Southwest Airlines Community

Massive abuse by people gaming the system. These are the parasites of society. ... View more

Here's what SW says about your situation. I think it's been that way for years as planes are bandwidth limited. If it worked for you in the past, you got lucky.   "In order to provide a top-notch WiFi experience, we prohibit access to certain high-bandwidth applications and websites, including Netflix, HBO GO® and VoIP, along with certain indecent, obscene and offensive content." ... View more

Southwest was planning to begin flying to SXM in 2018.  Hurricane Irma delayed and then terminated that decision.  I spoke with a Southwest executive shortly after Hurricane Irma and he indicated that deals like the Southwest/SXM deal were many years in the making and couldn’t be easily cancelled.  However, the long delay in fully reopening Princess Julianna airport (SXM) and the long delay in opening the island hotels forced Southwest to reconsider as SXM couldn’t keep up with their end of the arrangement.     PJI airport is still not fully reopened.  St Maarten is just now requesting bids for the contract to fully renovate the terminal and get it back to pre-storm shape.  Hence it will be at least another year before the terminal is back to pre-Irma shape.  I would imagine Southwest won’t reconsider until 2021 or even 2022.  That’s pure speculation on my part.  Now is a good opportunity for airlines to obtain market share as the currently servicing airlines aren’t providing expansive, consistent coverage to SXM.     Personally I’m hoping Southwest renegotiated with SXM and begins flying there as soon as possible!   ... View more

@mybabybluegirl  my suggestion is to reach out to SWA via Twitter. I always get a response back from Customer Care within minutes.  ... View more

While it sucks to have to deal with delays, they can happen and for a variety of reasons. It’s almost impossible to predict.    That being said, in the future try to book your flights so you allow yourself or your son more time to make a gathering. When you book a flight so close to an event like that, you open yourself up to missing it due to unforeseen delays.    And let’s cool it on the “held hostage” nonsense. Airlines are trying to make sure that they get you to your destination safely above all else. The nature of most delays is on the side of caution. Airlines aren’t out to get you or your family. ... View more

Update:   Here's the official reply I received from Southwest. While it's not exactly definitive at answering the question, it does seem to indicate that the 14-day reaccommodation practice only applies during protected Travel Advisories.   Hope this helps clear up the confusion.   Thank you for contacting us, we appreciate the opportunity to respond to your concerns.   Please allow me to explain that when a flight cancellation occurs, the Customers involved have the option of surrendering their flight coupons for the appropriate refund or awaiting accommodation on the next available Southwest Airlines flight to their destination. In the latter case, our Employees will accommodate displaced Customers with a confirmed seat or a “priority standby” listing if confirmed seats are not available. Any changes made to a reservation outside of our accommodation procedures would be subject to the applicable fare difference at the time of the change.   In contrast, when our Network Operations Control Team anticipates and announces, via a Travel Advisory on Southwest.com, that inclement weather may impact our flight schedule, affected Customers can be reaccommodated at no charge provided that: travel is completed within 14 days of the originally scheduled itinerary and no changes are made to the originally reserved city-pairs. If the Customer chooses to travel beyond the 14-day window, he/she is responsible for any fare difference for the new reservation. If you have any questions regarding our accommodation procedures, please feel free to contact us anytime at 1-800-I-FLY-SWA (1-800-435-9792).   Your support, patronage, and confidence are very important to us, and we hope to have the opportunity to welcome you onboard another Southwest flight soon.   Sincerely, John Repp, Southwest Airlines       ... View more

Believe me, I know all about how air travel works.  What is happening right now is a complete breakdown in Southwest.   I seriously do not trust that they will get me to my destination until they resolve whatever this dispute is.  Call it a "phony boycott" if you like.  It is simply advice to anyone who is travelling with Southwest in the coming weeks.   They will cancel on you at the last second so why not do it first?   ... View more

If your flight is cancelled and you are at home, usually you’ll get either text/email/call alerts based on your preferences. There is usually a link to go online and rebook yourself, which is the easiest way to find a new flight. You also won’t have to go to the airport. If there aren’t any acceptable flights, try researching other nearby airports to see if you can get a flight out of there. While you might not be able to book it online without fees, you can call the reservations line and they’ll likely waive any change/fare differences to accommodate you.   If you are already at the airport, it’s probably best to go and talk with customer service face to face. They can usually offer the most help looking up alternative options or flights out of nearby airports. If you checked a bag and are in the terminal, you’ll want to work out where you need to go to retrieve it too.    Calling reservations over the phone is an option too, but you can expect longer waits if there are a lot of cancellations. That’s why I prefer the above options to just calling them directly. Plus if you can scope out what is available online, you can have a better idea of what your options are before you talk to someone.  ... View more