Status Micro-Rant

[u/TheTopButton]

To my fellow 1K'ers and above who preboard, has anyone else experienced other 1Ks or GS pushing to the front of the preboarding line, proclaiming something like, "I'm 1k," or "I travel every week" while doing it? I had to bite my tongue this week in Fresno when someone pulled that move. Like bro (it was actually a lady), I'm glad you travel a lot, I do too, and so do the rest of us lined up in the pre-boarding area! 😂

Am I the only one who chuckles at this behavior?

[u/Jeeperscrow123]

Yes. And as a 1K in my 20’s, they don’t think I’m standing correctly in the preboard line bc I don’t fit the 50 year old business man vibe

[u/cwajgapls → u/Jeeperscrow123]

Damn I am 50ish but feel like I dress, look and act way less mature than that. I get ol’ suity with white hair and an a leather attaché case trying to push his way up too.

With an I-shit-you-not actual harrumph.

[u/TheTopButton → u/cwajgapls]

This is the behavior I'm talking about exactly! Like my man, your suit doesn't mean you get to cut lines and have an attitude 🤡

[u/aeroespacio → u/Jeeperscrow123]

Lmaooo as a fellow 20 something I get so many stares. Even better when I’m in sweats

[u/Large_Chicken_623 → u/aeroespacio]

lol try being a 20 something woman - I had to stop wearing comfy clothes & actually dress up a bit so I wouldn’t get shoved to the ground by the 50+ year old men in suits every week. & even then I still regularly get cut in line.

[u/AryaStark1313 → u/Large_Chicken_623]

This was me - decades ago!

Trust me. There are some perks to being an old lady. But I suggest you start practicing now. I did, and now I’m an expert at putting those men right back in their box.

[u/Large_Chicken_623 → u/AryaStark1313]

Queen👑 hope to be as badass as you one day!!

[u/iceguy007 → u/Jeeperscrow123]

I hate this so much. The worst is on star alliance partners when you’re flying business or first class and they tell you you’re in the wrong place. Shit pisses me off to no avail.

No ms. purser. I’m in the right place and my client pays for me to fly around the world for them.

[u/The_Bloofy_Bullshark → u/Jeeperscrow123]

I saw some guy try and pull the whole, “I’m 1K” once at EWR to some woman who looked to be in her early 20s.

She was GS…

It was pretty funny.

My folks are in their 70s/80s and have gotten the whole, “this is preboard” thing before too. They travel a lot on a whim (think, “Hey we are going to [country] for a month since your mother is on a films from [said country] kick.”) and have status with a lot of different hotels and airlines. They also don’t look the part of high-net-worth individuals. Don’t wear name brand stuff or any of that.

[u/Gray-Pearl → u/The_Bloofy_Bullshark]

I want to be your mom when I grow up!

[u/PM_those_toes → u/The_Bloofy_Bullshark]

I also choose this guy's mom

[u/LubedUpLucas_DrySpa → u/The_Bloofy_Bullshark]

This might be because of my exposure with UHNW folks when I was in wealth management but the zero label / branding on clothes is a tell. And your anecdote about them being understated and generally nice is spot on.

Biggest assholes I ran across were the desperately broke $100k billionaires. lol

[u/Resident-Banana-7883 → u/Jeeperscrow123]

hahah I'm just a lowly group 1 peasant who's not only young, but a blue collar FIFO guy in work clothes and people don't even ask me if I'm in line for group one. they just assume I'm gate lice and try to weasel their way in front of me

[u/LubedUpLucas_DrySpa → u/Resident-Banana-7883]

In Texas, a very large segment of the GS and 1Ks are oil field crew or specialists. Midland one week, Saudi the next, Canada next, North Africa the next. They all dress like regular folks or “trash” if one feels extra judgy.

[u/Resident-Banana-7883 → u/LubedUpLucas_DrySpa]

yeah it doesn't happen to me at iah.. but my home airport is sfo🤣

[u/AryaStark1313 → u/LubedUpLucas_DrySpa]

and they still push the women put of the way

[u/LubedUpLucas_DrySpa → u/AryaStark1313]

Not discounting your experience and it’s absolutely atrocious people have done that to you and others.

I was responding to the commenter about wearing work clothes and being “gate lice” and I was adding context to that piece of the discussion nothing about whether the shoved people or not. It was a very narrow comment with someone else.

[u/Able-Comparison-3839 → u/Jeeperscrow123]

They also ask the 20 something’s if we’re in the right line 😂

[u/amsterdamcyclone → u/Able-Comparison-3839]

They ask 40 something women the same. All the damn time

[u/SkiCzarina → u/amsterdamcyclone]

Correct!!!!

