Hello All:
I have read all of the posts and watched the news for the last few days about what some are saying about the recent flight delays and cancellations by SWA. What prompted me to respond to this post was the subject, "Looks like I'm never flying SWA again."
I do not work for SWA nor am I a spokes person for them. I am just a person that travels a lot on SWA for the last 20 years. I am A-List Preferred, Companion Pass and several SWA Visa cards. In all of those years I spent one overnight in Denver due to storms.
What you are seeing now is not the norm. The major snowstorm caused cancellations across the mid-west and east coast. Because SWA uses a system of short hauls rather than big hubs and long cross country flights this disrupted the system. The media and many complaining about missing/delayed flights makes it seam like SWA is the only airline experiencing this problem and gives the impression they should do their operation like the other airlines.
Those who fly often avoid holidays especially when there is approaching bad weather. Living in California when going back east I leave early and return early. In the summer I fly with northern connections to avoid rain in Phoenix, and in the winter I connect with flights in the south to avoid winter snow.
We all have short memories. When all of the other airlines were filing for bankruptcy or could not make a profit especially during Covid, Congress stepped in and bankrolled them. What made SWA a success during difficult times has been well studied in all business schools. SWA makes money in the air not on the ground. The planes on average stay on the ground with a 20 minutes turnaround.
I feel all of your frustration. A few years ago I flew into a city without daily service to Chicago by SWA and had the opportunity to fly on another airline. Imagine showing up to the airport and your flight was cancelled for no other reason that there were not enough passengers on the plane. Another example is that you get to the airport an hour in advance to find the ticket counter is close because they are helping to load passengers on the plane and telling you your flight has been cancelled because they left the counter.
Overall the years I have flown SWA my expectations have been exceeded in every way. I am sure SWA will find a way to innovate and engineer a solution to the current problem. I know it will not be one of what the other airlines are doing.
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