I fly Southwest on occasion, because they have good fares and a good number of direct flights out of Providence, which is the closest airport to me.
Most airlines will let you reserve your seat when you book your ticket. Southwest is different – there are no assigned seats. The process is that 24 hours before your flight is due to leave, you are able to check-in online and reserve a spot in line – and your spot is determined by how soon you check-in once that 24-hour window opens. For example, if you have a flight on Wednesday at 8:30 am, if you are the first person to check in on Tuesday at 8:30 am, you can get the first spot in line.
When you get to the airport, you line up according to your line position, and then can sit wherever you want once you get in the plane. So if the plane is full, or close to full, you want to make sure you have an early position in line to avoid getting stuck in a middle seat.
This always seemed like an unnecessary hassle to me (although a manageable one, outweighed by the positive aspects of flying Southwest). I was wondering why they do it – I can’t imagine it saves Southwest any money (although I may be wrong) so there must be people who prefer it. I’d be interested in hearing from anyone who does, with a sentence or two on why it works better for them than reserving your seat in advance.
I’m 6’4" tall and weigh 270 lbs and I simply don’t fit in a middle seat. I have better things to do with my time than show up at the airport an extra hour early because they won’t let me reserve a seat.
By the way, “positive aspects of flying Southwest”? What on Earth would those be? I was forced to fly SW on business quite a bit some years back, and I always felt like I was riding a Grayhound bus in the sky–no other airline has ever shown quite so much disregard for their customers.
I like it because Southwest planes always seem to get loaded faster than planes with assigned seating, and I hate waiting around for everybody to get seated. People don’t dawdle as much when they know they’ll get a bad seat if they do, and I can’t stand dawdling.
I also like it because I can get a seat near the front of the plane without having to buy it really early or pay extra for it. That way, I don’t have to wait as long when everybody’s getting off the plane.
You’d still be in the C group no matter when you showed up to the airport. We always make sure to check in online when we fly Southwest.
I think their boarding policy is idiotic and I’ve chosen to fly on other airlines because of it, even if SWA has the cheapest rate (usually is a hassle when I’m flying on business - the state wants you to go as cheap as possible).
Queueing up at the airport is not social hour for me, and I really don’t want to ask the people in front or behind what their number is, and if you’re an asshole, it’s easy to take advantage. The corrals they have now remind me of how cattle are shuttled about on a farm.
When you’re leaving from home with an internet connection and a printer, it’s not an issue checking in early… but it’s a little more complex if you don’t have access at your destination until you get to the airport.
Truthfully, most of the time it’s not an issue, but I’ll hop on a JetBlue or American flight before SWA if at all possible.
I sympathize with InvisibleWombat, while at the same time feeling completely differently.
As a person of smaller stature, seat choice isn’t much of an issue to me. So I find Southwest’s system perfectly fine.
And I think there are a lot of advantages to flying Southwest:
Extremely good on-time performance.
MUCH friendlier employees. Absolutely no contest there compared to other airlines.
In general, less hassle.
On that last point, Southwest just doesn’t screw around like other airlines do. By not serving food, they save time and money. Airline food has never been a treat, so I’d much rather bring my own. That’s a win-win.
Their turnaround time of an aircraft is unbelievable - those people RUN!
An airline’s job is to get me from point A to B as quickly as possible. Southwest is not exceeded in that measure by any other major airline of my experience. And they do it with a genuine smile - not the forced and insincere one you get everywhere else. I’d go anywhere with them.
I don’t like it, but I understand the reason for it – fast turnaround and on-time flights. I fly SW whenever I can because of price. There are no other discount airlines that fly to my airport. So, essentially, the choice for me is SW vs. Delta or American, plus a few other minor (but big-airline) players. The price difference is staggering, and I can’t see paying that much more for the privilege of a reserved seat.
I don’t like middle seats, either. So, I make use of the online check-in to get Group A, and don’t show up at the airport that much earlier than I would for a reserved-seat flight. What do I do during the time in line? Read.
I fly Southwest almost exclusively. The boarding policy has never been a problem for me, even when I’m almost the last to board. None of their flights are long enough for it to matter to me anyway. In fact, I’m flying with them this Friday. This trip, boarding isn’t going to be a problem, because I am traveling with my 94-year-old mother, which gives us pre-A group boarding status.