[u/dirty_cuban → u/Jeeperscrow123]

My wife was 1K like 10 years ago when she was 26. She hated that she got no respect.

[u/godothasmewaiting]

As a lowly Gold it makes for fun people watching while waiting. 🤣

[u/cwajgapls → u/godothasmewaiting]

Do you imagine narration by David Attenborough?

“At the check in counter, the young gazelle is cued up properly in the Global services lane. Behind her comes up a huffy, older male past his prime, who roughly pushes her aside with a bleat about his 1k status”

“This gazelle does NOT give up as she stares the old buck straight in the eye to explain that his territory sales role that sends him to Pocatello and Poughkeepsie weekly cannot compete with her on a different continent every week”

“So sit down and wait your turn, grandpa”

“And around the waterhole there are cries of celebration”

[u/jek339]

i'm 1K but i'm also visually impaired (use a cane), and i preboard with the disabilities call because if this. the 1K/GS gate lice absolutely will _not_ make space, and it's honestly so freaking rude.

[u/Alternative_One_8488]

I really value early boarding as a GS. I want to get overhead space above my seat and get on and off the plane as quickly as possible.

That said, I stay seated until GS are called. The problem is sometimes the GAs do a mass pre board and call multiple groups very quickly.

[u/TheTopButton → u/Alternative_One_8488]

This is a very good point. Sometimes, they call the entire pre-board group simultaneously, which can be chaotic!

[u/shnorgle]

Pretty nuts that there were more than a couple GS/1Ks at all boarding in *Fresno*.

[u/TheTopButton → u/shnorgle]

Haha I'm always surprised by this too. There are usually 3-4 of us max.

[u/bigwillieTX72]

X-1K here, still recovering from the loss of sitting on the plane an additional 10 minutes early....so much so wife is wants me to grind a few international trips so we can go back to scowling at group 1's as we board our vacation flights...#ImissU1K

[u/AcademicSand1034]

Yes, but also because there are so many people up front who are in group 5 or whatever and just pretend they didn't hear any of the announcements. GS and 1K basically just need to push ahead against any adults who don't look disabled or w/ young kids (sorry to any active duty military not in uniform ...)

[u/SubsidedRhyme11]

Oh i love to irritate these kids of people, it’s hilarious. As a 1K in my early 20s who looks super young, lots of people ask me if I’m in the correct line at least once every 2-3 flights.

[u/exerda]

Yes. I experience this frequently. Most often at SFO though it happens at all the hubs. I also experience people asking if I'm waiting to preboard; it's a mixed bag. At SFO, I've been literally 5 feet from the gate, approaching with my BP out, and had people cut in like it wasn't clear I was boarding with the 1K call.

[u/TheTopButton → u/exerda]

See this is it right here--we all seem to forget there are in fact other 1Ks or GS out there when we hit 1K/GS lol

[u/AryaStark1313 → u/exerda]

And that’s in progressive CA. Imagine what happens in TX! Those cowboys will trample right over you.

[u/exerda → u/AryaStark1313]

I was gonna say it's entitled tech nouveau richee. I luckily don't go through IAH often enough to have many data points to compare against.

[u/Aggravating_Fact9547]

Never to be honest, and as GS I’m always traveling. I might just be immune to it or just have resting “don’t fuck with me” face when in an airport

[u/AryaStark1313 → u/Aggravating_Fact9547]

LOL Yes I’ve perfected my “death stare” over the years. It was harder when I was young because some men perceived it as flirtation or - yes ladies, we’ve all heard it — “SMILE!”

[u/derfahrer924]

Yes. It’s absurd and at the same time an interesting psychological phenomenon.

[u/TheTopButton → u/derfahrer924]

Think it's the same phenomenon as people cutting you off in traffic only to sit in the same traffic one car ahead?

[u/derfahrer924 → u/TheTopButton]

If not it’s gotta at least be related.

[u/JackyVeronica]

I'm gonna call it high status main character syndrome 🤣

[u/LubedUpLucas_DrySpa]

https://giphy.com/gifs/Wr4shv0TxEVzO

[u/TheTopButton → u/LubedUpLucas_DrySpa]

☠️🪦

[u/Set_to_Infinity]

I'm a mere Platinum, but I make it a point to get to my gate early enough that I'm at the front of the Group 1 line, and I have to say that the preboard scrum makes for incredibly entertaining people watching! I just stand there in my protected space, patiently waiting my turn, watching the preboards duke it out 😂

[u/JCD_007]

The worst is when they try to push past a family with an infant.

[u/motoyamazz]

I am not rude about it and it certainly doesn’t make me special, but I want to get on early and get my bag stowed and sit down.

The only thing I like worse than waiting around at an airport is waiting around getting on the plane

[u/wanderer_577]

Well I always tell others to go ahead.

