The late arrival is what I most frequently have to deal with as a gate agent.
There have been many occasions where I have had to deny boarding to a passenger who, even though was checked in well soon enough to make the flight with ease, still found it exceedingly difficult for whatever reason to make the 4 minute walk from ticket counter to the gate in time to make the flight.
And as predicted, these people become very upset, sometimes to the point of swearing at me and cursing me. I make it very simple for them. I have them pull out their ticket jacket and I open it up and show them the inside and point out the very explicitly explained contract of carriage that details all of the reasons why he or she was denied boarding.
Sometimes this shuts them up and they storm off with their tail between their legs.
Other times I have to go on to explain that this information is readily available on our website and is also posted on signage at the ticket counters.
A new one to add to the list would be the liar. I can't tell you how many times passengers try to lie to me about one thing or another in an effort to take little to no responsibility for their own actions that caused them their inconvenience. And these are ADULTS!!
