It’s not rocket science, just a simple, common-sense way to get passengers aboard quickly and easily. It’s based on a simple principle – a series of small groups, each arranged in row order before entering the plane.

Passengers have their boarding passes checked in the normal way; the only difference is that gate staff pause checking briefly after every 15 to 20 passengers. This allows passengers to step onto their seat numbers marked on the Flying Carpet, resulting in the group being arranged in row order, rearmost seat passengers nearest the plane. Then it’s just a short walk through the aerobridge, into the plane and down the aisle directly to their seats, unimpeded. All passengers in the group stow their bags and sit down simultaneously!

Takes less than a minute, average is about 45 seconds for everybody in each group to be comfortably seated before the next small group arrives.

No need to push past each other - spread out along the aisle, passengers have plenty of elbow room.

Using the Flying Carpet in this way, 8 to 10 groups in rapid succession gets 150 to 200 passengers aboard a Boeing 737 or Airbus A321 in under 10 minutes. That’s about half the usual time for even the best of other systems. Not just a theory, real-world trials proved it beyond doubt.

And much less chance of infection – less exposure time, but more importantly, there’s far fewer close contacts between passengers. Much lower risk of spreading COVID (or any other illness or disease).

The Flying Carpet is a carpet (or other floor covering) marked with a scaled-down replica of the generic aircraft seating plan. It is placed on the floor just beyond the boarding pass checking station.

When boarding commences, passengers file past gate staff who check their passes (paper or phone) in the normal way, then step onto their clearly marked seat numbers on the Flying Carpet. After 15 to 20 passengers have gone through and taken their places, gate staff pause checking for a few seconds to allow this first group to vacate the Flying Carpet and walk to the plane.

Checking resumes until the next group of 15 to 20 passengers form up; this takes about 30 to 35 seconds. Checking is paused again for 10 to 15 seconds, enough time for this second group to clear the carpet.
The process is repeated until all passengers are aboard, typically 8 to 10 groups, about 45 seconds per group.

Inside the plane, being in row order, passengers can walk directly to their seats without having to push past each other. In a typical airplane having thirty rows of seats, the 15 to 20 passengers find themselves well-spaced along the aisle with plenty of elbow room to stow their bags and get seated SIMULTANEOUSLY. They take about 30 seconds, just enough time to do so before the next small group arrives.

Ten groups, one every 45 seconds, gets as many as 200 people aboard a plane in 450 seconds (= nine minutes) plus another minute for the last few passengers to walk down the aisle and get seated.

It’s far quicker than any other method and not just a theory, it works ! The first trial got 171 passengers aboard an Airbus A321 in 13 minutes, the second trial an hour later got 151 passengers aboard in 10 minutes.

That’s about half the usual time and maybe a world record but it’s likely to be broken soon with the benefit of familiarity and experience .

Regardless of technology – facial recognition, paperless passes, automatic gates, etc. - boarding time depends upon the rate at which passengers can physically enter the plane, pausing briefly while the flight attendant checks each boarding pass. This takes about 2 seconds for fit adult passengers with no oversize bags, but 3 seconds is a more realistic average figure.

On this basis, for a typical flight with 150 passengers the absolute minimum time taken for passengers to enter the plane would be 300 seconds (5 minutes). Adding a minute for them to get from the gate through the aerobridge to the plane door, plus another minute for the last few to reach their seat row, stow their bags and get seated, brings the minimum possible time to 7 minutes.

But not all passengers are fit adults, and some have oversize bags, so a more realistic minimum time for a normal flight with 150 passengers would be more like 8 or 9 minutes. In the second trial using the Flying Carpet system, 151 passengers boarded an Airbus A320 in 10 minutes (possibly a world record). Allowing for the fact that this was with inexperienced staff and passengers who had no prior information, it confirms that 8 or 9 minutes is probably a realistic minimum time for 150 passengers.

The take-home message is that airlines using the Flying Carpet System can rely on boarding taking less than 10 minutes, half the usual time.

Studies by airlines have shown that the time taken by passengers to stow their bags ranges from 15 seconds to a minute, about 34 seconds on average. Hence the time gap between successive boarding groups should also be about 34 seconds. This results in the first passenger in each group entering the plane just as the last passenger in the previous group has taken their seat.

The flow rate of passengers through boarding pass checking is about one every 2 seconds, so after 34 seconds 17 passengers will have reached their places on the Flying Carpet. Checking is paused while this group moves on, taking about 12 seconds to vacate the Flying Carpet, total time 46 seconds. Checking resumes, another 17 passengers take their places on the Flying Carpet, then move on, etc..

