Priority boarding with Qantas, Virgin: what's your experience?

Have found it to be hit and miss as well the few times i've used it. When it works its ok, when they don't police the line its a waste of time.

QF domestic normally board both the priority and regular queue at the same time. One left one right so if your business, gold or platinum there will likely be non status economy people right next to you as you walk down.

It's never really policed on QF that I have seen, by the time you get to the gate from the lounge the priority queue is full anyway with many not Gold or above, most people just see a queue and jump on it, they don't care, maybe they could seperate the lanes a bit more and signage but apart from actually telling people they are in the wrong lane they will continue to use it.

QF international largely good and well enforced. QF domestic a joke, two queues going at once and zero enforcement in the premium queue.

Poorly policed on VA. Came back from Perth recently in J. The lounge was empty but suddenly when I hit the gate the priority line was 50 deep. Leaving wondering what’s the point of loyalty or paying for J when simple aspects of the product offering are simply not provided and there is no effort from the gate staff to enforce. If only this was isolated event.

Good experiences for me generally on VA, except for the SYD-MEL leg when about half the plane stampedes through the priority lane... to many FFs on this route!

I've found VA is usually ok but if you get to the gate after boarding has commenced and all the priority passengers that were there have boarded then they might start using both lanes just to get everyone on board. What does make me chuckle is the peak hour SYD/MEL/BNE flights where there are so many Golds and Plats that the priority line is longer than the regular but so many people just will not leave the priority line, even if it's quicker to do so!

Neither do it well here in Oz. Best I have seen of late is CX in LHR and HGK, three clearly signed lanes, Business/First, Prem Economy and Economy. With people being checked along the queue and moved if in the wrong lane.

I've seen Virgin Australia boot people from the priority queue to the back of the normal lane who weren't supposed to be there, but have never seen Qantas do that! I've also lost count of the number of times I've been flying Qantas and the 'regular' line has formed in the 'priority' queue, leaving the 'economy' line completely empty and actually the faster option.

That said, priority boarding tends to work most of the time when I fly with either airline: but if you had to choose between the flight departing on time with everybody on board regardless of how they got there, or the flight being late to ensure that people have have their boarding pass scanned at the correct counter at the correct time (to end up on the same plane), obviously I'd choose the former.

I've found VA do priority boarding very well. I like that in BNE, MEL, SYD, PER the purple lane is front and centre while general boarding is on the side. Makes it easier to go straight through. And at OOL the gate agents strictly enforce priority boarding too.

It is just so baffling why Qantas can't manage priority boarding properly.

VA ground staff do push people out of the queue if not eligible and that is awkward for all, but does respect the process.

I flew PER-SIN-PER last week week and it worked both flights for me. My last 8 domestic flights it worked for me also surprisingly.

Sometimes the priority boarding queue is just as long as general boarding though... given the number of Golds & Platinums on both VA and QF. Kind of loses the appeal at that point.

Singapore Airlines manage the queue very well at Chiangi and generally speaking only those entitled to priority boarding receive it. But it still frustrates me. My ticket gets checked by the check in staff, then by someone just before immigration counter (shouldn't it be emigration), then at the immigration counter, then in the line for security, then by the security staff, then by the gate staff. Surely all these people don't need to check my ticket. This is just adding time and expense

Qantas domestic staff don't seem to police it, and to a certain extent I can understand this as the gate staff are likely to be under massive time pressure to get the plan turned around as quickly as possible. In Sydney T3 I feel the priority lane is worse on gates 1 - 7 where space to form a proper line is a bit more of a premium and anything seems to go. The Priority line system on gates 8 - 14 seem to function better as the line can naturally grow in to the satellite. Internationally on Qantas it seems to work a lot better, but I believe that this may also be partially due to the fact that they have longer to board the plane.

