Priority boarding for ryan air

Sandalwoman

Does anyone know if the "priority boarding" system Ryan air has introduced actually works?

Read one members views that it ends up a free for all anyway. We have 2 children - last time we flew with Ryanair it was a nightmare. Would gladly pay the extra so we could sit together - if it works.

Thanks

briona

Sandalwoman wrote:

Does anyone know if the "priority boarding" system Ryan air has introduced actually works?

Read one members views that it ends up a free for all anyway. We have 2 children - last time we flew with Ryanair it was a nightmare. Would gladly pay the extra so we could sit together - if it works.

Thanks

I've just come back from Cork with Ryanair and about a third of the people had paid for Priority Boarding – I was not one of them and neither were the couple with two small children in the queue behind me! When the flight was called for boarding there was a mad rush – basically a free for all, with the "Priority Boarders" shoving the elderly, the disabled and the people with small children out of the way in an effort to get the best seats. Charming!

If sitting together [and getting good seats] is important to you, then I would definitely pay for PB! If nothing else it means you won't be trampled by the stampeding business-men-with-briefcases!

Of course, the downside of PB is that it is open to everyone willing to pay which means that technically everyone could claim PB and you'd be no better off! So if you do pay for the privilege, get to the gate early!

pennylane99

exactly...its just a way for the airline to get more money from people.

For all you know, most of the other passengers may also have paid for priority, so you will be still no better off and have to fight in the usual scrum.

franklally

In December I flew with Ryanair with 4 children - we were one of the last ones to board (it left early) and the cabin crew tried to split us up - I did explain (politely) to them that there was no way I was being split up from them in case anything happened - and they had to get people to move so we could sit together.

I think it is crazy not just allowing families with young children to sit together - its not safe and its not fair on them or the other passengers.

alared

It` s a bit of a con really trying to get people to pay for PB.
I can`t see how they can make a mother sit at one end of the plane and the child at the other.
Afterall a child wouldn`t be allowed to fly on his/her own, so splitting up amounts to the same thing.
These airlines,and not just Ryanair,are on the make for everything they can get out of you.

pennylane99

although I suppose you can also argue that if a family or party of several people want to sit together, but cant be bothered to get there early for check in, arrive at last minute..they shouldnt then expect the other passengers to give up their seats to make room for them.

patricia1066

I totally agree that families should be accorded priority boarding, whether they wish to pay the charge or not. This is essential to make sure that however many have paid for PB they will get onboard together.

Remember that families cannot take advantage of the web check-in facility as they will inevitably have bags.

It slows down the boarding of all passengers when staff need to negotiate with seated passengers to ensure the safety of children who would otherwise have to sit with strangers.

This may lead to missing the slot, and the aggravation for all passengers and the airline who pay for each slot.

I was in a queue in early Dec 06 when the policy was first implemented, and there was a parental revolt. 7 parents asked passengers if they would agree they can go ahead, without priority boarding. All the toddlers and buggies lined up in front of the desk, and staff went to management for direction.

The result was that PB holders went on the plane first and parents and children went on after. The staff averted a major holdup by keeping parents and children together, and still preserved the distinction that PB holders got on first.

You may not find the energy to organise a protest - its easier to just pay up in advance.

This is a procedure that could be implemented by Ryanair to avoid the problem - let PB passengers board. Allow families to sit together while waiitng for boarding - then call them up before letting on the other passengers.

I myself dont have children but I think flights are now so disorganised I really dont want to fly Ryanair anymore.

gabriel

While I don't agree with Ryanair's approach to cheap travel it is important to look at their planes as nothing more than flying buses. That's what they aim to be, nothing more.

On (most) buses you don't get priority for anyone so the problem for couples with children etc is the same. It all depends on the good will of other passengers and the same happens with Ryanair.

As for the trouble with people with PB, from my experience most of the trouble are actually the non-PBs standing around glued to the gate entrance as soon as it opens, so PBs really have to elbow in to get what they paid for. Of course if Ryanair really wanted it could organize this in a much better way, but again they're a flying bus company so why should they care? You don't see bus companies organizing people at the stops.

alared

"Parents and children"

---

this is the key phrase.
I`ve been waiting to board and whole families arrive at the gate and just push their way to the front saying they are priority because of the kids.
Having seen them in the check-in queue well behind me earlier on.
Yes parents and children but not grannie,granddad,aunty Flo,uncle Tom and and anyone else that says "I`m with them".
The fault lies with the people at the gate,who don`t seem to have a clue about organising the queues.
Of course the herd mentality of most of the passengers doesn`t help either.
The way some of them behave you would think there was only 100 seats for 150 people.

moonrakerz

It would cost Ryanair pennies, if that, to allow "proper" seat allocation. If their reservation software isn't capable of doing it they could revert to the old paper seating plan on the counter, which was in use for years before computer systems were available.
To have to pay to be first in the stampede is ridiculous !

The point about flying buses doesn't really hold water. People get on and off buses (and trains) throughout the journey, on an aircraft they all get on and off at the same time - with Ryanair quite literally !!

gabriel

moonrakerz wrote:

It would cost Ryanair pennies, if that, to allow "proper" seat allocation. If their reservation software isn't capable of doing it they could

Non-allocated seats is weirdly a process optimization. With booked seats you get people stopping to look for their seat number, discussion arising from people sitting in the wrong seats (especially when you get whole families travelling), air crew being interrupted to help look for seat or change seat, etc. On non-allocated seats people just sit on the first most convenient one.

This has been researched and the conclusion is that non-allocated seats are faster to fill up, an important argument when you just have 25 minutes of turnaround time like Ryanair. This is also not saying about the systems you need in place to do seat allocation (not just the actual software, but configuring it for Ryanair's layout) and then you must have that system in place at every airport.

With 25 mins turn-around you also get the odd flight where the previous passenger left some "gift" on or around his seat and there's just no time to clean it properly. I've seen this happening. In this case flight crews just block that row, something that is impractical to do when you have booked seats.

All in all this doesn't cost pennies and the current practice is much more suited to Ryanair's business plan.

As for the flying buses, I've done 5 years of daily travel 30 miles each way on express buses. They go from A to B, non-stop, no booked seats. This is exactly the same concept (with the same problems) as Ryanair.