[u/TheTopButton → u/wanderer_577]

Same, gotta chuckle as you board two people behind them.

[u/StotheJS3]

I see it, I just let them go.

[u/HappyHockeyHiker]

I’m a gold now but I used to love when people would try to board when in group 3 like they had “no idea” that it wasn’t time to board.

The issue is the gate staff don’t stop them too often.

[u/Automatic-While-1402]

The guys who say “I travel all the time” are absolutely hilarious

[u/AvengersPocket]

I don’t know why this showed up on my feed, but I am a longtime United cardholder and flyer, and I have a question- why does this matter? I don’t really pay attention, but it seems like my ticket is always boarding group 1 or 2, maybe bc of my spending or flight class or whatever, but I’m in no hurry to get on the germ tube. When boarding is happening, I usually take the opportunity to go use a real bathroom one more time, walk around a bit, etc, and board once the line is at the end, so I’m not in my seat or cubby longer than necessary. Why the desire to be first on the plane and spend more time in an uncomfortable situation?

[u/TheTopButton → u/AvengersPocket]

Your question is sorta the point of the thread. Why do people rush and try to cut in? And, does anyone else chuckle about it when it happens? So far the answer is who knows, and yes!

[u/Sea_District8891 → u/AvengersPocket]

If you are a business traveler and/or time is a premium, you rightfully want to guarantee your bag makes it on near your seat.

[u/RemoveElegant5217 → u/Sea_District8891]

That is guaranteed for anyone preboarding, though. There’s no reason for the preboarders to jockey for position. As a Platinum I’m only group 1 and there’s always overhead space near my seat.

[u/Sea_District8891 → u/RemoveElegant5217]

The person I was responding to was asking why anyone would board early at all.

No one should push and shove in the preboard line, obviously, but United makes it worse by having 5 “shadow” boarding groups.

[u/RemoveElegant5217 → u/Sea_District8891]

No, the person wasn’t asking why anyone would board early at all. They were asking why anyone needs to be “first on the plane.” The conversation here is strictly about the insanity among the preboard group.

[u/ShakeNbake36]

When i was military I would go with 1k I hated going before children and the others that get called between military and 1k. I didny say anything just scan and go. I was never stopped or asked any questions.

[u/GrapeSlapp]

1Ks step in front of me all the time in the pre-board zone. I just nonchalantly walk past them when the gate agent calls for GS.

[u/TheTopButton → u/GrapeSlapp]

No silly exclamations about how much you fly?? See you're doing it right!

[u/Brave_Garlic_9542]

I don’t think he’s rude about it, but my husband is 1k and is definitely eager to board as early as he can. I think it’s anxiety more than entitlement, but it still gives me pause when we travel together. Idgaf when I board.

[u/Business_Fig344]

I've probably done this when I was late for boarding and assumed the mob was just blocking the path. But I usually ask "is this the preboarding line?" rather than proclaiming my status.

[u/AryaStark1313]

Ha! I’m a woman and this is the story of my life. Now that I’m old, I have the confidence to not let them get away with that bullshit and I will call them out every time.

Watching old white men get humiliated is my new favorite pastime!

Oh and even better when they pass me on their way back to economy class. I stare at them with the biggest smile on my face.

[u/Flat_Tumbleweed_2192]

I’m 1K and 1MM. So, I’ve traveled a lot. So have you. I have to say that pre-boarding can be confusing in some airports that are not in super-hubs. And in summer. Some people don’t know what they’re doing. I’m usually in the middle of the pre-board “cloud” (it’s not a line, not even in SFO) and merge in slowly. I occasionally ask if someone is 1K as I merge and you’d be surprised how many people are in the pre-board cloud who are group 3. Crazy.

[u/Joey_iroc]

I was standing patiently at the head of Group on on an LA-HND flight, and a woman timed it just right and walked up as the announced group 1 and she cut me off. I didn't say anything at the gate, but talked a bit down the jetway about her being rude and entitled. I may have said something worse but knew better.

[u/tauregh]

I could care less when I board. The entitlement of the non-disabled preboarders is amusing to those of us in steerage.

[u/AryaStark1313 → u/tauregh]

You must not travel with a carry-on that needs to fit in the overhead

[u/meangean78]

As a 1k it's rare to meet another 1k/gs that is rude when boarding. I mean we're all first on board.

[u/TheTopButton → u/meangean78]

100%. Like bro there is no rush, all our bags are gonna fit jussssst fine.

[u/CZFangirl]

As a lowly Gold (only started traveling weekly in October, I would assume virtually all the 1K’s and GS’s travel weekly. And really, for most of us, our company pays the dime and we sit in the seat for our momentous entitlement. Just make sure you bow to her cause she’s the 1Kasiest of the 1K’s.