Like Mach Tuck, I’m a bit smallish, so fitting in the middle seats isn’t the problem. My only problem is that I have to pee all the time, unless I cut back fluids to the point of becoming irritable and easily confused. So if I don’t grab an aisle seat, I’m stuck stepping over someone at least once an hour. Then I feel bad for being rude and inconvenient.
I agree that there are advantages to Southwest, especially lower prices and running very close to on time. The employees are so mellow, too. When I flew last March, I was alone for the first time and I was really upset, despite having the entire row to myself. I mean, I wasn’t in hysterics (yeah, I saved those for the return trip), but I was visibly uneasy. I’m sure OH-MY-GOD-THIS-IS-UNNATURAL-HUMANS-AREN’T-MEANT-TO-DO-THIS was just radiating from me. The flight attendant’s demeanor was just so reassuring–neither one of us verbally acknowledged that I was flipping my shit inside, but he was very kind to me. I know, it’s really silly for a grown-ass adult to spend a paragraph talking about the nice man who brought me orange juice, but it meant a lot.
Sure, it’s not like it’s a super-high-class experience, but air travel is a nightmare anyway. If I’m gonna be cranky, bored and miserable, it doesn’t really matter whether I get to pick my own seat. The choices are the same everywhere anyway: see the ground fall away and think about getting sucked out, between two people who hopefully understand the importance of hygiene, or stepped over by two people every time it’s nature time.
I’m always anxious about missing my flight on any airline until I’m actually on the plane, so I can’t really sit and relax in the boarding area, anyway. When they do start boarding, I always want to be one of the first ones on- if someone’s going to have to gate-check their carry-on or put it somewhere far from where they’re sitting, I’d rather it be somebody other than me.
I keep kosher, so I can’t eat the meals on other airlines now (they all seem to include meat of some sort). And I like peanuts. I miss the honey-roasted peanuts that they don’t seem to do any more.
I think you can check in online but not print your boarding pass until you get there. That would be a problem if you don’t have internet access. That very rarely happens to me any more, though, since Mr. Neville’s work seems to expect him to be available at all times (I don’t like that, but I’ll admit it does have its advantages), the only time we stay in a hotel without it is in other countries. My parents are the only people we’re likely to stay overnight with who don’t have internet, and now that they’re only a two hour drive away that’s moot.
Almost exactly what I would say, except I love this policy. It’s more important to me that my flight be on time and cheaper, and if this policy gets me there, I’m all for it. Plus, if you’re extra double concerned about getting the seat of your preference, anyone can buy SWA’s business class ticket and you absolutely get on before anyone. And it’s only about $25 more? That’s worth it for my boss’s to get on and get off quickly and first.
Never ever check-in at the airport for a SWA flight. Why would you? Check in online as early as you can and get Group A. I never stand in line, either. I’m always in Group A, and I sit restfully drinking coffee and reading the paper until there’s about three people left to board in Group A. Then I get up and board.
Plus, for most airports I can arrive as late as 30 minutes before departure, not the two hours they say, sail thru security and know I’m going to make my flight.
I hate Southwest’s boarding policy and would choose to fly with someone else whenever the price is reasonably close.
First you get to the airport and queue up to check in. Then you queue up to go through security. Then this airline makes you queue up a 3rd time to get on the airplane! Nuts to that I say. Even if you’re a ‘A’ boarder, you don’t want to be the last ‘A’. I hate the whole airport thing but at least when I’m through security I can usually relax a little, buy some drinks for the flight, go to the bathroom. With Southwest I feel every moment I’m not in the queue I’m paying for it by getting a crappy seat.
Interestingly, Canada’s Westjet follows a very similar business model to Southwest’s and quite profitably too. They also have quick turnarounds, and No Queue!
I guess the question is how does the seating policy lead to this? I would say this explanation would sound plausible, at first glance, back in the wayback when your physical presence at the airport was required to establish your place in the seating queue. I also seem to recall that back then you were grouped into one of three seating classes, rather than a specific position in line. I would suppose, although I have not subjected it to terribly rigorous thinking, that such a policy would encourage early arrival, and, since you were still competing with others in your seating class, prompt occupation of your seat. This might have the effect of allowing faster touchdown-to-takeoff operations (or not, there are other tasks occurring in parallel, loading baggage or safety inspections, for instance, which may be on the critical path).
