My feeling is that the first-class passengers who are allowed to board
first are often the biggest contributors to boarding congestion. It
seems like they're always standing in the aisle maneuvering coats and
briefcases and whatnot, or the cabin crew are in the way giving them
their first free drinks of the flight, while everybody else is trying
to get back into coach. This isn't a problem with larger planes whose
main cabin doors are aft of the first-class seating, but on the smaller
aircraft used for many domestic flights, it's really a nuisance. Maybe
the airlines ought to figure out a way to give these folks preferred,
more comfortable seating in the gate area so they can board last
instead of first. Or alternatively, board them so long ahead of
everybody else that they can get settled in before the herd arrives. I
find it really annoying to get summoned to the gate for boarding only
to spend five or ten minutes standing in a drafty JetBridge waiting for
the first-class people to stop screwing around with the overhead
luggage bins.
