Southwest Airlines Community

And, if it is international, make sure that letter from the parents (both of them) is notarized. Two years ago, Qatar wouldn't let me on a flight to South Africa with MY daughter because the letter from my wife was signed, but it wasn't notarized. That proved to be really problematic. ... View more

@jwdarula You're in the military. We all have jobs and obligations. I support our military, but it is an all volunteer military. I expect our military to be professional. Unfortunately, what I seem to see all the time is a sense of entitlement. People want exceptions and special treatment for being service members. That's not what I expect from military members, but it seems to what we get.   Sorry if that's not popular. I'm not anti-military. I worked for the military for years doing research before I decided the oil industry was much more lucrative. I just don't think being a service member in and of itself makes someone a special class of citizen. ... View more

It take about 3 seconds reading that to realize that there will be no exemptions. For instance, the flight must be less than 50% full at the time of departure. My flights in the past month or so have been 90% or more full.  ... View more

I'm sure that this was done primarily for accounting purposes. Points represent a liability on their books. If they devalue points, they instantly improve their balance sheet. ... View more

Back of the envelope calculation, this cost me about $200 on the points I currently have. I won't stop flying Southwest. Given that Southwest doesn't have anything "extra" that I want like international business/first class (I took an in-flight shower on Emirates once), I view the miles as just kind of a bonus. However, I'm a little less happy than I would be otherwise. ... View more

Overweight will definitely get caught. I see it all the time. There is a tolerance of a pound or so. They definitely work with people though. They give suggests, let you stand there and move stuff from bag to bag, etc.    On American once, I had a bag that was 53lbs or so. I was Platinum, and I asked if they could make an exception. The agent said that no exceptions were allowed over 1lbs so I had to move some stuff to my carry on.   Be glad that they don't weight carry on bags. South African Airlines dinged me on having a carry on over like 20lbs or something once. They were weighing everything. A few rand left to the side while I was adjust things seems to have fixed the problem though. That was 2005 or 2006. ... View more

All of this whining and crying about wearing a simple mask that keeps you and others safer. It isn't a big deal. At first, wearing a mask was a little uncomfortable, but after a year now, we should have all gotten used it it. It isn't a huge burden, and I don't understand what is a so controversial about not being a selfish &$%#. As for "my son's mask 'briefly' slipped down", um, yeah, right.    For everyone out there complaining about the rules being enforced: "YOU ARE NOT SPECIAL. THE RULES APPLY TO YOU TOO."   I fly on Southwest pretty much every week, and I have for several years. I've flown on a lot of other airlines too. I've flown to every continent except Antarctica. I've flown thousands of flights including hundreds of transoceanic flights. With very, very few exceptions, FA are friendly, fair people who treat you with respect and kindness. Try smiling, say hello, and use please and thank you, and you will see that they are decent people. And, Southwest FA's are the friendliest of all.  ... View more

I'm not sure how manageable it was. When the Max was first grounded, I heard a couple of Southwest pilots making jokes about Ethiopian. I've flown Ethiopian before, and they are a world class airline with well trained pilots. It wasn't the pilots.   However, the problems have supposedly been fixed. I recently bought BA. Then this morning, I'm listening to CNBC, and I heard that the newest Max builds have been grounded. Ugh! ... View more

@eatapeach We use glass containers in my household. We generally buy organic fruits and vegetables when we can. It isn't my area of research, but I have a highly cited paper in the Journal of Organic Farming looking at the relationship between the glyposate usage and cancer rates (the link is scary). I've decided to keep wearing a mask while flying for the foreseeable future because of the risk of many different communicable diseases. I'm touched that you feel so strongly about not only your right but your desire to endanger the health of others. Possibly killing others is fun! However, your comparisons are terrible. A better comparison would be should we ban smoking in public because it is dangerous to those around them, and my answer to that is that we generally should and do. ... View more

@eatapeach Yes, be selfish and infect others because you don't want the enormous inconvenience of wearing a mask. How often do you fly??? ... View more

When the mask mandate is lifted, I'm still going to be wearing a mask. I believe that this pandemic has taught us the wisdom in that. It isn't just COVID out there. There's the cold, countless types of the flu, MERS, SARS, and who knows what else. Small inconvenience for a safer and healthier life. I wish that they would keep the mask mandate forever. It isn't that big of a deal to wear a mask. ... View more

I applaud your father for his service. However, that doesn't entitle him to not follow the rules, think that he should get to do whatever he likes, or make others sick. Being a veteran doesn't give him free license to spread a virus and kill others. Sorry if you feel that it does. ... View more

Failure to plan ahead on someone else's fault is not an emergency on mine. If they NEEDED three seats together, there were a number of ways for them to get it. Personally, I disagree with people who say that you in the wrong. There are some situations where we need to be understanding like someone boarding a full flight with a small child where their connection was late. But, if they simply didn't want to pay EBCI, and they didn't check in early enough to get three seats together on a full flight, that's on them. ... View more

