05-09-2017
12:04 PM
I don't have an issue with the handsoap, but I'll support your effort. As someone who has other sensitivities/allergies, I know how frustrating the situation can be. Best of luck in getting a reply!
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05-08-2017
01:40 PM
What about family members that booked seperately? My sister and I fly together and we book our tickets seperate so that we can each pay our own way. When we check in, I might get B20 and she gets B48. I just go in and save a seat so we can sit together. Seems unfair that people would get seperated from flying together simply because of a slower internet connection. If you're saving a seat for someone that you just ran into, I agree that it's wrong, but families and friends traveling together should be allowed to sit together. It's just 1 or 2 seats; I'm sure there's another good aisle or window seat elsewhere unless you're coming in really late.
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05-08-2017
01:34 PM
Well if it makes you feel any better, I don't use early bird and since its implementation, even if I check in at exactly the second mark for 24 hours prior, I rarely see anything higher than mid Bs. Just got B24 for a split second check-in. Early bird takes a lot of early positions and you're still getting in in front of most non-EB people 😃
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05-05-2017
11:52 AM
I should start trying this. I lost a laptop due to a recliner crunching it unexpectedly, but since my parents both enjoy reclining their seats, I understand people wanting to recline. Nice suggestion.
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05-05-2017
11:49 AM
I always take on the plane with me my travel suitcase and my personal bag that's about the size of a small backpack. You'd probably categorize me as a "baggage hauler". I don't check my bag on average for several reasons. 1) I usually am flying to family or friends and for their convenience, I don't make them wait through baggage claim so they can just pick me up curbside from departures. This is really nice especially at airports where baggage claim can take a while even upwards of an hour (such as my frequent destination, BWI). 2) Having had baggage damaged a lot in the past (sliced open suitcases, wheels no longer able to roll correctly, missing zippers, weird stains, damage to items inside, etc...), I don't want to have to buy new luggage every time I travel only to have it damaged or temporarily lost (I also have had my luggage miss a connection and waited 5 hours in the airport for it to come on the next flight). 3) Some items I use on the plane such as a pillow to alleviate neck pain and my laptop do not fit in my small carry-on bag so I prefer to have my small suitcase with me to carry these items. My suitcase has also been checked for size before and it fits. My guess for the reason people aren't required to check the size of their carry-on suitcases is to speed up the process of boarding and the employees have probably seen plenty of suitcases every day to be able to eyeball if it will fit or not. If it makes you feel any better, I always head straight to the back when I board so I'm not stealing any of those front row seats (I prefer the back anyways). When I use the overhead bin, I make sure my suitcase takes up the least space possible, and put my bag under the seat in front of me. To make people with luggage board last would be unfair to those fliers who have earned or paid for an earlier boarding pass while also potentially taking away overhead bin space from them due to the people that stick their small backpacks and jackets in that space.
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05-05-2017
11:29 AM
3 Loves
Old post, but I'll chime in with a bit of my experience. My mother would be someone that you would probably assume was abusing preboarding. She doesn't have a walker, she doesn't have a cane, but she does have a medicalert and a kneebrace. Her medical condition sometimes makes it hard for her to board and get settled into a seat easily so while she doesn't need a ton of help getting on (when I fly with her, my assistance is usually enough), she does need that extra time before the mad rush and can't stand in a long line to board which is why on rare occasions she asks for preboard. During the flight, she is able to rest, take her medicine, and usually is doing better by the end so she doesn't need help off. A bystander would see this as "abuse" whereas I know she really needed that preboard help. On another note, just a short time ago I injured my ankle (I now know it was a hairline fracture, but at the time I didn't realize this) the day before I flew. Since I had to fly, I asked the counter people if it was possible for me to preboard because I couldn't put much weight on my ankle. Even though I had my ankle clearly wrapped and was standing on the other leg holding onto the counter for support, they actually denied me because I didn't have a disability and didn't need assistance getting on. To try to make it easier on me though, they put me with the family boarding/A-list preferred to hopefully get me through the line faster. I still had to wait on the jetway and use my suitcase for a crutch. Southwest did stick by their policy of only allowing people with disabilities to preboard and for the honest among us, we generally don't get preboard privileges for any little thing. So I guess the moral of the story is that in my experience Southwest sticks by their preboard policy for people with disabilities needing assistance only and rarely gives it to the average person. If someone is abusing it with their "disability", there is little Southwest can do to change this and I personally would rather them let someone without need on early than deny someone with a true need for preboard.
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05-05-2017
11:06 AM
05-05-2017
11:06 AM
My In-Laws frequently use United instead because his work uses United and they use the earned points to fly. Of course, then they talk about having to shove everything into small suitcases to avoid fees. I subtley drop hints about free checked bags with Southwest, but they are comfortable with United. Plus it helps that United flies out of Colorado Springs so it saves them the drive to Denver and parking fees. I can understand some people using other airlines if Southwest doesn't service their airport yet or they are traveling to a location Southwest doesn't service. At least I'm converting my husband over to Southwest. When we flew to visit my family recently, he had to book seperate to come out later and said he didn't mind flying Frontier because it was cheaper out of Denver. Of course, it was listed as much cheaper....before the hidden fees kicked in. I ended up using my Southwest perks to get his stuff out with me so he didn't have to pay for a carry-on! So glad I insisted on flying Southwest. In the end, it was still cheaper than the "cheap ticket" for Frontier. I'm sold for life. Honestly, I think the question is less "Why would anyone fly anything but Southwest?" but rather "Why aren't other airlines following a similar model as Southwest?".
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05-05-2017
10:56 AM
05-05-2017
10:56 AM
I'm not sure how this would work, but I like the idea. It is a rare time I fly with a drink coupon that I would actually use it since I can't have most drinks it covers or would rather not have them that time of day (7:00 AM flight and wine rarely mix for me). It would be nice to be able to use it instead for something I could benefit from such as WiFi. For my upcoming flight in a few days, I do have a voucher for a free movie I intend to use. Maybe instead of WiFi, the drink coupons could be used for a movie instead? Might be a bit easier for Southwest to manage and, for myself at least, just as good.
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Yeah, I've always appreciated how lighthearted and upbeat the SW crews are. Makes the stress of flying a bit easier. I think my funniest moment was when the stewardess placed a bag of peanuts and a bag of pretzels on the floor at the front of the plane before takeoff and asked us to bet on which one would win the race to the back during takeoff. I forget which one did win, but I remember that everyone got a kick out of it.
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