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> I like to board last. I’ve never understood the appeal of being on the plane any longer than I need too (I’m yet to travel in business class). I don't unders

> I like to board last. I’ve never understood the appeal of being on the plane any longer than I need too (I’m yet to travel in business class). I don't understand that opening at all. We all want to get on so we get space in the overhead bins, don't we? Maybe he just never has a bag, but the reason should be obvious regardless.

caymanjim 5y ago
I've flown over 100 times and only once had to gate-check my bag due to insufficient space. I was thankful for the chance because it's free, you get your bag faster on landing, and you don't have to wrangle it down the aisle. I always board as late as possible. Why sit in a hot/cold/stuffy plane while people jostle all around you?
- jwcacces 5y ago
  Haha, lucky you. I might not fly as much as you, but in my experience the moment a bag leaves my line of sight, the chance it gets lost leaps dramatically. As someone who's had checked bags lost, and gate-checked bags lost, the ability to get on earlier translates directly into peace of mind that my bag will be with me when I land. As for getting my bag faster if it was gate-checked, how does that happen? Every time I've been gate-checked, my luggage ends up down in baggage claim the same as if I had regular-checked it. The only luggage that has met me at the gate has been a stroller. Maybe I'm just flying cheap airlines, but I'll take first on and sitting in a stuffy plane over the chance of disaster and standing in the terminal any day of the week. You're waiting the same amount of time either way wherever you are. But hey, your yin and my yang work great together, so you do you!
- dllthomas 5y ago
  > Why sit in a hot/cold/stuffy plane while people jostle all around you? Because I can get lost in my book and not worry about missing anything. YMMV (mine does).
- jwilber 5y ago
  I flew twice a week for years and it really just depends on the route (ie airports, day of week, and time of day) that you’re flying. Popular business routes will always have full overhead bins, so you either check your luggage, bring a week-bag that you can fit under the seat, or get on early and get the overhead space. Personally, I prefer to travel light so always wait until the last second to board. But that also depends on the cabin - if you’re at all above average height it’s absolute hell to fly in general, even worse when your limited leg room has a backpack.
ssss11 5y ago
Yep. Last means you have nowhere to put your bag.
ncallaway 5y ago
> We all want to get on so we get space in the overhead bins, don't we? No. Overhead bins are terrible and bad. It baffles me that anyone would want to fight for overhead bin space. It's a terrible game, and the winning move is not to play. I always gate-check my luggage if it won't fit under the seat in front of me.
- AaronM 5y ago
  I like the idea of having some stuff (clothes, necessities) that I carried onto the plane. I don't trust the airline not to lose my bags.
- gjs278 5y ago
  enjoy the airline losing it or someone stealing it at baggage return
- thecopy 5y ago
  When checking luggage you lose significant time upon arrival, at least in Europe. From gate i can be on the train to the city in 10 minutes without checked luggade. With it is probably 30minutes.
  - rtkwe 5y ago
    Gate checked luggage comes to you on the skyway not at the luggage claim. Takes a little bit there but it's faster than normal checked luggage.
    - mithr 5y ago
      > Gate checked luggage comes to you on the skyway not at the luggage claim That's not a given. At least as many times as not, I've gate-checked luggage and had to pick it up at baggage claim with everyone else.
      - jsmith45 5y ago
        There are two types of gate checked bags. Proper gate checked bags get the full sized label that all other checked bags get, and are fully in the system, and if nothing goes wrong gets spit out at your final destination on baggage claim, like normal checked luggage. Valet Checked bags use pink/red tags and are supposed to be returned on the jetway. It is supposed to be impossible for these bags not to be returned planeside, and are not supposed to get intermingled with the normally checked baggage. In practice I've seen this not work out first hand, with the bag ending up in baggage claim. (I've seen others say the same thing happened to them too. I suspect some airports actually have baggage handling set up to check for these if they get "into the system", and forward them to baggage claim, as the safest option.)
nradov 5y ago
For most short haul flights yes. For international with newer 787 or A380 equipment the bin space seems adequate for everyone.
- jeffasinger 5y ago
  I'd imagine that airlines tend to give out free checked bags on these flights also changes the calculus.
Domenic_S 5y ago
I've never been so tight for time that gate-checking if I need to isn't an option. The stuff I want during the flight is in my personal item under the seat in front of me. So long as seats are assigned I'll board when it's convenient. Same with standing up once we pull into the gate btw. 95% of people shoot out of their chairs the instant the seatbelt sign turns off, which is still 5-10 minutes from actual deplaning. I'm sure some of them are looking to stretch, but 95% of them? Even funnier are the middle and window passengers standing, but ducking under the luggage compartment at an uncomfortable angle.
- toast0 5y ago
  > Even funnier are the middle and window passengers standing, but ducking under the luggage compartment at an uncomfortable angle. That uncomfortable angle is often less uncomfortable than the seat is at that point.
hereforphone 5y ago
I'm the same. I stand around until the last minute. We're all getting there at the same time, and I'd rather be standing because soon I have to sit for hours. My bag fits nicely under the seat in front of me.
- ethbr0 5y ago
  I flew most domestic US when I was in the air, and rarely did I need more than under-seat sized. If you have a garment bag, I suppose that's a consideration, but I remember there always being "lay on top" free space in the overheads, even if full of bags.
  - midasuni 5y ago
    How long were you away? I’ll fit a couple of weeks in my standard bag easilly, plus electronics etc. In my under seat sized bag I’d only really get 3 days worth. Besides you can’t put stuff under seat in the exit row.
    - ethbr0 5y ago
      Usually M-F, but it was consulting-developer formal, not suit and tie. So probably more compact than what's usually needed for a client.
- darkwizard42 5y ago
