Southwest Airlines Community

I agree.  The complaints are starting up again at MCO regarding family boarding, excessive number of carry on items and size of carry on items.     ... View more

Mother?  ala 1960s movie? ... View more

My suggestion is to contact Southwest and name the flight and departure location.  Then, ask for a partial refund of the flight.   The family boarding was so out of control at MCO that many voiced their concerns - now the rules are followed.   Get a refund. ... View more

Thank you for your reply is this stated anywhere in a handbook for Southwest or the federal website?    I want to be able to provide this to my colleagues so the confusion can be over ... View more

@bballflyer wrote: I would add that having pre-boarders also have to wait to get off the plane until last would curb those that take advantage of the rules and policies.  If they need special assistance to board then it makes sense to me to wait until everyone is off to get that same special assistance to de-board off.  I have seen this at other airlines and it seems fair. They don't all need assistance to board, some need a specific seat.   But I see what you are saying, when traveling with my mom we will wait until it is confirmed that there is a pusher there with a wheelchair.    But that goes both ways, with the wheelchair crew there in the way the preboarders that are using them should go. If there isn't one ready, then wait.     ... View more

Very good point. All things will be abused but SWA should at least try to curb it. They don't.  ... View more

I choose to use Early Bird because I do not always have the opportunity to "check in" 24 hours prior to a flight. But yes, Early Bird is no longer an effective means of guaranteeing a proper seat.   The biggest problem is that people will pay for one early bird seat and then "hold" seats for the rest of their party. It's ridiculous.   I now go out of my way to challenge people. If somebody is attempting to hold three seats I will tell them that I am sitting there. That person has paid for a single seat and obviously does not have to move. But I'll be darned if they are going to prevent me from sitting there.   If you want to hold a row of seats then go to the back of the plane. Otherwise, I'll be sitting next to you. The flight attendants know the ruse. They know what's going on and they choose to ignore it  and/or be complicent it this ruse. That's unacceptable. Stand your ground I say.    I will not try to break up families or anything like that, but again, you are more than welcome to grab a row in the back of the plane to ensure that you sit together.    I have contacted SWA several times regarding this matter and they consistently fail to remedy the situation. They typically sent out a reply indicating that people enjoy the open seating policy. This response ignores the situation.   I used to really enjoy flying SWA. The employees were friendly. The flights were on time. The experience was good. Things have really taken a 180 degree turn. I am at the point where I am going to cancel my SWA card, burn up all my points, and fly with a different carrier. ... View more

I've seen this abused many, many times. SWA has allowed this to matastasize over the years and now it's common. SWA can stop this but it's easier to turn their heads and act like it's not going on. They don't have the will to fix the matter.   I have no problem with a person that is wheel chair bound boarding first. But why are they allowed the premium seats that people have paid extra for?  Why can't they sit in the middle or even the rear of the plane?   What if you had a simple fee of $5 (nominal at best) to preboard? The abuse would not stop but the filthy person who abuses the system might not come up with the five bucks. I believe it would marketedly reduce the abuse. ... View more

I'm biased toward DEN because I grew up there, but the new renovations are looking nice!   Anyway, I currently have a mission to fly to or connect through SWA's largest airports, so far my favorites apart from DEN are DAL and BNA. I wasn't a fan of HOU when I went through there this past Christmas, but maybe that's because I was in the international gates area and felt far removed from the happenings of the airport. I have yet to try out AUS, BWI, LAS, FLL, MCI, MCO, OAK, SJC, SMF, STL, TPA - clearly I have a long ways to go. Not to mention, it's been awhile since I've been to both LAX and SAN.  ... View more

@Ehuang24 wrote:     Ticket was booked with RR account that has the correct name. There is NO REASON it should not be able to match funds to the account. It should be looking up by RR account if the website can't figure out how to compare a space. So frustrated that I had to log out and use the WRONG first name in order to apply funds which were originally booked with the correct name.     no, the ticket was booked with whatever name YOU typed in. There is no system bug, but there is a bug in your typing ability.   ... View more

Well?  I made a viable suggestion to your non-stop wifi woes.  When will it be implemented? ... View more

@floridaguy wrote: This is exactly why so many people stuff the overhead bins with riding lawn mowers, pool tables, utility sheds, tool boxes and so on.  People hate the baggage claim system because it gives problems like this.   If the machine didn't work, then the lazy workers should have brought the baggage out by hand.     Ask for a partial refund of your flight. Calling employees, lazy because a Baggage belt breaks is silly grow up!  The employees are busy trying to get other flights bags before they all pile up and get even more of a delay. If they all go and start grabbing bags one by one from behind the scenes, it would take even longer than a group of two or three people trying to fix the baggage belt.  Isn’t your home airport MCO? So would you call all the workers lazy for not bringing bags up during a thunderstorm or immediately after the thunderstorm ends? Guess what it takes time to catch up after a weather delay, as well as after a mechanical issue with the belt, in some airports, they have to call the actual airport maintenance team since the belt is owned by the airport  ... View more