However, the internet check-in option eliminates this possible efficiency. Since I don’t think Southwest chose it willy-nilly (especially since they know this method is maligned by many and beloved by none), I have to assume that they get some sort of informational advantage out of it. My WAG would be that the information they get–how many booked passengers still seem to plan on taking the flight as indicated by T-24hr online check-ins (using a regression on past online check-ins with total airport show-ups)–and use that to sell more standby tickets and other hedging products.
Those of you who said “it gets people on board faster” are correct.
Planes make money only when they’re in the air. Southwest is known among the airlines for having the highest utilization rate (plane in the air vs. on the ground).
So if all the passengers are lined up at the gate, trembling in anticipation for the moment the doors open so they can claim thier spot, it helps SWA get the aircraft back up the air that much sooner.
I don’t love it but I don’t mind it. But I also don’t mind getting the middle seat. I’m another one who has to pee all the time, the middle seat means only one person has to stand up for me. Most of the time I do get the middle seat just because I can’t be bothered to get to the computer the day before.
My mom loves SW, though. I think the seat thing is something of a game for her. She’s always telling me which number A she got. (And she always gets an A).
I would imagine it does save money if they don’t have to track seat numbers in their computer systems. Likewise if the staff don’t have to spend time on requests for seat reassignments.
Interesting. I haven’t personally noticed this, but your logic makes sense. If I have a reserved seat, there’s no incentive for me to quickly take my seat and sit down. I do, but that’s just me.
For me, the positive aspects of flying Southwest are low fares (I’m very fare-conscious – I’d rather spend my money at my destination rather than getting there) and the ability to get lots of direct flights out of Providence. Again, that’s just me – others may put a premium on not being herded in like cattle.
I don’t know that Southwest fares are cheaper than other carriers. From what I have checked in some cases they are higher. And I haven’t seen cases where they are a lot lower. But maybe I don’t fly enough. I do fly SW and I don’t have a problem with their seating.
I don’t mind it. I never get why people who spend all day being herded like cattle- through freeways, in grocery store lines, at restrooms, whatever- suddenly freak out about the small indignities of living in a civilization when an airplane is involved.
And, in the end, I just don’t really care that much. So I sit in a crappy seat for a few hours. If that is anywhere near a meaningful problem in my life, then I am among the most fortunate people on Earth.
I don’t mind it, since, as others said, you can get a good seat without paying extra. (Other airlines charge a premium for part of the coach cabin.) Also Southwest doesn’t charge for checked bags, as other airlines are now doing. I just wish they had non-stop cross-country flights.
Apparently, on public transportation (buses, trains, etc.), I give out a “don’t even think about sitting anywhere near me” vibe. I don’t think I’m that scary looking, or overly unkempt (this happens whether I’m in jeans and a sweater or a suit), or too loud, or smell awful, and I am not conciously glaring at people who are choosing a place to sit (in fact, I’m usually reading a book or newspaper or something). But I get seats to myself.
On Southwest, it means I get at least a seat and a half, if not a whole row. I just have to land in the B group somewhere (I don’t mind sitting in the back of the plane). People choose to sit in middle seats before choosing the aisle seat in my row. If there are any empty seats in the plane, it will be the one next to me.
Of course, now that I’ve typed this, my streak will end and I’ll end up next to two hyperactive toddlers on my next flight.
None of those other situations require me to be in quarters as cramped or proximity to other humans as close as on an airplane.
I wouldn’t like SW’s policy because, opposite Anne Neville, I like to spend as little time on the airplane as possible. I like to be last in line, to get on just before they lock the doors. I don’t care how long the plane takes to load as long as I don’t have to be there! By boarding last, I spend as little time shoe-horned into a child-sized seat as possible.
The flight attendant’s demeanor was just so reassuring–neither one of us verbally acknowledged that I was flipping my shit inside, but he was very kind to me. I know, it’s really silly for a grown-ass adult to spend a paragraph talking about the nice man who brought me orange juice, but it meant a lot.