  But then where do your feet go when you want to stretch out? I find it terribly annoying to have to keep adjusting my bag when I want to stretch out or sit normally (knees bent)
  - hereforphone 5y ago
    I'm slender and not very tall. I rarely have an issue.
  - notacoward 5y ago
    > where do your feet go when you want to stretch out? Depends. The bag can be under the seat in front, pulled up next to your own seat, or even in your lap. If it's under the seat it can be squished up, down, or sideways. If it's too big or overstuffed for that, then you can take one or two things out, or you can check a larger bag to keep the in-cabin one small. Not saying you should have to, but those are all viable alternatives to fighting for overhead space. I'm 6'2" with long legs for my height and I'm not young either, so I do know the struggle, but I used to travel quite a bit on six- and even ten-hour flights and I never felt like putting stuff overhead was an absolute necessity.
anm89 5y ago
depends on the flight. In most cases there is somewhere to put your bag. If you can tell it's going to be absolutely full then maybe it's worth it
notacoward 5y ago
> We all want to get on so we get space in the overhead bins, don't we? No. Some people don't much care for the overhead-bin battle, bringing only under-seat baggage for shorter trips or under-seat plus checked for longer ones.
sharps_xp 5y ago
we have a number of airline credit cards that give us free check-in, which is way less stressful on both departure and arrival procedure. So i can minimize the time spent sitting inches from strangers in a seat that is too small for me.
cududa 5y ago
I do the same - I try and minimize my time in airports and on the plane as much as possible. If you're flying international the checked bag will be waiting for you when you get through customs. Domestically, if I'm the last one on, and my carry on is the last thing loaded, it's the first thing off. I get off the plane, go have a cigarette, and when I'm done it's the first thing off the belt.
- sokoloff 5y ago
  Internationally, it’s waiting for you after immigration and before customs in most places. (If you’re trying to smuggle something past customs, the case is much stronger if you’re caught with the bag, plus it's easier to do the inspections if they give you the bag before customs.)
jdavis703 5y ago
First, business and premium class usually have plenty of overhead space. Nowadays as long as you’re not flying “basic economy” you’ll probably get overhead space, even regular economy. Besides even if I miss overhead bins, I can pack the bag under my seat.
MattGaiser 5y ago
I don't sleep before flights so I can sleep away my time on the plane. So by the time I get to the aircraft I am quite tired.
zz865 5y ago
I hate US-sized hand luggage. Boarding an American plane is like being in a storage locker where people carrying these suitcases fight for bin space.
- cstejerean 5y ago
  I remember a time before the last recession when none of the major airlines charged for checked bags. The major US airlines added those fees around 2008 IIRC to pad their bottom line and predictably people started cramming more into carry on bags, making the whole process more miserable.
  - ballenf 5y ago
    I don't see it as padding so much as simply hiding price increases by misleading the customer. And it's easy to see why it's a race to the bottom sorely in need of regulation: you can't compete against the airline that charges extra for bags because people will filter out your flight before they realize the games being played. Which is the same thing that happens with shrinkflation in packaging: the "half gallon" of ice cream that is actually missing 20% can be priced lower than the full half gallon. You don't have to fool everyone but just enough to raise your market share a little with your deceptively "lower" prices.
nwatson 5y ago
If you're last on board and you see those three seats together you can always pretend your seat is the middle one of those three.
- rtkwe 5y ago
  I just took a couple flights and they were all booked solid and the main routes that weren't spur routes to county airports also had 10+ person standby lists. Granted this was just a few weeks ago during the American Airlines rash of cancellations so there were lots of rebookings but my understanding is most flights are booked solid these days.
sharkmerry 5y ago
>> I don't understand that opening at all. We all want to get on so we get space in the overhead bins, don't we? I think most are doing it for the overhead space, which leads to my misunderstanding. Why did they charge for checked bags. Its the more time-consuming option, who would pay for that. they should be charging for overhead and offering checked bags for free. Pay for the time-saving
- warent 5y ago
  Great point I hadn't considered that before! I'd guess it's for two primary reasons. 1: it takes workers to load and unload checked bags. Contrast to overhead where you are doing the work. 2: checked bags are pretty much unlimited. You can have several huge ones. For some reason I was also under the impression that a checked bag was actually opened up and rummaged thru as well, hence the word "checked", but maybe I've just been misunderstanding?
  - toast0 5y ago
    I think it's checked in, as in you gave it to some one. Not checked in as in someone checked in it. That's not to say they don't get rumaged through, but they were checked bags before they got routinely rumaged.
  - celticninja 5y ago
    Checked means checked in, or handed over. Not checked as in inspected. Whilst some bags may be inspected they are a small number of the total.
  - devilbunny 5y ago
    TSA certainly may search your bag, but they're "checked" bags in the sense that coats are "checked" into a coatroom - they are handed over to someone else to be delivered to you later.
- aketchum 5y ago
  this is southwests philosophy
midasuni 5y ago
I like to board when I get to the gate, which I’ll usually leave late if it’s not too far as it’s comfier in the lounge, and I’ve been caught out by “boarding” messages when the plane isn’t even there too many times. Get on board, have a champagne, look at the menu, give the IFE a cursory glance to see if there any interesting new releases on
celticninja 5y ago
I have also never understood the rush to get on. In the past space in the overhead lockers was not an issue (because flights were not nickel and diming passengers for every little thing), but people still rushed to get on asap back then.
sys_64738 5y ago
Stepping on last means you can get it checked on the jetway and it's ready for you to grab as you exit. No point lugging it into the flight and fighting for overused overhead space.

