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I was at Brussels airport yesterday and was surprised that gates information are not published until (exactly) 15 minutes before boarding time. The panel says

Relax, gate info at 16:20

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So I went to the gate as soon as it was known, and the aircraft was already there, connected to the passenger boarding bridge. Meaning the gate was definitely known for some time before it is published!

Then I queried some information from the staff ; and indeed, gate information is always only published 15 minutes before boarding time.

The only reason I could think of is BRU wants people to spend time in shops...

Is there another reason for not informing gate details earlier? (which is a bit annoying)

Glorfindel
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Déjà vu
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1 Answers1

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In terms of airport operations the gate may only be published when the airport is sure of which gate its going to be. Some times they know that far in advance if a single airframe is turned around at a given gate it may land, connect up, de-plane its current passengers, get cleaned, then board the new flight. But this is not always the case. If its the first flight of the day for an aircraft they may not know the gate until the aircraft is towed/powered there shortly before the flight. If an airframe has a mechanical issue or is running late enough and the airline has another airframe to swap in the gate may change at the last minute. To make this all simpler the airport may simply wait until they are sure before doing anything.

With all this in mind Im sure someone at the airport has analyzed the business implications of this as well....

Dave
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