Why do we never board a plane from the right (starboard) side?

http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/showthread.php?t=75886&page=2

Tristars have/had equally sized and spaced doors. L1-3 being the same full size as R1-3.

The answer is already above.
It goes back to our Naval heritage.

The odd balls that have tried to swap the boarding side were just trying out different ideas. The world standard is board from Port.

I think every jet airliner has that small right side door as it’s used to service the galley, not board passengers.

ill try and get a definitive answer from a captain tommorow 😉

you will find some aircraft including the Fockers that KLM use for the NCL-AMS have horribly small Righthand doors, so small a Verticaly Challenged person would most likely have to duck to get through, imaging all the compensation claim KLM would have to sort if they boarded the A/C from the right. 😮

Actually, Pre-war DC-3s had the option of EITHER left or right-hand doors.
It depended on airline preference. As noted above, American Airlines DSTs and DC-3 had right doors, others (such as TWA and AB Aerotransport of Sweden) had left side doors.

And while other U.S. airlines had right side doors (as noted the Boeing 247 and Ford Tri-Motor), the first Boeing airliner, the Boeing 40 series, has its passenger doors on the left, so did the three-engined Boeing 80.

Both the DST and all the pre-war DC-3’s had the passenger door on the Right hand side, but when produced for the military during the war they went to the trouble of redesigning the fuselage with the door/cargo door on the Left hand side! Why should they do that? Maybe this whole thing originates from a U.S.A.A.C (now U.S. Air Force) specification of some obscure nature? If you look at the U.S. Transport Command aircraft from the War (C-46, C-47, C-54 etc.) all of them have the door on the Left side, where as on pre-war aircraft, they were quite as likely to be found on the right hand side. Bearing in mind that surplus U.S. Transport Command aircraft formed the backbone of the airlines post war, it is perhaps not unreasonable to assume that the Left boarding was simply a carry on from these. As already pointed out the brits tried to buck the trend with right boarding on the early Comet, but that was soon confined to the sidelines.

The DC3 has it’s cabin door on the left…

Incorrect actually… The original DC-3s (known as Douglas Sleeper Transports, or DSTs) had their passenger door on the RIGHT rear fuselage.

Andy

The DC3 has it’s cabin door on the left… unless it was made in the Soviet Union (called a Li-2) when the door would now be on the right!

Just one of those things I guess.

Some helicopters, S61 for example you board from the right side – there are only emergency exits on the left hand side of the aircraft. The BV234 was the same, main entrance on the right side, although you could board via the ramp, at the rear. Most other helicopters you can board on either side, left or right.

Like Whiskey Delta, I suspect its related to which side the Captain sits, fixed wing on the left, helicopters on the right.

There have, as Whiskey Delta points out, been aircraft with boarding doors on the right, for example the Comet front door was on the right. Modern aircraft are as far as I know designed largely to be serviced from the right and boarded from the left. I say largely as some servicing is done on the right, fuelling the 320srs can be and servicing the rear toilets of the 737srs are a couple of examples.

I’m not convinced that there is a specific reason for boarding on the left, rather this is just how it has evolved as it suits aircraft manufacturers, airport designers, airlines, etc. to do things in a standard way.

1L.

I wouldn’t say never. I’ve disembarked on the right, much to everyones confusion, & unless they moved the plane, the next lot would have had to board on the right. But almost never.

my first flight was in the cockpit of a London bound 757 , the S/O did the landing and the taxied the 757 on to the Gate,without any difficulty , I think it would be some thing to do with the way some airports are built , i know at Glasgow if you were to deplane from the right then the gates closest to the main terminal could not be used ( allso would casue a lot of problems when pushing the aircraft back on to the taxiways on the Ramp)

Just a thought
Kevin

The standard we see today would have been arranged well before modern airliners not to forget that not many modern airliners are not capable of being steered from the FO’s seat. I didn’t think that there are many 757’s with 2 tillers.

Modern airport layouts are predicated on the early airport setups from the 1950’s if not earlier. I wouldn’t expect many, if any at all, of those early aircraft even had tillers until perhaps the last of the propliners came about. So I would still venture a guess that the Captain was in charge of the aircraft most times and airports would have been arranged accordingly. Aren’t taxiway signs posted on the left side of the taxiway when there is room on both sides?

I’m not sure of the origins, but then I’m not sure of the origins of driving on the left or right depending on the country. However things have developed with this sytem in mind, just as with driving on the left or right. Basically it’s not just the Airports which are designed (LBA-EGNM) for this operation, but also the aircraft. Its a bit of a chicken and egg situation I guess.

But this is the international industry standard which ensures that all the elements of the system work together. Aircraft manufacturers know that they need to design aircraft for passengers access on the port side, and to primarily be serviced from the starboard side. As a result Airport’s can design facilities safe in the knowledge that a manufacturer won’t come along with an aircraft to upset the system.

Furthermore aircraft manufacturers need to offer airlines compatibility to reduce training costs and minimise turnarounds for those that need it. By compising a standard way of servicing aircraft these issues can eb taken into account.

Another thought,
Number 1 engine , is this the Left Engine?,Now if this is correct Following reasoning
The pilot could not start engines while passengers were boarding, a bit dangerous if the front door is open and the stairs are connected, I know that at Glasgow 1 Passenger was killed Many Years ago when the pilot started the engines (ATP) whilst passengers were boarding and a passenger decided to walk straight into one of the Props

But airports are designed for passengers to disembark from the left.

I don’t know if I buy the Airliners.net answer. Not all airplanes boarded from the left in those early days. For example the Ford Tri-motor.

http://www.airliners.net/open.file/1100662/M/

Because that’s how horses are mounted? I really can’t imagine that’s it. What about helicopters? Or that a number of the folks in the world drive on the right side of the car?

My guess is because the Captain sits on the left side it’s easier for him to taxi the aircraft into and out of the boarding area. It would be very difficult and probably lead to more accidents if the captain had to approach the jetway or stairs if it was on the far side of the airplane. With such equipment on his side he can easily position the aircraft near the jetway since he can see it out his window.

my first flight was in the cockpit of a London bound 757 , the S/O did the landing and the taxied the 757 on to the Gate,without any difficulty ,
I think it would be some thing to do with the way some airports are built , i know at Glasgow if you were to deplane from the right then the gates closest to the main terminal could not be used ( allso would casue a lot of problems when pushing the aircraft back on to the taxiways on the Ramp)

Just a thought
Kevin

I don’t know if I buy the Airliners.net answer. Not all airplanes boarded from the left in those early days. For example the Ford Tri-motor.

http://www.airliners.net/open.file/1100662/M/

Because that’s how horses are mounted? I really can’t imagine that’s it. What about helicopters? Or that a number of the folks in the world drive on the right side of the car?

My guess is because the Captain sits on the left side it’s easier for him to taxi the aircraft into and out of the boarding area. It would be very difficult and probably lead to more accidents if the captain had to approach the jetway or stairs if it was on the far side of the airplane. With such equipment on his side he can easily position the aircraft near the jetway since he can see it out his window.

The answer lies with the navy
originaly ships entered and tied up with thier left side to port to aviod damage to thier
rudder (steerboard) which was on the right (starboard)
Many of the early passenger aircraft were flying boats and followed many of the natical traditions hence left to port and that is where we enter
The other natical things are a Captian ,Water line on blueprints to indicate position on aircraft airframe and rudder ect