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Asked to move from my seat? I was A boarding..

Silveamarie1984
Explorer C

Is it normal to be asked to move out of your seat to accommodate someone else after paying for business select? I assumed boarding A-2 would give me an advantage of seat selection?

 My first time flying. 

 

6 REPLIES 6

Re: Asked to move from my seat? I was A boarding..

dfwskier
Aviator A
Solution

It would probably depend pn the seat.

 

If it was a bulkhead seat, it may have been needed for someone who was disabled.

 

other than something like that, yes, it would be unusual.

Re: Asked to move from my seat? I was A boarding..

jksobonya
Aviator A

It entirely depends. Sometimes people like to "save" seats for their spouse/friend/etc. You are allowed to say no, of course, but people can be pushy about it sometimes, and you have to choose your battles wisely.

 

--Jessica

Re: Asked to move from my seat? I was A boarding..

swaff
Explorer C

Interesting question. Pre-pandemic I flew every week- mostly on SWA. I took my entire family on a trip recently- we all had A boarding passes. With multiple children we spread out as their were 40 open seats on the plane. As the last passenger boarded, she was awaiting a center seat in a row a few up from us. The flight attendant came back and told my daughter to move my grand-daughter to a center seat- didn't ask, but told her to.  I heard the conversation and was considering pushing back, but for a variety of reasons, including we dodn't want to embarrass the passenger,  I kept quiet. I paid for those seats, including the one for my grand-daughter. It isn't my fault the person was over-weight and others were unhappy having her into a center seat. Our hope was, the kids would be able to spread out and sleep- giving all passengers a break on the cross country flight. If the person wanted one of our centers- no problem, we didn't pay for it and had no claim to it. But that isn't what happened. recently have seen a change in SWA- and not for the better. I have always worked my flights to use them but honestly I am not sure the effort is worth it as they have become similar to the other major carriers. On a whim i took an Allegiant flight- it was cheap and met the timelines- and it reminded me of the old Southwest.

Re: Asked to move from my seat? I was A boarding..

Btea
Explorer B

The flight attendants on SW are inconsistent and unprofessional. I travel a lot and have seen that they "pick and choose" who they like. They like to say that they are there for security, but the last time I travelled, two just chatted in the back of the plane while people boarded. They should have been watching who sat in the emergency exit and if people were wearing masks.  They should tell a person that their bag won't fit and it needs to be checked after they struggle getting it into the bin for 5 minutes holding everyone up. I'm not sure why they are even there anymore and if they are so fearful of getting COVID, they need to find another job just like other essential workers have had to do during this pandemic. I pay for my dog to be under my seat, and then I am told that my other carry on (a back pack) can't be stored above so people can have room for their bag. Wrong. Tell people to check their bags. Tell people to wear a mask. Wear a mask yourself (one flight the attendant had hers below her nose the entire time)  It isn't the planes that have people not wanting to fly SW, it is the lack of professionalism of their FA. Doing a happy dance after kicking someone off, making jokes through the security demonstrations and not being attentive to customers are simply poor customer service. Everyone feels irritated at times, but they are getting paid to provide customer service and support safety compliance. 

Re: Asked to move from my seat? I was A boarding..

NicoleAshley
Employee
Employee

@Btea , we're sincerely sorry for letting you down with your recent travel experiences, and we especially regret if you noticed any inconsistencies with our Crew. As a peer-to-peer support forum, we are not equipped to assist you here, but I encourage you to Contact Customer Relations for assistance or documentation of your concerns. Thank you.

 

Nicole
Community Manager

Re: Asked to move from my seat? I was A boarding..

SWFlyer007
Aviator C

@Silveamarie1984 While I won't go out on the limb and say all FA that works for SWA is diligent about making customers comfortable and happy, I do so many that are.  Hellos when you board, smiles and assisting.  (This is partially for the individual that stated that she saw 2 just taking in the back)  What you experienced is something that was a bit out of the ordinary, but obviously happened.  I have a son-in-law that we have to purchase the extra seat card for when he flies, but we have also done the upgrade to the early board to help him get on first.  I just not sure why a conversation didn't happen prior to the FA requested the girls to move.  As suggested, send your complaint to customer relations and hopefully, the topic will be addressed to the FA what a more suitable protocol might be in the same situation.