The process is repeated at the rate of one group every 46 seconds, 34 seconds apart (between the first passenger in any group and the last passenger in the previous group). The above figures are averages, based on observations from real-world trials. Group sizes can vary, normally between 15 to 20 (as was the case in the trials), the important factor is to maintain the frequency and time between groups. In round figures that’s one group every 45 seconds, with 35 seconds between each group.

The most objective measurement of boarding is the time between the first passengers entering the plane and the last passenger reaching their seat. Using the above recommended figures, 10 groups @ 45 seconds would take 450 seconds (9 minutes) to pass through the plane door. As there are only 9 gaps, this figure allows 35 seconds for the last passenger to get from the plane door to their seat.

As well as being well-spaced timewise, a group size of 15 to 20 also provides optimum physical space – it’s about the most passengers that can comfortably fit with their bags along a typical aircraft aisle having 25 to 30 rows of seats. Being at random, they won’t all be evenly spaced, but most have plenty of elbow room.

Optimising time and motion in this way achieves efficiency but it also makes it more pleasant for passengers - 35 seconds is the longest time anyone has to wait at any stage, and everybody is aboard in under 10 minutes.

The first time the Flying Carpet system was used anywhere was during trials conducted by State University of Civil Aviation researcher Vlad Kolesnik at Pulkovo Airport, St Petersburg, Russia during regular flights operated by S7 Airlines (Russia's largest domestic carrier) during April and May 2016. In all, 62 comparative trials were made using several different methods (Uncontrolled, Rear-to-Front (with variations), and the Flying Carpet, a boarding system devised by Australian engineer, Rob Wallace.
The Flying Carpet proved to be the fastest method of boarding by far. In its very first trial (“maiden voyage”) the Flying Carpet enabled 171 passengers to board an Airbus A321 in 13 minutes. As subsequent trials showed, the boarding rate became even faster as staff gained experience. In the second trial an hour or so later that day 151 passengers boarded a 158 seat Airbus A320 in 10 minutes, possibly a world record.

Video of the first trial with commentary can be seen on: Flying Carpet – First Real-world Trial

The rapid times were achieved without confusing or antagonising passengers. On the contrary, even though they received only a last-minute explanation, the overwhelming majority readily understood and cooperated enthusiastically (particularly young people and children), taking care to quickly find and step onto their correct numbered places. The passengers' easy adaption to the system and their positive feedback validates the findings of studies such as Mythbusters that have shown passengers have a strong preference for a system that they see as orderly and fair.

Real-world trials are of course much more authoritative than theories and simulations, except that simulations enable many repetitions thus providing statistical authenticity. Initial simulations (done by an independent Australian firm) showed that not only the average time for boarding was much less for the Flying Carpet but that the standard deviation was also significantly lower. This means that airlines can be more confident of consistently faster boarding via the Flying Carpet.

A few years ago, the popular Mythbusters TV show conducted trials comparing boarding methods using a simulated airplane with 173 volunteers. They found the commonly used Rear-to-Front to be slowest, Random (no assigned seating) fastest but much disliked, WILMA and Reverse Pyramid the most orderly and almost as fast as Random.

A summary of the episode can be seen on: Mythbusters Report.

Audio announcements are pretty much useless in airports. Apart from the background noise and the fact that a lot of passengers are engrossed in conversation, on their phone or iPad, many of them simply can’t understand what’s being said. Hard enough if you aren’t familiar with the local accent, impossible if you don’t speak the language. Almost always the announcer speaks too quickly - in big, enclosed spaces like airports and railway stations the reverberation means that each spoken word is drowned out by the echo of the previous word.

The upshot is that passengers don’t comply, as soon as they become aware that boarding is about to start they all surge towards the gate resulting in the all-too-familiar cattle-crush.

Boarding systems that depend upon passengers responding to announcements over the PA are doomed to failure. Not a problem for the Flying Carpet as announcements are unnecessary.

The all-too familiar cattle crush occurs when boarding is about to begin. One reason is the natural human instinct - people are anxious, they want to move on and can't really relax until they are inside the plane and comfortably seated. Another reason is that the first passengers aboard get first dibs at the overhead baggage compartments. It’s not helped by the fact that many passengers don’t understand or ignore announcements given over the PA.

The cattle crush disrupts most boarding systems, but not the Flying Carpet because there’s no need for passengers to be in any particular order before boarding begins. The Flying Carpet doesn’t prevent the cattle crush but by processing passengers quickly the crush soon subsides.