caymanjim 5y ago

I've flown over 100 times and only once had to gate-check my bag due to insufficient space. I was thankful for the chance because it's free, you get your bag faster on landing, and you don't have to wrangle it down the aisle. I always board as late as possible. Why sit in a hot/cold/stuffy plane while people jostle all around you?

jwcacces 5y ago
Haha, lucky you. I might not fly as much as you, but in my experience the moment a bag leaves my line of sight, the chance it gets lost leaps dramatically. As someone who's had checked bags lost, and gate-checked bags lost, the ability to get on earlier translates directly into peace of mind that my bag will be with me when I land. As for getting my bag faster if it was gate-checked, how does that happen? Every time I've been gate-checked, my luggage ends up down in baggage claim the same as if I had regular-checked it. The only luggage that has met me at the gate has been a stroller. Maybe I'm just flying cheap airlines, but I'll take first on and sitting in a stuffy plane over the chance of disaster and standing in the terminal any day of the week. You're waiting the same amount of time either way wherever you are. But hey, your yin and my yang work great together, so you do you!
dllthomas 5y ago
> Why sit in a hot/cold/stuffy plane while people jostle all around you? Because I can get lost in my book and not worry about missing anything. YMMV (mine does).
jwilber 5y ago
I flew twice a week for years and it really just depends on the route (ie airports, day of week, and time of day) that you’re flying. Popular business routes will always have full overhead bins, so you either check your luggage, bring a week-bag that you can fit under the seat, or get on early and get the overhead space. Personally, I prefer to travel light so always wait until the last second to board. But that also depends on the cabin - if you’re at all above average height it’s absolute hell to fly in general, even worse when your limited leg room has a backpack.

ssss11 5y ago

Yep. Last means you have nowhere to put your bag.

ncallaway 5y ago

> We all want to get on so we get space in the overhead bins, don't we? No. Overhead bins are terrible and bad. It baffles me that anyone would want to fight for overhead bin space. It's a terrible game, and the winning move is not to play. I always gate-check my luggage if it won't fit under the seat in front of me.

