Someone had a similar question earlier, and I'll share with you similar feelings that I shared with them:
Southwest is adding new routes all while also trying to ensure it can keep it's planes full enough to have a healthy cash flow. That means big adjustments in schedules. My home airport is in Nashville, and while we have a ton of non-stops, we have fewer numbers of non-stops on any given day due to demand. These changes are common across the industry, but you may feel them more with SW as it uses less of a hub and spoke model; traditionally, they don't operate mainly through hubs and offer many direct/non-stop options.
One could guess that as travel picks back up, you might fine direct options from ATL > DTW. But it is hard to know. ATL is a big market for SW, so there are lots of direct flights to many places currently. Also, ATL and DTW are big Delta markets, which might play into competition/profitability for SW.
Since this is a customer community, feel free to reach out to SW directly to share your concerns.
-A List, Companion Pass holder