I must say that while there is a lot wrong with BA but the way they manage Priority boarding is at least well done. Starting by boarding their top tier and Business customers and then working their way down the list calling forward OW Emeralds, Sapphires, and then Rubies, before calling everyone else. It works well, even when I was flying them as a 'lowly' QF silver/OW ruby late last year. It also seems to encourage people out of the lounge so they are at the gate early enough that they do not miss their priority window. This avoids what seems to happen here where everyone stampedes out of the lounge as soon as the boarding call is made, so they all arrive at the gate at the same time which can exacerbate the problem.

My observations on domestic both QF & VA is that the job of policing is largely left up to the poor cabin crew whose first job is to manage the boarding, the very few ground staff are doing their job which is preparing the departure. Once again it’s the marketing department who come up with these great concepts but rarely follow through on the logistics, your know like rostering staff to do that job.

A few months ago I would have said that for Qantas it was a waste of time, but its actually been not bad last 6-7 trips over the last few months. Yesterday in Darwin a Economy pax was asked to go to the standard boarding queue from the priority. First time I have personally seen that in my memory (wanted to give the gentleman a high five). From Perth the queues can be about the same for an A332. So depending on if the gate has one or two air-bridges operating the perk can be of marginal benefit.

Not that it would help where people misunderstand or intentionally go in the wrong line, but on QF it should be limited to platinum and business class. Just too many gold for it to be effective.

I don't understand the rush to get on. All those people squeezing past with their vast amounts on carry on. I usually try to get on last.

I’m Platinum with both airlines, and Virgin is much better at this. Qantas often let anyone through the priority line.

QF Priority Boarding is a bit like this website with its bad programming - ususally it doesn't work -Schlepping from the Business lounge to a packed gate - priority boarding only to reach an airbridge packed - when you finally get to row 1 or 2 you cant even place your overhead luggage/shoes b4 you put on your airplane socks courtesy LX/UA/LH/EY/CX/SQ/EY/etc because of traffic moving back

Virgin Australia are of course world class and exoteric with their boarding. UA domestic/international do well with zoned boarding so you at least have a chance to sit comfortable in the F/C cabin before the masses pass by LX C Eu do well as they do international - LH C EU is like QF priority boarding - not zonedso it really is irrelevant -sit in the lounge and board 15 mins b4 takeoff - LH First really re the best -limo Cayenne or 500SKL drive alone to the aircraft - no sight of a C or Y pax! Tarmac ascent to F - or like me a few weeks ago when your aircraft has been swapped from an A380 F FRA-JFK to a crappy 747-400 (unglaublich fuer die Lufthansa!!!!!!!!!!) Limo driver take your from tarmac to Biz Class telling everyone to get out of the way on the airbridge! Sadly on this flight this was the end of First Class Lufthansa (ususally exoteric!!!!!) and got the old abysmal sad and schlepp/schwitz und schlumm LH international C class Total lack of any service on board - and total ignoring of any request on board but at least your bags are waiting at JFK for you unless one of three is incorrectly labelled by FrapORT STAFF AT lUFHTANSA fIRST CHECKINN!

Flew VA SYD-ADL last week I was the only one in the queue both times. What have FFs got against ADL.

My answer to this is line up early or sit at the front of the plane

I find VA SYD, MEL and BNE very good, CBR (mainly small planes) not set up properly, and ADL always a struggle for VA staff to manage.

hEY UPUPANDAWAY (WITH TAA!) that's the whole point -whe nu fly QF at front it doesn't make any difference! Bring on Zoned Boarding like UA!!!!!! Group 1 Globals Services 1k then Group 2 Front End Flyers

As mentioned by sdtravel, AA have it right. 9 boarding groups. 1 thru 4 are First, OW Emerald, etc then 5 thru 9 are economy with intent to fill rear and windows, then middle, then aisle seats. Doesn't always work perfectly of course but handles pretty well the chaos of queues in undersized US terminals (not dissimilar to SYD T3) and pushy, heavy-bag-laded pax. And they police it well.

