As I waited for my daughter to exit her plan from Gate 46 yesterday, I looked around and saw a mass of people deep in their own Concernful activity as they waited to board their planes. Three other gates, all close to each other at the end of the terminal were boarding at the same time. I thought to myself, “Are airports designed to make us selfish?”
Between the initial carpark approach to leaving the destination airport we are funnelled through a series of tests with unclear rules and limited capacity. Many of the tests have little room for error, or at least it feels that way.
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Am I in the right lane for parking entry?
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What card will the “ticket” machine accept? Yesterday we had to advise a trio on how to leave the carpark because they had tapped in with one card and didn’t get a ticket. They hadn’t realised they need the same card to leave.
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How do I check myself in? How do I weigh my luggage? What if I have too much luggage?
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What are today’s rules on airport security? For the first time every yesterday I had to remove my belt and stand in a kind of skydiving position. My wife was familiar with the process from a recent visit so at least I had a model to copy. This video will resonate with us all.
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Which gate do I need? How far is it? Why are only half the travelators working?
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Where do I sit? Why is there never enough seating? I better grab a seat now.
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Will my boarding pass scan from my phone?
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Is there enough overhead luggage space? Don’t those people realise their bags are oversized!
I have a trip planned in April next year and I’m already stressing about a process I’ve done many times before. In the past I would have handled it by being justifiably selfish. Now that I’ve realised how airports are designed to make me feel that way I can relax and take it at my own pace.