When traveling with small children, there is one thing I appreciate ever so much and that is early boarding. It is a bit of a struggle to check-in with your children when you have a stroller, car seat and carry-on luggage in addition to your darlings. It’s a handful! That extra 15 minutes gives me enough time to line them up, get my documents out, check in, get the kids in their seats and luggage safely stowed before everyone else begins their boarding.
Unfortunately, one airline doesn’t seem to find this a necessity as they are eliminating early boarding for families. According to USA Today, families who are traveling economy, business or first class will now be required to board with everyone else.
The airline adopted their policy in April 2012, “to simplify the boarding process and to reduce the overall number of boarding groups,” says United spokesman Charles Hobart.
Most airlines in the USA like Virgin America, Delta Air Lines and JetBlue Airways still allow families with small children to board before the other passengers.
American Airlines does not however offer this convenience, but will help those who need additional assistance. US Airways has also dropped the official family preboarding as of last year but will allow them on earlier then the other passengers.
I can only assume that Continental will follow in United Airlines’ footsteps as the companies recently merged.
What do you think of this new policy?
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
I guess people with either deal or find a new airline lol.
I fail to see how denying pre-boarding to families with babies and small children is supposed to speed up the boarding process – seems someone hasn’t thought this one through to carefully.
I think that’s pretty lame, but then again – I never flew with small children and probably never will
We vacation close to home and all our family/friends live near.
I always prefer to board last because I figure: why subject the kids to sitting in a cramped seat even a few minutes longer than necessary. But this just seems weird.
I always thought early-boarding made sense for everyone involved. Families often need to juggle loads of stuff before they are actually all belted in, thereby clogging the aisles. If they REALLY wanted to speed up the boarding process they’d take the carry-on size & number seriously. It’s people trying to jam gigantic bags into the overheads that really clogs the aisles.
Okay, You folks must not travel United very often at all, and obviously are taking words at face value. Families traveling with children Board before All but Uniteds TOP mileage Flyers. They may not board First but United’s Official Boarding procedures are for Disabled Passengers, Military Traveling in Uniform, Premier (100 thousand Mile Flyers) Then Families traveling with 4 year-old and younger Children, Then the rest of the aircraft. People Need to actually Look into things on their own before they go off the deep end.