The rise of the dreaded airport ‘gate louse’ – and how to spot one
NEXT time you’re waiting for your flight, you might notice a long line of people waiting to board, even though it isn’t their turn.
Often dubbed “gate-licers,” this has long been hated by both airport staff and fellow passengers.
Not only is it seen as unnecessary when they have seats reserved, but it can also slow boarding down as they block the gates.
One flight attendant previously said: “Just stay as out of the way as possible of the boarding area until your group is at least close to being called.”
But experts have revealed why it is becoming more common and isn’t always a bad thing to be a gate-lice, despite it being looked down on.
Not only do passengers now have to fight to fit their bag in the cabin, but airlines are often overbooking passengers too.
Psychology professor Stephen Reicher, from St Andrews, told the Washington Post: “In the case of the former [not queuing], you might miss your flight and miss your connection at the other end, in the case of the latter [queueing] you have stood up for a few minutes for no good reason.
“Queuing may be dysfunctional but it is not irrational. What people do makes perfect sense given the context they are in.
“The consequence of these structural [airline] issues is that they set up uncertainty (on any flight, I might have problems) and competition (this is a zero sum game: others getting on with bags lowers the chance of me getting on with bags).
Most airlines now charge passengers to check their bags in, which had led to more people than ever travelling with cabin bags only.
However, the huge rise in this means there is less space onboard, so some passenger might have to check their luggage if they are last on the plane.
Earlier this year, a man slammed gate-licers – and people weren’t on his side either.
He said: “Why do people do this? I fly economy all the time and just sit and wait until it’s my turn to board.
“It’s also annoying having to squeeze through people when it’s your turn to board. It just doesn’t make sense to me.”
But lots of fellow travellers explained why this happens more often than ever.
Someone replied: “Most flights operate full these days, so if you board in a later group there’s a good chance your bag will be gate checked.
“It’s really annoying when people crowd the gate, but… I get it at least given the above.”
It comes just days after another airline that operates from the UK scrapped free hand luggage onboard.
One man admitted he was always last to board the flight – and some agreed with him.
