As a west coast executive that fly's more then one hundred flights a year with Southwest I would like to comment on Southwest's decision to look at assigned seating. I work in an office with five other people and we all fly at least one or two round trips a week on Southwest and while there are plenty of other carriers out there we use Southwest for the convenience.
We also use Southwest because our business needs often require us to book our tickets within 48 to 72 hours of our departure and the open seating on Southwest assures us that, as long as we check in early, we can still get an "A" boarding pass that will allow us to carry on our luggage and to pick an aisle seat.
We are concerned that if Southwest were to go to assigned seating that the premium seats would all be reserved well in advance by the vacationers that book their tickets months in advance, and usually pay lower rates (internet specials), and that even though we are paying full fare we would be forced to sit in the center seats and not be able to sit together as a group.
As frequent fliers on Southwest we would like to see the open seating remain and if it were to change we would most likely choose another carrier that could reward our loyalty by upgrading us to fist class seating. We have a long history with Southwest and often recommend them to other business associates and we would hate to see that relationship change.
Please reconsider and keep the open seating!
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