5 ms·

Looking at the paper, it seems the passengers were the same and boarded five times in a row, with the last two methods proving the fastest. The major experiment

by zeteo 15y ago

Looking at the paper, it seems the passengers were the same and boarded five times in a row, with the last two methods proving the fastest. The major experimental flaw seems to be that the passengers themselves might learn to become more efficient after concentrating on a normally rare task, and repeating it several times in a row. Also, since some of them were paid extras, they might just be getting impatient by the end, and rushing through at what would normally be an uncomfortable pace. The population sampling is also probably not representative. I would have found the experiment more convincing if it had been used to validate the basic assumptions of the theoretical model instead (e.g. the statistical distribution of the baggage loading and seating times).

WalterBright 15y ago
I participated in an FAA cert airline evacuation test once. Only participants who'd never gone down the slide before were allowed, and only one take was allowed. (yeah, we passed!)
pangram 15y ago
These are good points (and there are other confounding factors, such as the fact that anybody taking part in the test would naturally be more familiar with block boarding). Nonetheless it seems like it might be worth trying out, as they do have some theoretical basis for the improvements.
city41 15y ago
There are other practical considerations too. I can't even imagine trying to organize the passengers in the airport such that they board in the alternating row, outside-in configuration. And there's the pretty much insolvable problem of when they start boarding the plane, many people just get on and couldn't care less that their row/section hasn't been called yet.
- aurelianito 15y ago
  The first part is easy, color code the ticket (e.g. first red, then blue, etc). The second issue is trickier, but it happens now anyway. I would say that they already know how to handle it.
  - vacri 15y ago
    Colour coding the ticket is not trivial - current monochrome printing is easy with thermals. Ever run a colour printer in an office? It's a nightmare to manage just in an of itself. Then there's a lot of investement in creating a system that works across all models of planes. It's doable, but it's not trivial. Then on top of that is the issue that despite all this, a lot of people ignore what's on the tickets anyway and board when they feel like - the boarding crew are not going to tell someone to go back against the surging crowd and wait their turn. I've been on four international flights before and I followed the "people in this block, board now" - and when I entered, pretty much every time I passed by an uncalled block, it was at least a quarter full. People aren't disinterested particles. Given also that planes are sitting around doing things both before and frequently after passengers have boarded (or waiting for the late passenger...), I don't think a straight-out claim that 10 minutes shaved off boarding times is a direct 10 minutes shaved off turnaround times (not that the article claims this, just being wary of it) The video shows an "aisle management" technique, but it isn't a "boarding" technique, as the latter task is much more than wandering down the aisle.
    - xxbondsxx 15y ago
      I'm not sure which airline you flew, but Southwest will actually turn people away (mainly because it's first-come-first-serve seating). So it happens. Start being strict and people will learn.
    - roel_v 15y ago
      You don't have to print the colors, you can have pre-printed tickets in two colors and have two printers at the checkin counter (likely much cheaper in ink, too, and much better-looking).
    - hessenwolf 15y ago
      Erm, odd rows and even rows? Also, Ryanair have a 'priority boarding' ticket and do this all the time, so it's not a big deal.
    - yardie 15y ago
      The airlines I've flown with actually do enforce it. At least for the first and business, and small children. If your group isn't called they'll ask you to stand aside so that group can go. Some people really push it and the crew would rather not get in a confrontation and let them pass.
- raldi 15y ago
  Southwest seems to have solved it.
  - dmethvin 15y ago
    There is a crazy-like-a-fox madness to Southwest's boarding. It's more than just the use of A-B-C sections. If you pay for a business class ticket that gets you up into the front of the A line. Those people are usually frequent travelers who don't mess around in the aisle. The roomy exit rows are highly coveted for long flights, so experienced flyers are going halfway down the plane which again prevents people from bottlenecking in the first few rows. Infrequent flyers are likely to pass on the $10 fee for auto-checkin and end up at the end in the C boarding, so they aren't holding up anyone in the aisle. By that time the rest of the plane is settled, so the flight attendants can assist them in getting them into a seat with their luggage stowed.
- kd0amg 15y ago
  I can't even imagine trying to organize the passengers in the airport such that they board in the alternating row, outside-in configuration. I remember doing something similar with my high school marching band (back-to-front instead of window-to-aisle), but that's a pretty tenuous proof of concept.
JoeAltmaier 15y ago
Agreed. In my experience, big chunks of time are spent waiting for one person struggling with their gear, backing the line up clear out the door. The experiment subjects probably didn't role-play that scenario.