Yes Just like United! Police the boarding! I hate queue jumpers -this is common in EU and AU

QF is a joke domestically, but seems to be better on international departures.

This should be really simple. A rope goes across the front of the economy line. They board the priority line first through both people scanning until it is cleared, sending anyone not entitled to be there to the other line. Once it is cleared, open the regular line only allowing those entitled to use the priority. AA generally do this perfectly. VA do this most of the time well, although I haven’t flown them in a while. QF never. It doesn’t matter then how many are “entitled”, those in the priority line board first.

I stay in the J lounge and board last.

No comparison. VA is a far better experience.

QF stuffed it up when they allowed Gold to join the priority queue. But it doesn’t really matter, they never manage it well in any case.

What's the point? Plane doesnt arrive any quicker anyway.

SQ is no better. Last month at Changi the gate people called - First, Business Class, PPS and Gold Star alliance at the same time, needless to say the people jam on the aerobridge slowed everybody down and the plane was totally full. This was not the first time this has happened with SQ at Changi, Melb, Fra, LHR.

Care-factor? Zero...!!! A good friend who worked in the industry suggested waiting until you have been paged at least 3 times before heading to board, not my style though. Anyway, what's the rush, enjoy another 'flat white' or shiraz depending on the time of day and 'chill'.

I prefer to board last except when I'm in Y on the peak-hour domestic routes, where access to the overhead bins can get tough when you're last.

Va are better at this because they board prioritiy before they board others. I think two ways they could improve it: better signage away from the gate and at a height above people heads. By the time que forms, Mr and Mrs non regular flyers can't see the signs at the gate, and they join what ever que looks short.

I have flown PER-SYD-PER regularly over the past few years and found the priority lane works fine most of the time. With the recent downsizing of some flights from the A330 to the B737 on some flights I've had to change my strategy. With the B737 and only one aerobridge in use I have to get to the gate before boarding starts otherwise I get stuck in the long queue in the aerobridge as economy passengers struggle to get themselves seated and their cabin bags in the overhead thus creating a bottleneck on the aircraft. The bigger issue is economy passengers breaching the limits for cabin baggage by taking too many bags & bags too large on board. Only once have I seen ground crew enforce those rules.

The check-in staff must enforce priority boarding for Gold and above QFFs, and police this. Sending illegible priority boarding people back to Economy boarding is a good enforcement way!

Never seen the point of it. Much rather maximise time in lounge/airport and not head to the plane until boarding is well under way. It's always staggered me that people consider priority boarding a "perk", it's more like a punishment.

Only time I like to board first is when I'm in economy and in a window seat, so that people don't have to get up for me.

I flew PER - BNE a couple of weeks ago on the Sunday night QF red-eye and one of the staff was policing the priority lane, actually directing non-business/plat/gold to the regular queue before they even tried to join the wrong one.

QF domestic priority queue is a joke! Seems to send the signal that business class, P and P1 should board early to beat the queue? ;-)

VAs process and management of it is superior to QFs. The problem with VA is that the priority queue may have more in it than the normal queue!

But, at least our carriers are not replicating the the multi tier process of the US carriers.

It's a waste of time generally, QF often only have one attendant manning the gate so it's Rafferty's Rules.

A colleague of mine, who had lost his priority status, spent almost a whole year joining the priority queue and was never challenged. He probably averaged one return flight a week, and the bulk were VA, so not really sure it's a genuine 'perk'.

Always seems to work for International departures but almost never on domestic. In fact my last flight to Melbourne (from Sydney) I took the standard line as it was quicker with less people then the Business/Priority line. A bit like priority bag tags, but that is a story for another time I suppose!!!!

Priority boarding has worked for me in economy. It enables the passenger to reach their assigned seat quickly, so they can prevent other passengers from stealing their overhead locker space. Twice I have pulled out other passengers excess hand carry to make room for my handcarry. Some cabin staff have tried to distance themselves from this problem.