Most boarding methods involve regimentation, such as passengers having to line up in the departure lounge behind signs depicting boarding groups. Other methods, such as Rear-to- Front, use audio announcements calling passengers in particular seat rows, but many don’t comply because they don’t hear or understand. (Fortunately, non-compliance sometimes makes the system work better). The highest degree of regimentation occurs with the Steffen system which assigns each passenger with a number in a strict sequence.

None of this happens with the Flying Carpet because there’s no need for passengers to be in any particular order prior to boarding. Passengers can choose their own moment to come forward - some passengers like to be first aboard, others prefer to be last.

Obviously, faster boarding requires speedy checking of passes, at least one passenger every 3 seconds.
Self-boarding gates avoid the need for staff but aren’t any quicker than manual checking. No matter which method is used, it takes at least 2 seconds for a passenger with a normal bag - two streams in parallel are essential.

Observations at Melbourne Airport show that two gate staff can comfortably achieve the required rate needed for the Flying Carpet system, except for hiccups. Almost always there are hold-ups during boarding pass checking – some passengers have the wrong pass (husband has wife’s and vice versa), others drop their bags, some fumble with their phone, children interrupt, and now and again someone is on the wrong flight. Interestingly, checking passes on phones was slower than for traditional paper passes.

Manufacturers of automatic gates might claim a faster throughput of passengers for their products but our observations of patrons passing through turnstiles at airports, sporting stadiums, railway stations, etc. don’t bear this out.

Fastest time observed anywhere was by 10 energetic teenage schoolboys hurrying to a football match who took 17 seconds to pass through a modern turnstile. Hard to imagine normal adults with bags taking only 1.7 seconds each, 2 seconds is a realistic minimum.

On Time Performance is crucial for the efficient operation of an airline, especially when delays result in missed take-off and landing slots. The domino effect of a delay in an early flight affects causes rescheduling headaches for the flight planners all day, not to mention the inconvenience to passengers who miss appointments or connections.
Having endured the tedious processes from check-in, security, customs, immigration, the last thing the passenger wants to hear is that their flight has been delayed.

As well as speed, boarding needs to be consistent for reliable On Time Performance.

Fast turn-around times are important for airlines. While several tasks need to be done while the aircraft is parked at a gate (refuelling, loading baggage, replenishing food and drink, etc.) these are invariably completed sooner than the boarding process. Hence faster boarding is the key to increasing the number of flights per day from each gate.
Because the Flying Carpet boarding system can save 10 minutes per departure, the cumulative time saved would enable an aircraft to make more flights every day.

As well as benefiting airlines, faster boarding and turn-arounds also benefit airports - if planes spend less time parked at the gate more flights can arrive and depart each day.
It is especially important for airports which are at near capacity - having a finite number of gates, the only way for airports to accommodate more flights is to ensure faster turn-arounds.

Tight scheduling is important for airline profitability - aircraft only earn money when they are in the air carrying paying passengers. Hence airlines strive to maximise the number of flights their aircraft make each day by tight scheduling. Consistently fast turn-arounds are essential to maintain tight schedules, especially on short-haul inter-city routes where planes typically make six flights per day.

“Our airplanes don’t earn money while they’re sitting on the ground. They need to be in the air.
So, if we can shave even four or five minutes off every aircraft turn, we can fly well over a hundred more flights a day.” - Larry DeShon, senior vice president of airport operations, United Airlines.

“If you save time with each turn of, say, seven flights, you may be able to schedule an eighth flight.”
“The advantage of a fast turnaround is not cutting costs but generating revenue.” - David Swierenga, Economist & Aviation Consultant.

In its simplest form all that is needed to implement the Flying Carpet system is for airports to install carpets in the departure lounge just beyond the boarding pass checking stations. Its compact size (6 x 2 metres) means that not much space is needed, needing only minor rearrangement of the furniture in most situations. The only other improvement would be the installation of motorised gates, similar to those at supermarkets, so that gate staff can easily regulate the process by simple controlled remote controls.

These facilities would be very appropriate at airports which have “common use” gates which are used by several airlines instead of the exclusive gates favoured by larger airlines. All would have the opportunity to use the Flying Carpet to speed up the boarding process, but if any prefer not to they can simply ignore the facilities.

Curfews are imposed at some airports, particularly those close to residential areas. The curfew at Mascot airport, Sydney, Australia, is 11:00 pm to 6:00 am, and heavy fines are imposed on airlines for breaches of this restriction - up to AU$ 550,00 for each offence.

