The VERY sneaky tricks plane passengers are using to board flights early revealed

Wondering how your fellow travelers will board the plane earlier or what you can do to secure the premium spot in your baggage compartment?

Experts have revealed that an increasing number of travelers have lately been using both ethical and unethical tricks to make progress while boarding planes.

While some people may be a little over-excited as they rush to board the plane, others will rush to secure space in overhead bins.

With the rising cost of checked baggage, many travelers try to take as many of their belongings with them on the flight as possible – which means they need space to keep them close, which can often be taken up quickly.

Some airlines, such as Southwest Airlines, do not assign seats, so there is a great desire among passengers to guarantee a window or island position – or to be able to sit with loved ones.

Another reason passengers try to be the first on board is because they worry they won’t have enough room in the overhead bins for their carry-on luggage.

This has made overhead bins first-come, first-served – and competition for the best spot can be fierce.

As a result, passengers now use tricks to get on board early, even if it means being dishonest.

These may include:

Faking a disability

Under the Access to Airlines Law 14 CFR 382airline personnel may not discriminate on the basis of disability during air travel, nor ask for a medical certificate to prove a disability.

Although the rule was introduced to ensure that people in need of assistance are treated the same as other passengers, many non-disabled people have begun to exploit this law.

Although the rule was introduced to ensure that people in need of assistance are treated the same as other passengers, many people without disabilities have taken to exploiting the law.

Sometimes people pretend to have a disability by carrying physical aids such as canes or crutches, requesting wheelchairs for non-existent conditions, or simply joining the disability group when the boarding process begins.

David Kazarian, a retired pharmacist from Tampa, told us OregonLive that he has “seen people boarding the plane early by joining the disability group line and then walking off the plane unassisted after they landed.”

“It’s a miracle,” he told the publication.

Jump into the wrong group line

As more and more air crews have started boarding people using the ‘group method’, passengers often tend to ignore staff instructions completely and simply join whatever group line they see, regardless of whether they belong to the called group or not.

As more and more air crews have started boarding people using the ‘group method’, passengers often tend to ignore staff instructions completely and simply join whatever group line they see, regardless of whether they belong to the called group or not.

Much to their good fortune, gate agents sometimes allow such passengers to board the plane with little to no resistance.

Line ‘cheaters’

When all else fails, travelers tend to cut in the middle of a line to ensure they board the plane first.

Although they are not technically breaking any rules, social etiquette dictates that it is respectful not to cut into lines or hold a space for someone for too long.

As etiquette expert Adeodata Czink said, “There’s really no reason to try to get on a plane first.”

While some of these tricks can sometimes work, they are not completely foolproof.

Some simple ways to board the plane early without inviting any criticism include asking passengers in line ahead of you if you can go first in exceptional cases, or by participating to a loyalty program that gives you access to early boarding times.