AaronM 5y ago
I like the idea of having some stuff (clothes, necessities) that I carried onto the plane. I don't trust the airline not to lose my bags.
gjs278 5y ago
enjoy the airline losing it or someone stealing it at baggage return
thecopy 5y ago
When checking luggage you lose significant time upon arrival, at least in Europe. From gate i can be on the train to the city in 10 minutes without checked luggade. With it is probably 30minutes.
- rtkwe 5y ago
  Gate checked luggage comes to you on the skyway not at the luggage claim. Takes a little bit there but it's faster than normal checked luggage.
  - mithr 5y ago
    > Gate checked luggage comes to you on the skyway not at the luggage claim That's not a given. At least as many times as not, I've gate-checked luggage and had to pick it up at baggage claim with everyone else.
    - jsmith45 5y ago
      There are two types of gate checked bags. Proper gate checked bags get the full sized label that all other checked bags get, and are fully in the system, and if nothing goes wrong gets spit out at your final destination on baggage claim, like normal checked luggage. Valet Checked bags use pink/red tags and are supposed to be returned on the jetway. It is supposed to be impossible for these bags not to be returned planeside, and are not supposed to get intermingled with the normally checked baggage. In practice I've seen this not work out first hand, with the bag ending up in baggage claim. (I've seen others say the same thing happened to them too. I suspect some airports actually have baggage handling set up to check for these if they get "into the system", and forward them to baggage claim, as the safest option.)

nradov 5y ago

For most short haul flights yes. For international with newer 787 or A380 equipment the bin space seems adequate for everyone.

jeffasinger 5y ago
I'd imagine that airlines tend to give out free checked bags on these flights also changes the calculus.

Domenic_S 5y ago

I've never been so tight for time that gate-checking if I need to isn't an option. The stuff I want during the flight is in my personal item under the seat in front of me. So long as seats are assigned I'll board when it's convenient. Same with standing up once we pull into the gate btw. 95% of people shoot out of their chairs the instant the seatbelt sign turns off, which is still 5-10 minutes from actual deplaning. I'm sure some of them are looking to stretch, but 95% of them? Even funnier are the middle and window passengers standing, but ducking under the luggage compartment at an uncomfortable angle.

toast0 5y ago
> Even funnier are the middle and window passengers standing, but ducking under the luggage compartment at an uncomfortable angle. That uncomfortable angle is often less uncomfortable than the seat is at that point.

hereforphone 5y ago

I'm the same. I stand around until the last minute. We're all getting there at the same time, and I'd rather be standing because soon I have to sit for hours. My bag fits nicely under the seat in front of me.

ethbr0 5y ago
I flew most domestic US when I was in the air, and rarely did I need more than under-seat sized. If you have a garment bag, I suppose that's a consideration, but I remember there always being "lay on top" free space in the overheads, even if full of bags.
- midasuni 5y ago
  How long were you away? I’ll fit a couple of weeks in my standard bag easilly, plus electronics etc. In my under seat sized bag I’d only really get 3 days worth. Besides you can’t put stuff under seat in the exit row.
  - ethbr0 5y ago
    Usually M-F, but it was consulting-developer formal, not suit and tie. So probably more compact than what's usually needed for a client.
darkwizard42 5y ago
But then where do your feet go when you want to stretch out? I find it terribly annoying to have to keep adjusting my bag when I want to stretch out or sit normally (knees bent)
- hereforphone 5y ago
  I'm slender and not very tall. I rarely have an issue.
- notacoward 5y ago
  > where do your feet go when you want to stretch out? Depends. The bag can be under the seat in front, pulled up next to your own seat, or even in your lap. If it's under the seat it can be squished up, down, or sideways. If it's too big or overstuffed for that, then you can take one or two things out, or you can check a larger bag to keep the in-cabin one small. Not saying you should have to, but those are all viable alternatives to fighting for overhead space. I'm 6'2" with long legs for my height and I'm not young either, so I do know the struggle, but I used to travel quite a bit on six- and even ten-hour flights and I never felt like putting stuff overhead was an absolute necessity.

anm89 5y ago

depends on the flight. In most cases there is somewhere to put your bag. If you can tell it's going to be absolutely full then maybe it's worth it

notacoward 5y ago

> We all want to get on so we get space in the overhead bins, don't we? No. Some people don't much care for the overhead-bin battle, bringing only under-seat baggage for shorter trips or under-seat plus checked for longer ones.

