American Airlines is rolling out new boarding technology at more than 100 airports nationwide. According to the airline, the technology platform ensures passengers receive the benefit of boarding in their assigned group and supports American employees by providing them more visibility into the boarding process. In short, American is using this technology to enforce boarding groups.
This technology may be familiar to American frequent flyers who have traveled to/through Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ), Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), and Tucson International Airport (TUS) over the last month. American trialed the new technology and the results appear to be positive as they are rolling it out to airports across the country.
Julie Rath, American’s Senior Vice President of Airport Operations, Reservations and Service Recovery, had this to say about the technology, feedback, and subsequent rollout:
“We’ve heard from our customers that the ability to board with their assigned group is important to them because it’s a benefit associated with their AAdvantage status or fare purchase. The initial positive response from customers and team members has exceeded our expectations, so we are thrilled to leverage this technology to deliver for them ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.”
I’m happy that American is taking steps to limit gate lice and ensure passengers are boarding with their assigned group. As someone who spends entirely too much time on airplanes and, when warranted, purchases First Class seats outright, this is a welcome step.
According to the airline, if a passenger boards before their assigned group is called, the new software will reject the boarding pass and ring an alarm to alert the gate agent and passenger (and the rest of the gate area) that the group has not yet been called. In these instances, the American team member will invite the passenger to rejoin the line when their boarding group is called (while the rest of the passengers loudly boo).
American does give passengers a pass if they are traveling with a companion in a higher boarding group. An agent can quickly click to override the alert and allow the passenger to board.
In addition to allowing group boarding to be enforced, American states that the new technology:
- Provides team members with more insight into the number of customers in each boarding group, which helps agents pace the boarding process
- Displays anticipated arrival time for incoming flight connections, which gives team members more insight into potential misconnections
- Eliminates the need for team members to use multiple applications during boarding by replacing them with one easy-to-use display, giving team members a more intuitive experience to accomplish their boarding tasks and support on-time departures
While the airline is rolling this technology out to more than 100 airports, no additional hubs will be added at this time. Outstations such as Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) will be used to gather insights over this holiday period. The airline will further expand the technology to hubs and other airports over the next few months.
Summary
American Airlines is expanding its use of new boarding technology to more than 100 airports nationwide. The expansion comes after positive feedback from trial usage at three different airports. The new technology is meant to crack down on gate lice and enforce boarding groups along with streamlining the boarding process for gate agents. While I’ve heard positive stories from other travellers, I’m curious to see how this works firsthand.
