes.
- antsar 5y ago
  Multiple jetbridges is a thing. I've boarded a 787 in LHR over a secondary jetbridge (the first was for business class only). > Some airports with international gates have two or even three bridges for larger aircraft with multiple entrances. In theory, this allows for faster disembarking of larger aircraft, though it is quite common, especially on aircraft such as Boeing 747s and Boeing 777s, to use one bridge for only passengers in first class and/or business class, while the other bridge is for the use of passengers in economy class. In some designs, the second jet bridge would even extend over the aircraft wing, being suspended from an overhead structure. This was, for example, originally adopted for most wide body gates at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. The Airbus A380 is unique in that both of its two passenger decks have outside access doors and so using loading bridges for each deck is possible, having the advantage of faster aircraft loading (in parallel). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jet_bridge#Advantages https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jet_bridge#Advantages

ghaff 5y ago

They're also terrible for people with mobility issues and you're exposed to the elements.

Symbiote 5y ago
They're also impractical for larger planes — you'll only use stairs on an A320 or B737. I've disembarked from a B777 via stairs following an emergency landing. The stairs were narrower than the ones for a smaller aircraft, and much more wobbly. We were limited to 3 people at a time on them, so it was very slow. The 777's door is also considerably higher up, about 5m vs. about 2.5m. Size comparison: https://imgur.com/gallery/bxyI0Er https://imgur.com/gallery/bxyI0Er

toast0 5y ago

I love the stairs, and especially when they bring stairs to the front and the rear of the plane, but they're not great for people with mobility challenges. I guess dual jetbridges could be an option to speed boarding and deboarding, but I've never seen that happen.

mmcconnell1618 5y ago
How about triple jet bridges for an A380? https://youtu.be/64JXmuYZ7pA?t=55 https://youtu.be/64JXmuYZ7pA?t=55
- toast0 5y ago
  Yeah, but I'm probably never flying on one of those. Almost all my flights are on narrow body planes.
antsar 5y ago
Multiple jetbridges is a thing. I've boarded a 787 in LHR over a secondary jetbridge (the first was for business class only). > Some airports with international gates have two or even three bridges for larger aircraft with multiple entrances. In theory, this allows for faster disembarking of larger aircraft, though it is quite common, especially on aircraft such as Boeing 747s and Boeing 777s, to use one bridge for only passengers in first class and/or business class, while the other bridge is for the use of passengers in economy class. In some designs, the second jet bridge would even extend over the aircraft wing, being suspended from an overhead structure. This was, for example, originally adopted for most wide body gates at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. The Airbus A380 is unique in that both of its two passenger decks have outside access doors and so using loading bridges for each deck is possible, having the advantage of faster aircraft loading (in parallel). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jet_bridge#Advantages https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jet_bridge#Advantages