At many airports, as far as technically possible, boarding of commercial aircraft takes place via so-called gangways. These are popular with passengers because you can get straight to the plane in any weather without getting your feet wet. However, these also have disadvantages for the airlines and travelers.
Passenger boarding bridges have many colloquial names. However, the meaning and purpose of the invention is simple: the passengers should get into their aircraft as quickly and comfortably as possible. Since you don't have to take a bus or walk across the apron, many passengers prefer this form of boarding.
Origins and first pioneers
The world's first airport to use passenger boarding bridges was Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport in the United States in 1959. This innovation revolutionized airline operations and laid the foundation for a new era of passenger comfort. Other airports in Europe quickly followed, including London Heathrow Airport and Frankfurt Airport.
In the DA-CH region, the introduction of the gangways took a little longer, because the airports only gradually began to upgrade from the late 1960s/early 1970s. In Germany, along with Frankfurt am Main, Munich and Düsseldorf were also among the pioneers. Hamburg and Berlin-Tegel, for example, followed later. In Austria, Vienna-Schwechat followed suit. In Switzerland, the first airport with passenger boarding bridges was Zurich-Kloten.
Pros and cons for airlines and passengers
For passengers, passenger boarding bridges offer obvious advantages. They enable a seamless transition between the terminal and the aircraft, without being exposed to wind and weather. It also saves time and effort because long walks are avoided. However, bottlenecks in aircraft handling or technical problems at the bridges can occasionally cause delays.
For airlines, the use of passenger boarding bridges means increased efficiency when handling passengers. Fast boarding and disembarking facilitates aircraft turnaround and enables efficient use of the check-in areas. Nevertheless, passenger boarding bridges are expensive to purchase and maintain.
However, there are also significant disadvantages that are particularly evident on medium-haul jets that have multiple doors that can be used for boarding and disembarking. It simply goes slower, because passengers often block each other and thus bring all following travelers to a standstill. This is usually faster when using the front and rear doors, but it can also be taken ad absurdum by passengers who sit in the rear area, for example, but think they absolutely have to get in at the front.
Depending on the airport and weather conditions, it may be possible that passengers are not necessarily taken to the aircraft with apron buses as an alternative to gangways. So-called walk-boarding over the apron is very common, especially at smaller airports. Low-cost airlines like Ryanair and Wizz Air prefer this because the turnaround time can be kept shorter.
So-called "combined boarding" means that passengers who are seated at the front of the aircraft board via the jetway. Those passengers who are seated at the back are asked to leave the building via a staircase, walk outside parallel to the aircraft and then board via the rear door. More and more airlines are requiring their ground handling providers to use this form of boarding, as it is quicker and thus saves valuable time. When disembarking, only the front door is usually used, but there are some airports where passengers who disembark at the back are then taken to the terminal in an apron bus.
Some large airports, such as Los Angeles International Airport and London Stansted Airport, still rely on bus boarding or walk boarding over the apron, despite modern infrastructure. Low-cost airlines in particular prefer these methods because they can save costs. It requires less infrastructure and manpower, which translates into lower operational costs.
functioning and costs
Put simply, a passenger boarding bridge is a movable walkway that connects the aircraft to the terminal. It consists of different sections, the length of which can be adjusted to suit different types of aircraft. The bridge can be moved vertically and horizontally to ensure accurate alignment with the aircraft door. The costs for a passenger boarding bridge vary depending on the size and technical features, but are often in the millions.
It can get really expensive when an aircraft is damaged due to operator error or other reasons. At least one check by technicians and/or the captain is then necessary and that alone can cause a delay. But it is not necessarily the fault of the ground staff, because now and again pilots with aircraft crash into gangways or touch them with winglets. The wing tips are sensitive and usually have to be repaired or replaced afterwards.
Cost differences for airlines
There are cost differences between bus boarding and boarding via passenger bridges. Budget airlines like Ryanair and EasyJet often prefer bus boarding to reduce costs. It requires less ground staff and infrastructure. Traditional airlines such as Lufthansa, on the other hand, are increasingly relying on passenger boarding bridges to increase passenger comfort, but are also willing to bear higher operating costs. But this does not apply in all cases, because depending on the airport, it can also be the other way around.
The reason why bus or walk boarding takes place instead of gangway boarding can also have completely different reasons. For example, at peak times it can happen that there is simply no passenger boarding bridge available and the aircraft therefore has to be dispatched to an outside position. At some airports, especially if the incoming plane uses a different terminal than the departing one, gangways may not be used for this reason.
There are many reasons why you board a flight via a passenger boarding bridge and then have busboarding or even walkboarding on another flight. There are also airports where there is no price difference whether the aircraft is boarded via a gangway or on an outside position.
Not suitable for all aircraft types
Not all aircraft types are suitable for boarding via passenger boarding bridges. Large long-haul aircraft such as the Airbus A380 or the Boeing 747 are often too wide for conventional passenger boarding bridges. In these cases, special, wider bridges are often required, which airports must have. Many airports, which are frequently visited by such machines, are now equipped with special gangways.
If this is not the case, long-haul aircraft may be served by walk or bus boarding. For example, this was often the case in Salzburg in the past, because Transaero used to fly to the city of Mozart with Boeing 747s. The Austrian airport has no passenger boarding bridges, which is why walk or bus boarding was carried out depending on the weather.
Some commercial aircraft are not designed to dock at passenger boarding bridges. (Smaller) turboprop aircraft in particular and some regional jets cannot use these. In Germany, for example, Hanover and Stuttgart airports have special designs. An additional staircase is placed on the gangway. Passengers use this to leave the terminal. Immediately afterwards, passengers board the aircraft via the so-called air stair. Although it is not "classic boarding" via passenger boarding bridges, it is very similar.
Other airports also use such constructions, which were mostly designed by their own team, for the rapid handling of machines such as de Havilland Dash 8 or ATR42/72. In the case of airplanes that do not have built-in stairs (air stairs), a mobile airport staircase would also have to be pushed onto the airplane. This would then make the use of the passenger boarding bridge ad absurdum, but this form of boarding also occurs occasionally. The cause can be, for example, that the airport has permanently adapted a gate and - for whatever reason - there is currently no other available for the A320 or the B737. However: Sometimes the airline explicitly requires that you board in this way, because this allows both the front and the rear door (if available) to be used.
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