Wow...Where do I begin?   First, I echo what everybody else mentioned. Agree 100%. SW's unique business model makes it stand out from the competition.     One of my personal hobbies involves me taking day trips to various places and letting somebody take me there: Go in early in the morning, relax for the ride up, spend the day there, and come back in the late afternoon or evening. In the picture above, I'm boarding a local regional train bound to downtown Los Angeles. For the longest time, I've always loved taking train and bus rides aboard SoCal's local regional rail system, the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner, and numerous regional and inter-city bus routes. SoCalFlyer97 not only likes to go to places; he tries to make most of the journey to/from too!   Yes, driving is would have been much quicker than taking buses and trains but I would then miss out in the opportunities gifted to me during the journey to/from while I battled hectic and congested freeways.     Back in 2021, my job required me to make periodic business trips to my company's production plant in Tijuana Mexico; thus I got Global Entry so I can cross back into the USA quickly via the SENTRI pedestrian lane. With short waits at the border coming home, that meant I could do day trips down south and not have to spend the night in Mexico during my daylong business trips there.     Global Entry also includes TSA PreCheck, and I wanted to see if I could take advantage of any new day-trip opportunities with this benefit via the airline industry.     The following year, when I found out that Southwest offered multiple hour-long departures daily from SoCal to destinations in Northern California, Vegas and Phoenix from early morning 'til late night, I learned there was a possibility to complete day trips to these destinations both for work and pleasure via the LUV airline for affordable rates that I could not find anywhere else:           Combine that with having Global Entry to get through TSA quickly and with plentiful public transit options to feed me from a suburban park & ride lot into my primary airport at SAN (or decent 24-hour parking rates at my convenience airport at ONT), I saw new opportunities thanks to Southwest for both work and play.     I would have to say that my short-haul day trips that I post throughout this forum would not be possible on any other carrier. ... View more

@Waco523 wrote: I would like some help understanding the boarding process, and what to do when Southwest violates their own policy.   Case Scenario: Saturday 9 March 2024, Flight 2025 LGB-BNA, 737-700 143 seats. Departing Long Beach, non-stop to Nashville on an almost full flight, a large group (a school orchestra of about 50-60) was boarded immediately after Business Select - before the remainder of A and any of B group.  I'm not sure if they all had a boarding group assigned, but several accompanying parents had C-Group on their passes.  For additional context, it appeared that all of A & B group were full.  The Gate Agent announced that they would be boarding them early, but they would board the back of the plane (a standard practice at LGB) and seating them in the back.  Although, this still violates the boarding policy, I chose to be considerate and hopeful that seating would still work itself out...it did not.   The flight crew and gate agents were not coordinated, and no one managed this large boarding group.  I was able to board with family boarding (w/ my young son), but the rest of my family (3) were the last people to board - all with B35-37 boarding passes.   When I walked down the aisle, that large group had not boarded solely via the back door, but also the front; and they were not filling every seat back-to-front, rather they were fairly scattered throughout the plane ('mostly' toward the back).     What were/are my courses of action?     If I have to pay an additional fee to improve my boarding status, should I request a refund in equal amount for Southwest effectively downgrading my boarding status?   Anyone else experience such a thing? I have experienced this, it does usually go smoothly as the chaperones want the kids all together, and in light of the A-list and BS fare, etc. Southwest does want to prioritize those.   However I have also observed at BUR where there was front and rear simultaneous boarding that it is a melee, and people could get a better spot if they went to the back while the pre-boarders were still coming up the front entry with the ramp.   Unfortunately the combination of those two scenarios caused an issue this time.   I'd say this isn't the end of the world but feel free to reach out using the Contact Southwest Customer Service methods and you may be able to get a voucher.    As far as violating the rules, there is going to be some fine print about "follow the instructions of the staff" which will allow them to deviate when it is judged to be necessary. you may get a voucher after the fact.    This group boarding of young people on sports teams or school groups does happen occasionally, and probably especially right now during spring break time.   ... View more

I'm having the same issue using Pixel 6a phone.  It's not every time I use the app, but frequently.   I flew Tuesday and Friday last week. After logging in on Tuesday, I remained logged in for Friday's flight.  Today (Monday) I had to log into the App again. ... View more

