Window Seats Take On A New Desirability

There may soon be more advantage to choosing a window seat than just the view. United Airlines has instituted a new boarding process that allows window-seat holders to board before middle and aisle seaters. The so-called “WILMA” (window, middle, aisle) plan is designed to cut boarding time.

“It spreads people out along the aisle of the airplane so that more people can put their luggage away at the same time,” Jason Steffen, an associate professor of physics at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, told the Associated Press (AP). “That’s the main thing that speeds up the boarding process,” he said.

According to an internal memo cited by AP, the WILMA process will launch on Oct. 26. It was beta-tested at multiple locations, and data suggests it will cut boarding time by two minutes, on average. First-class and business-class customers will be unaffected by the change, as will priority-boarding passengers, including travelers with disabilities, unaccompanied minors, active-duty military and families with children who are two years old or younger.