Checking In and getting the coveted A group

[jksobonya]

Hi,

I am curious who here has been lucky enough to not only check in and get an A boarding position, but an *early* A boarding position? Early Birds, A-Listers, etc. do not apply to this discussion, as I am just referring those of us who check in 24 hours ahead and pray for a decent boarding position 🙂 

I just checked in for my flights tomorrow and got A 56 and A 37 (!). couldn't have asked for anything better!!

--Jessica

[dfwskier]

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@jksobonya wrote:

Hi,

I am curious who here has been lucky enough to not only check in and get an A boarding position, but an *early* A boarding position? Early Birds, A-Listers, etc. do not apply to this discussion, as I am just referring those of us who check in 24 hours ahead and pray for a decent boarding position 🙂 

I just checked in for my flights tomorrow and got A 56 and A 37 (!). couldn't have asked for anything better!!

--Jessica

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That's about the best that someone that checks in himself.herself could expect to do.

I guess for an "undesirable" flight, doing better is possible. For example, I'm on the last flight from MDW to DAL tonight and I'm A24 (I'm A list) and that's about the best I ever get. So I would think it possible for someone checking himself in could snag a low to mid A30s spot on that flight.

[elijahbrantley]

@jksobonya Congrats!  

These days, that is def GREAT for someone who is not A List!  Enjoy!

[chgoflyer]

This is absolutely one of those "YMMV" situations. 😉

I've been utilizing my Priority card perk for Upgraded Boarding reimbursement lately, and on recent flights have stopped buying EarlyBird Check-In, instead checking myself in manually and then upgrading my position at the gate. Even with checking in at exactly t-24, I've been getting late B positions. The best I've received was B42, the worst was B55.

This is a far cry from the A40(ish) position I would usually receive when I'd purchase EBCI on the same routes. My take-away is that lots of people are buying EBCI these days. (And that it pays to buy it as early as possible.)

Of course, this can vary dramatically based on your city-pairs.

And, not much is better than a free A3 position. 😉

[jksobonya]

One of my rainy day goals is to make a spreadsheet of flights & go through my boarding pass history and see what my boarding positions have been over time. It would be fun to have a master list just for kicks. Just came home yesterday from a trip and was A60 and B7. Not too bad!

--Jessica