United Airlines is to trial the window-middle-aisle boarding process from October 26, giving window-seat passengers in economy class priority over middle and aisle seat passengers.
Passengers will be assigned to seven boarding groups, with preboarding for customers with disabilities, unaccompanied minors, and active duty military. First-class and business-class passengers board next, followed by window seat passengers, exit row seats, and non-revenue passengers. Middle and aisle seat passengers will board after that.
The last boarding group is for basic economy passengers on domestic flights or those without a specific boarding group on their pass.
This new boarding process is expected to save United Airlines up to two minutes of boarding time and may potentially lead to cost savings, fewer delays, or additional flights.
United Airlines introduced the WILMA (window-middle-aisle) boarding system in 2017 but limited it to five groups at that time. With improved technology, they can now resume the system and expand it to seven groups.
Changes in boarding procedures have been influenced by the pandemic’s impact on travel. As business travel declined, airlines have focused more on economy passengers. Other airlines, like Southwest, have also made changes to their boarding protocols.
Overall, this new boarding process aims to enhance efficiency and save time for both the airlines and passengers, but the impact may not be significant for individual travellers.
