Your boarding pass, decoded
- Booking reference Six letters and numbers that open the whole booking: at the desk, in the app and in any claim.
- Flight number The airline’s two-character code plus up to four digits. Departure boards, apps and claims all use it.
- Gate Often printed later or shown as “see screens”. The boards in the terminal have the final word.
- Boarding time When boarding starts, not when the plane leaves. Gates close before departure, sometimes well before.
- Group or zone Your place in the boarding queue. Priority, families and assistance usually go first.
- Seat Row and letter. On most planes the A seat and the highest letter in the row are by the windows.