by zeteo 15y ago

WalterBright 15y ago

I participated in an FAA cert airline evacuation test once. Only participants who'd never gone down the slide before were allowed, and only one take was allowed. (yeah, we passed!)

pangram 15y ago

These are good points (and there are other confounding factors, such as the fact that anybody taking part in the test would naturally be more familiar with block boarding). Nonetheless it seems like it might be worth trying out, as they do have some theoretical basis for the improvements.

city41 15y ago

There are other practical considerations too. I can't even imagine trying to organize the passengers in the airport such that they board in the alternating row, outside-in configuration. And there's the pretty much insolvable problem of when they start boarding the plane, many people just get on and couldn't care less that their row/section hasn't been called yet.

aurelianito 15y ago
The first part is easy, color code the ticket (e.g. first red, then blue, etc). The second issue is trickier, but it happens now anyway. I would say that they already know how to handle it.
- vacri 15y ago
  Colour coding the ticket is not trivial - current monochrome printing is easy with thermals. Ever run a colour printer in an office? It's a nightmare to manage just in an of itself. Then there's a lot of investement in creating a system that works across all models of planes. It's doable, but it's not trivial. Then on top of that is the issue that despite all this, a lot of people ignore what's on the tickets anyway and board when they feel like - the boarding crew are not going to tell someone to go back against the surging crowd and wait their turn. I've been on four international flights before and I followed the "people in this block, board now" - and when I entered, pretty much every time I passed by an uncalled block, it was at least a quarter full. People aren't disinterested particles. Given also that planes are sitting around doing things both before and frequently after passengers have boarded (or waiting for the late passenger...), I don't think a straight-out claim that 10 minutes shaved off boarding times is a direct 10 minutes shaved off turnaround times (not that the article claims this, just being wary of it) The video shows an "aisle management" technique, but it isn't a "boarding" technique, as the latter task is much more than wandering down the aisle.
  - xxbondsxx 15y ago
    I'm not sure which airline you flew, but Southwest will actually turn people away (mainly because it's first-come-first-serve seating). So it happens. Start being strict and people will learn.
  - roel_v 15y ago
    You don't have to print the colors, you can have pre-printed tickets in two colors and have two printers at the checkin counter (likely much cheaper in ink, too, and much better-looking).
  - hessenwolf 15y ago
    Erm, odd rows and even rows? Also, Ryanair have a 'priority boarding' ticket and do this all the time, so it's not a big deal.
  - yardie 15y ago
    The airlines I've flown with actually do enforce it. At least for the first and business, and small children. If your group isn't called they'll ask you to stand aside so that group can go. Some people really push it and the crew would rather not get in a confrontation and let them pass.
raldi 15y ago
Southwest seems to have solved it.
- dmethvin 15y ago
  There is a crazy-like-a-fox madness to Southwest's boarding. It's more than just the use of A-B-C sections. If you pay for a business class ticket that gets you up into the front of the A line. Those people are usually frequent travelers who don't mess around in the aisle. The roomy exit rows are highly coveted for long flights, so experienced flyers are going halfway down the plane which again prevents people from bottlenecking in the first few rows. Infrequent flyers are likely to pass on the $10 fee for auto-checkin and end up at the end in the C boarding, so they aren't holding up anyone in the aisle. By that time the rest of the plane is settled, so the flight attendants can assist them in getting them into a seat with their luggage stowed.
kd0amg 15y ago
I can't even imagine trying to organize the passengers in the airport such that they board in the alternating row, outside-in configuration. I remember doing something similar with my high school marching band (back-to-front instead of window-to-aisle), but that's a pretty tenuous proof of concept.

JoeAltmaier 15y ago

Agreed. In my experience, big chunks of time are spent waiting for one person struggling with their gear, backing the line up clear out the door. The experiment subjects probably didn't role-play that scenario.