Boarding (transport)

Boarding is the entry of passengers onto a vehicle, usually in public transportation. Boarding starts with entering the vehicle and ends with the seating of each passenger and closure of the doors. The term is used in road, water and air transport (for example, passengers board a coach).

At commercial airports, a boarding call on the public announcement system asks travelers to proceed to the exit gate and board the aircraft. This can begin any time from an hour to thirty minutes before departure (depending on the size of the plane and number of passengers). For boarding an aircraft, airstairs or jetways are used. Small aircraft may carry their own stairs.

Airlines control the access to the aircraft by checking passengers' boarding passes and matching them with the list of passengers and their identification cards. Many airlines use the IATA standard Bar Coded Boarding Passes (BCBP) to automate this process. A 2D bar code is scanned and the data are sent to the airline's system to look up the list of passengers. If the passenger is entitled to board, a positive message is sent back to the airline agent.

Boarding in air travel is supervised by ground personnel. The pilot is responsible for the boarding as soon as the doors are closed because by law the aircraft is then "in flight".

After boarding, the taxiing and takeoff will follow in most cases.

Boarding bridge to an aircraft via a jetway at the Cologne Bonn Airport in 2001.

Having boarded, passengers stow their cabin baggage - Lufthansa Boeing 737-500.

Most North American airlines have assigned seating, but Southwest Airlines does not. Southwest boards passengers in A, B, and C groups depending on their ticket purchase date. Across North American airlines, it is standard to allow early boarding for passengers with mobility impairments, those with small children, and first class passengers. All airlines allow passengers in premium cabins or with elite status to board earlier, with some offering it to coach customers for a fee.

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