That terms and conditions portion doesn't say anything about if Southwest modifies the flights. Is there a statement in there about that? ... View more

I preboard because I book an extra seat when I fly. I've lost a lot of weight in the past year, but sitting next to me is still probably not the most comfortable thing. I don't need a seat belt extender, but my shoulders stick out a bit still. Extra seat = preboard. I didn't preboard once figuring that I was like A19 or something so it didn't matter. When I didn't, the gate agent called my name to please board. Ever since, I've preboarded. I'm sorry if that offends you. ... View more

In many cases, it depends upon the time of the day. Every Monday morning, I fly from OKC to Houston. In this case, when the sun rises (in the east), the sun comes in through the windows on the left side. My preferred seat for this flight is front row, by the window, on the right side (I'm usually there so say hi sometime). Of course, the person on the other side rarely closes the window, and I get very grump at one point during the flight. ... View more

@TheMiddleSeat I love the reciprocity in that one if it is as described. If he canceled his trip, the EBCI fee is lost. If SWA screwed up, all they do is refund the fee? I'm not sure what to expect since, as you pointed out and as we know, boarding positions have been assigned. But, geez, that's not fair. ... View more

If someone's respiratory condition is so severe that they would suffer harm wearing a mask, I wouldn't think it wise for them to fly when there is a serious pandemic of a respiratory virus. Another thing to consider is that people who can't or won't wear a mask on a plane are very unlikely to wear masks in other situations, making them more likely to contract COVID and thus more likely to be spreading it.    I'm sorry to those of you who want to take your child to Hawaii for vacation because they can't/won't wear a mask. However, consider that I can't not fly and keep my job. Taking your child on vacation vs feeding my child without leaving her fatherless. It is a value judgment, of course, but I know my opinion on the matter. ... View more

And I hope that they make the mask mandates permanent. It is a minor inconvenience at most, it it has basically stopped flu season this year. Small step, healthier us.  ... View more

I've gotten at least a dozen changes in the past couple of days. All of which were only like 30 minutes. Unfortunately, they were all making flights how in the evening that were already later than I like even later. 😞 ... View more

Get a vaccine. It is free, safe, and it protects you and everyone around you. Where I live in Oklahoma, there are appointments going unfilled now. As of Monday, everyone is eligible. It is worst than the flu, but even if it was just like the flu, you should still be getting a flu vaccine. Heck, make vaccines for flu (and MMR) also required to fly. I'd support that.   Personally, as someone who flies every week, I'm going to keep wearing a mask, and I would be very happy if mask mandates in airports and on flights became permanent. It is mildly inconvenient at best, and it saves lives. Do you realize how many people die in a typical year form the flu? The flu season was basically eliminated this year.  ... View more

While I agree that under is probably not necessary (or perhaps reasonable), there has to be a cutoff. No matter what that cutoff is, people are going to complain. If it was 5, we would be hearing that same thing from parents of 5 year olds. My daughter is 8, by the way, and she has been flying since she was a few month old including to the Middle East, South America, and South Africa (twice, once at 18 months).   As I've noted before, the most opposition to mask requirements are from the infrequent flyers. I have to fly every week if I'm going to keep working. I favor as strict of masking mandates as possible. You want to attend a wedding with your daughter. I want to feed my daughter without leaving her fatherless. Different perspectives. ... View more

How much assistance they give in moving people will depend upon the ages involved. Are we talking 8 year old kids or 14 year old kids? I doubt anyone would worry too much about moving people around for a 14 year old. ... View more

The requirement for a negative test is imposed by the Dominican Republic. I can assure you that Southwest is not being inconsistent. If there is an admissions requirement for foreign travel, they will enforce it. The airline gets fined if they show up with someone who is inadmissible. Furthermore, you are responsible for knowing the admissions requirements before a foreign trip.   I've never flown internationally on Southwest, but I have on many other airlines. They always check my passport and, if required, my visa at check-in and often again at the gate.    Sorry, but this one is on you. ... View more

Other than an apology and a statement that your concerns have been shared, what are you expecting? Are you looking for compensation? ... View more

I note in all of these discussions, those of use who must fly frequently to feed our families (I fly every week) are invariably in favor of stronger safety protocols. The people against strict mask protocols are those who are taking that trip they do every year or two or so.   I just want to feed my daughter without dying in the process. ... View more

I've got like 25-30 or so drink coupons in an envelope. I'm guessing most of them have expired now. Perhaps I can turn them in for a gold star or something? ... View more

Trail mix implies nuts and fruit. It is a snack mix, and I think it is tasty. Of course, I'm not a gourmand. ... View more

Might it make sense to cancel your original ticket and apply the travel funds towards a single trip BWI-LAS? ... View more