TE
TechEcho
Home24h TopNewestBestAskShowJobs
GitHubTwitter
Home

TechEcho

A tech news platform built with Next.js, providing global tech news and discussions.

GitHubTwitter

Home

HomeNewestBestAskShowJobs

Resources

HackerNews APIOriginal HackerNewsNext.js

© 2025 TechEcho. All rights reserved.

How to Reduce Plane Boarding Time by 4x

12 pointsby npkover 17 years ago
This is the best use of MCMC to hack "the system." Perfect "surprising result" for a Y Combinator application.

2 comments

thoraxover 17 years ago
To save you some reading time, the algorithm appears to be: Load the first 10 or so people in alternating rows only (not the same row and not adjacent rows) from rear to front. After they are done, load the next 10 people in alternating rows only from rear to front. Repeat.<p>This assumes that loading luggage into overhead bins is the biggest time sink for most loading. It maximizes the number of individuals who can be loading overhead compartments at any one time, rather than everyone waiting for the person at the front of the line to load their baggage 1-2 at a time or so.
评论 #111573 未加载
评论 #111835 未加载
DougBTXover 17 years ago
I don't see any mention of free-seating, where people are not assigned seat numbers in advance. As this is the method which the cheapest airlines appear to use, where time/cost pressure is at a maximum, I suspect that it does well in practice so I'm disappointed that the author did not consider it.
评论 #112043 未加载