EasyJet to turn away 'have a go' fliers who arrive with less than 30 minutes to go

Tammykitty

bluenoseam wrote: »

Slightly naughty of them but by the same measure, I wholly agree with it! Might just be the fact that I use the same mindset for all flights - be in the airport 2hrs minimum before the scheduled departure - but hey, it works! As unfortunate as it can be to find an "unexpected delay" en route to the airport, the sad truth is that many of these HAG passengers simply don't have any concept of good timekeeping.

Thing to remember is that with EasyJet (and others of their kind) it's all about quick turnover, the longer they're on the ground the less efficient they're being. That's what it boils down to, passengers being late costs them money, so they're trying to cut that out. Personally I'd have it in big letters at point of booking & once again at online check-in but well, people would still ignore it. Won't be long until EasyJet (and again, others of their kind) keep a list of passengers who are serially late or troublesome and start refusing to carry them!

I too will try to be at an airport early (Although wasn't quite as fussy for work flights as personal ones), however will not always go through security early.


When I have been to Australia and New Zealand visiting family, I haven't gone through security until the last minute, as all time with them is precious.


There is any number of reasons why people may not choose to go through security.


I wonder how the system deals with flight delays - will people have to go through security 30 minutes before the scheduled departure time or the revised estimated time?

Alan_Bowen

Heathrow Terminal 5, used by BA since it opened. has always had a 35 minute 'conformance' limit, if you don't scan your boarding card at least 35 minutes before departure, you won't get into the departure area at all. It seems to work well but as others have said, it doesn't stop people getting lost between security and the gate area, some of which feel as though they are in a different county! I certainly see the advantages, BA now has a pretty good on time departure process, at least on my flights, although I must admit I am never there 2 hours before departure!

martindow

How often in practice can you get from the initial gate line at Gatwick to board a plane 30 minutes from its departure time? Easyjet flights for instance are a very long walk from the entrance. Even if you got straight through security, it would be a struggle to do in that time.

Last time I was waiting for a plane staff called out for anyone else for another flight boarding where all the waiting passengers had already got on. They didn't seem to be worrying about anyone who was on their way and were eager to get the plane on its way as soon as they could.

pompeyrich

duchy wrote: »

All the airports had airside smoking facilities - Gothenburg a tiny but clean booth and with proper extraction system ,Stockholm the same and Copenhagen has a dedicated outdoor smoking terrace - According to airport staff the major reason is to encourage people to go through security early (and I'm sure it's no accident the biggest one is very close to the huge duty free at Stockholm). They are all very different to those disgusting smoke boxes Gatwick used to have.
From an economic point of view it seems to increase food, drink and duty free sales as well as avoid the last minute dash through security. Done properly it would work well at UK airports.

We have recently flown from both Bournemouth and Bristol airports both of which have smoking areas after security, both are outdoors and are quite discreet, you would not "accidentally" stray into one, unless you were looking for them.

As a "leper", sorry smoker, myself I wish all airports could provide a similar, basic area to indulge in my legal activity, i would even pay a token fee to enter such a place. I agree it would stop the last minute dash, which I have made myself on occasions and allow more time to enjoy the "departure lounge experience"

agrinnall

While I'd agree in principle with Easyjet's proposal there needs to be some scope to get round it. I arrived at the airport a few weeks ago to find that my flight had been cancelled. The airline rebooked me on one of their flights to another airport but that was leaving in less than 30 minutes. They put me through the fast track on security and I made it to the gate just as the plane was starting to board, so at the very least they need to be able to cater for this sort of situation (it's possible that going fast track would do it).

fifeken

Alan_Bowen wrote: »

Heathrow Terminal 5, used by BA since it opened. has always had a 35 minute 'conformance' limit, if you don't scan your boarding card at least 35 minutes before departure, you won't get into the departure area at all.

It has since been rolled out to other terminals as well I think.

Everyone will have their own view, but for me anything that encourages people to get to the gate on time is a benefit.

eDicky

I would assume the main purpose is to prevent delays in departure caused by passengers who check in their luggage on time but then wait too long before going through security. 30 minutes before departure time should be enough to signal an offload of their bags, or prevent them being loaded.

Passengers with hand luggage only don't cause any delays by arriving too late at the boarding gate. There may be a slight advantage if they no longer have to be escorted back by easyJet staff (if that's what they do at Gatwick).