More than 200 busy airports worldwide allocate take-off slots (more correctly pairs of slots) which give an airline the right to land and depart an aircraft at specified times and use airport facilities.

These have short time windows for turn-arounds, some as little as 40 minutes, and heavy fines are imposed for non-compliance. Qantas was threatened with a £20,000 fine for repeated late arrivals at Heathrow (more than 15 minutes late), and possible loss of their much sought-after early morning slot.

Airlines are willing to pay large amounts for such slots. In 2013, Etihad bought 3 slots from Jet Airways at Heathrow for $70 million. British Airways bought 4 slots for flights to New York at the same airport, for £12 million. Slot trading is an established business at these airports, usually conducted through brokers.

As well as speed, consistent times for boarding are crucial to maintain On-time Performance and tight schedules. As it happens, the Flying Carpet System is very consistent. This was shown by repeated computer simulations – as well as being the fastest the Flying Carpet was the most consistent, having the lowest standard deviation compared to others - Rear to Front, Wilma, Random, etc..

Not surprising when you consider that most other boarding systems are very susceptible to hiccups – if one passenger is slow to get seated, they hold up dozens of others. With the Flying Carpet system, any such hiccup is localised, not affecting other passengers who continue to get seated, hence less delay.

Better fleet utilisation means more flights flown by each plane which results in lower costs, higher profits. Faster boarding enables this, particularly on short-haul routes where aircraft typically make 5 or 6 flights per day. The extra hour or so gained by faster and more consistent boardings during the day might enable an extra flight. Five flights can become 6 thus enabling a plane to return to its base or arrive comfortably before the curfews which apply at many airports.

Not only greater earnings and profit but fewer planes are needed to fulfil schedules. Not to be sneezed at given the US$ 100 million price tag for an Airbus A320 or Boeing 737.

“For example, a 10-minute faster average turn-time can increase airline utilization by 8% and lower AROC [Airplane Related Operating Costs] for a typical single-aisle airplane by 2%.”
Mansoor Mirza, Boeing Aero Quarterly Magazine, QTR_04 1 08

A $100 million plane standing idle costs well over US$ 40 minute. First, there's the direct cost of about the dozen or so staff - a couple of pilots, several flight attendants, gate agents plus a few ground staff. Added to this are the very high overhead costs - finance, depreciation, insurance, avionics, maintenance, etc., which brings the total to over US$ 40 per minute.

Ten minutes saved on each of 5 flights made in one day by one plane saves an airline $2000 - about $700,000 in one year. An airline with a fleet of 100 planes stands to gain $70 million per year!

Then there’s the big savings from consistent On-Time-Performance which avoids the huge fines which airports impose on airlines for lateness (£20,000 for late arrivals at Heathrow), AU$550,00 for breaching curfew at Mascot airport, Sydney, Australia. Worse still is the possible loss of take-off slots, worth many millions, whether £, $, or €.

Better still, fewer planes are needed because of better fleet utilisation.

The Flying Carpet system also reduces labour costs. In its simplest format an extra person is needed for a few minutes to control passengers exiting the Flying Carpet but overall, labour costs are less.

First, it avoids the need for the extra one or two gate staff often needed in the departure lounge to wrangle passengers during other normal boarding methods.

But the biggest labour savings come from the much less time all staff spend waiting for boarding to finish, about a dozen all told – pilots, flight attendants, gate staff and ground staff.

Of course, instead of using an extra person, the exit barrier could be a pair of motorised gates, similar to those found at supermarket entrances. These can be easily operated by one of the gate staff with a handheld remote control, thus enabling them alone to easily manage the entire boarding process.

Arguably, the biggest bugbear amongst the flying public is oversize bags. Apart from unfairly taking up bin space, passengers struggling to stow their oversize bags delay everybody else. It’s a major cause of slow and inconsistent boarding.

Fortunately, big bags are much less of a problem with the Flying Carpet – all passengers in each group reach their seats simultaneously, if one or two struggle to stow their bags they don’t affect anyone else.

Just about every week there’s news of someone who boarded the wrong plane and ended up in a different city. Actually, it’s quite common for passengers to be at the wrong gate. Seems silly but it can easily happen to inexperienced travellers in large airports with lots of gates and departure lounges close together. That’s one of the things that gate staff check, as does the flight attendant at the aircraft door, but occasionally one slips through.

The risk of infection transfer of COVID or any other illness is reduced to an absolute minimum by the Flying Carpet system – less exposure time, but more importantly, far fewer close contacts between passengers.