Many air travelers who do not have early boarding rights try to get it by going to the gate before their zone numbers are called.
Early boarding is generally reserved as a benefit for passengers in higher fare classes, for frequent travelers, and for those passengers who have small children or mobility issues.
As gate agents are often in a rush to get passengers on board, they won't always have the time or energy to argue with individual queue jumpers and will sometimes simply let interfering passengers through.
In an effort to stamp out this behavior, American Airlines has turned to technology.
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American Air tech stops queue jumpers at the gate
Last month, the Fort Worth, Texas, airline (AAL) said it had invested in software that opens the boarding gate or keeps it closed and beeps based on the boarding pass the traveler scans.
Passengers who attempt to scan their passes before their gate numbers are called will be physically prevented from entering the boarding bridge.
This year, the technology has been tested at some American Airlines gates at Tucson International Airport (Ariz.), Albuquerque International Airport (NM) and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
Now, American Air says it is pleased with the outcome of the pilot program and will deploy the technology at more than 100 airports nationwide. Many airports will see this change take effect around the Thanksgiving holiday.
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American Air: Travelers like technology at the gates
“The initial positive response from customers and team members has exceeded our expectations,” American senior vice president of airport operations Julie Rath said in a statement.
American is positioning the change as a way to support customers and make the boarding process more orderly.
The airline also said that passengers who are eligible for early boarding have made it clear to it that cracking down on queue jumpers “is important to them.”
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Airports that will see the change take effect more immediately in the coming weeks include Austin-Bergstrom International and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International. The company will also use the data it collects during the holiday season to inform the expansion of the technology.
Social media response to AAL technology is mixed
While responses to the change among American Airlines travelers on social media varied, most travelers agreed that it would create a fairer boarding process amid a rise in passengers using questionable means to board flights early.
The biggest complaint was that it treats travelers like lawbreakers before doing anything wrong.
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“I saw it recently while taking a flight from Montevideo, Uruguay, to São Paulo,” USA Today travel columnist Christopher Elliott recently wrote.
“A man with a cane came to the front of the line and exclaimed, 'I have a cane!' (…while) I wondered why I had not previously boarded with the other passengers with disabilities.”
“Everyone wants this except the people who abuse it,” someone with the username r/msears101. wrote in an aviation forum on the social media platform Reddit.
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