@BearInThere wrote: I fly Southwest weekly and typically purchase an additional seat to be more comfortable. I’m a big guy and the seats have only gotten smaller. I don’t pre-board(it’s not on my boarding pass) and I don’t need a seatbelt extender.  I typically sit in the exit row and haven’t had a problem until this week. I was told I can’t sit in the exit row and forced to move even though I meet all of the criteria to sit in the exit row.  Can anyone provide clarification on this policy and point me in the direction of some documentation that prohibits me from sitting in the exit row?    Thanks!  The terms of the Customer of Size offer includes preboarding, there could be some mix-up here.   I'm not sure why it would or wouldn't print on your pass. That's an interesting wrinkle of course that you are obviously getting A-list status by flying weekly so you don't need preboarding to guarantee finding a spot with two seats.   I'm thinking as opposed to someone walking up and buying COS tickets that would have regular boarding position in the B or C groups and potentially not find two spots together.   I'd pursue the angle of whether the COS implies preboarding or not. Preboarding passengers are also not allowed to sit in the exit row regardless of disability.   Personally I'm a big but not too big guy and the empty middle seat tends to take care of itself.   Also make sure if the FA is there to help direct traffic move over and sit in the middle seat yourself while they stand in the aisle, then they'll hold the aisle for you at the same time it isn't possible for anyone to take the middle until the very end.   Or if you are taking the window encourage anyone who wants that aisle to take the middle temporarily while the FA is there.       ... View more

I would suggest asking Southwest to give compensation - however, they are not obligated to do do. ... View more

Hi. I would really like to speak with you regarding your experience and Houston Hobby. My daughter has experienced discrimination regarding her service dog not once but twice at this airport. Most recently last night. This is unacceptable and your voice should be heard.  ... View more

Howdy, @jvaline!   There's no set timeline as to when you'll hear back from our Careers Team, but we certainly appreciate your interest in joining the Colorado Springs Family! Keep an eye on your email inbox (and any junk/spam folders, just in case!) for an update just as soon as one is available.    Additionally, you can keep an eye on your application's status by logging in to your Candidate Home. If you don't already have an account or your application isn't showing up, check your application confirmation email for a unique link to create your profile. From there, you can monitor your application's status. 😊   Best of luck!  ... View more

What you were told is true.  You cannot have that stuff floating around in an exit row as it inhibits the safety of other passengers in the event of an incident.   You need to find another seating area if you are bringing the device.   Whether it is a medical device, or not has no bearing on the issue. ... View more

Definitely a Chase issue. It's a benefit/credit offered by Chase NOT by Southwest. I would seriously doubt a Chase rep on the phone, has any idea what you have used or have not used in terms that type of credit in the last month much less the last 12 months. Only that your card gets you "4 credits per year."    BTW- Had to use one of my 4 upgrades recently because my Companion did not get sequential boarding. credit came through, funny part I also got a statement credit because I added the 5% off Southwest the "Chase Offers." $50 charge minus the $50.00 credit, minus $2.50. I made $2.50 on the boarding snafu. ... View more

@Jhonnybravo4321 wrote: My question is.. I am legally disabled and have and will bring paper work with me to my flight. I require to enter the air craft and sit next to my wife in front of the plane. My disability is invisible but like I said I have paper work stating I am legally disabled. I assume when I check in at the airport I will just tell southwest I am disabled and need preboarding for me and my wife and here is proof. My proof is the disabled documents stating I'm disabled form the state. I assume after this me and my wife will be issued preboarding ?????? Is this how it will go? I don't wanna be judged or questioned.I know people hate diablabled preboarders especially when they themselves can't see the disability but that's not my fault. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. There's no controlling what others think but the preboarding part will work fine just as you've described.   No one from Southwest will want to see your paperwork, they may ask you to describe your need to preboard as far as specific seat, extra time, etc. to describe the accommodation that you need but will not question you about any condition that you have.     ... View more

Under FEDERAL LAW, (The Air Carrier Access Act) you self-declare as an individual with a disability and present where you check in your luggage as such.   Do not answer any other questions about "needing extra time", only the question about whether you need assistance to board.   If you are pressed about the "needing extra time", repeat the following words nonstop until you receive a preboard assignment:   I AM REQUESTING THE ABILITY TO PREBOARD UNDER THE AIR CARRIER ACCESS ACT. ... View more

There are limits.  Go ahead, declare all of that is "baby gear" and see how it works out. ... View more

Lol anxiety comes how it comes 😅 when you put it that way it makes me feel better 😂 ... View more

File a motion asking the judge to find Southwest in contempt of court.  Send a copy of the motion to Southwest. ... View more

This is an open forum and opinions are welcome and do not need to be grounded in facts, as we have witnessed in thousands of posts previously.  Thousands of them. ... View more