sharps_xp 5y ago

we have a number of airline credit cards that give us free check-in, which is way less stressful on both departure and arrival procedure. So i can minimize the time spent sitting inches from strangers in a seat that is too small for me.

cududa 5y ago

I do the same - I try and minimize my time in airports and on the plane as much as possible. If you're flying international the checked bag will be waiting for you when you get through customs. Domestically, if I'm the last one on, and my carry on is the last thing loaded, it's the first thing off. I get off the plane, go have a cigarette, and when I'm done it's the first thing off the belt.

sokoloff 5y ago
Internationally, it’s waiting for you after immigration and before customs in most places. (If you’re trying to smuggle something past customs, the case is much stronger if you’re caught with the bag, plus it's easier to do the inspections if they give you the bag before customs.)

jdavis703 5y ago

First, business and premium class usually have plenty of overhead space. Nowadays as long as you’re not flying “basic economy” you’ll probably get overhead space, even regular economy. Besides even if I miss overhead bins, I can pack the bag under my seat.

MattGaiser 5y ago

I don't sleep before flights so I can sleep away my time on the plane. So by the time I get to the aircraft I am quite tired.

zz865 5y ago

I hate US-sized hand luggage. Boarding an American plane is like being in a storage locker where people carrying these suitcases fight for bin space.

cstejerean 5y ago
I remember a time before the last recession when none of the major airlines charged for checked bags. The major US airlines added those fees around 2008 IIRC to pad their bottom line and predictably people started cramming more into carry on bags, making the whole process more miserable.
- ballenf 5y ago
  I don't see it as padding so much as simply hiding price increases by misleading the customer. And it's easy to see why it's a race to the bottom sorely in need of regulation: you can't compete against the airline that charges extra for bags because people will filter out your flight before they realize the games being played. Which is the same thing that happens with shrinkflation in packaging: the "half gallon" of ice cream that is actually missing 20% can be priced lower than the full half gallon. You don't have to fool everyone but just enough to raise your market share a little with your deceptively "lower" prices.

nwatson 5y ago

If you're last on board and you see those three seats together you can always pretend your seat is the middle one of those three.

rtkwe 5y ago
I just took a couple flights and they were all booked solid and the main routes that weren't spur routes to county airports also had 10+ person standby lists. Granted this was just a few weeks ago during the American Airlines rash of cancellations so there were lots of rebookings but my understanding is most flights are booked solid these days.

sharkmerry 5y ago

>> I don't understand that opening at all. We all want to get on so we get space in the overhead bins, don't we? I think most are doing it for the overhead space, which leads to my misunderstanding. Why did they charge for checked bags. Its the more time-consuming option, who would pay for that. they should be charging for overhead and offering checked bags for free. Pay for the time-saving

warent 5y ago
Great point I hadn't considered that before! I'd guess it's for two primary reasons. 1: it takes workers to load and unload checked bags. Contrast to overhead where you are doing the work. 2: checked bags are pretty much unlimited. You can have several huge ones. For some reason I was also under the impression that a checked bag was actually opened up and rummaged thru as well, hence the word "checked", but maybe I've just been misunderstanding?
- toast0 5y ago
  I think it's checked in, as in you gave it to some one. Not checked in as in someone checked in it. That's not to say they don't get rumaged through, but they were checked bags before they got routinely rumaged.
- celticninja 5y ago
  Checked means checked in, or handed over. Not checked as in inspected. Whilst some bags may be inspected they are a small number of the total.
- devilbunny 5y ago
  TSA certainly may search your bag, but they're "checked" bags in the sense that coats are "checked" into a coatroom - they are handed over to someone else to be delivered to you later.
aketchum 5y ago
this is southwests philosophy

midasuni 5y ago

I like to board when I get to the gate, which I’ll usually leave late if it’s not too far as it’s comfier in the lounge, and I’ve been caught out by “boarding” messages when the plane isn’t even there too many times. Get on board, have a champagne, look at the menu, give the IFE a cursory glance to see if there any interesting new releases on

celticninja 5y ago

I have also never understood the rush to get on. In the past space in the overhead lockers was not an issue (because flights were not nickel and diming passengers for every little thing), but people still rushed to get on asap back then.

sys_64738 5y ago

Stepping on last means you can get it checked on the jetway and it's ready for you to grab as you exit. No point lugging it into the flight and fighting for overused overhead space.