Southwest Assigned Seating

FM2436

Veteran
Jan 8, 2003
747
11
I posted on this page a little less than a year ago about paying more just to have an assigned seat on Southwest. My family of five flew Southwest from BWI to MDW and my wife insisted we arrive early enough to be 5 of the first 30 in line. Her fear was we could be split up if we arrived any later. WELCOME ASSIGN SEATING AT SOUTHWEST.

BTW I know I'll be ragged on if I don't mention this but our youngest was 6 and we asked the counter agent if we could be preboarded. She response was he wasn't young enough for a family preboard. We were 5 of the first 30 and we were able to seat ourselves all together. The flight was fine, but would still enjoy to assurance of assigned seating.

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/041029/southwest_seating_2.html
 
This is not the first time the "Assigned Seating" trial balloon has been floated. I don't even think it's the first time this year. It may or may not happen but if it does I can tell you this...the transition won't be pretty. Most people expect a seat assignment on SWA about like they expect to be seated by a hostess at Burger King. If people paid attention to instructions and actually listened when gate agents spoke, it might work out but sadly most people don't follow instructions and don't listen. Go stand next to the gate podium while any SWA flight checks in and watch how many people, with A, B, or C already in hand step up and ask for their boarding pass. The conversation usually goes something like this..."May I help you?"....(handing ticket jacket to agent)"Yes, I need to check-in"...."You're already checked-in"...."Yes, but I need my boarding pass"...."You already have your boarding pass...this here with the letter B....that's you're boarding pass"...."Oh, Okay but don't I need one of those plastic things?"...."No ma'am we did away with those a couple of years ago."..."Oh Okay...Thanks" The poor CSAs have this same conversation no less than 100 times a day. Even though the skycaps and counter agents tell them they are checked in...they don't hear that they are checked in. Open Seating like plastic boarding cards are an integral part of the SWA experience and it will take some time to get people to let go.
 
My family of five flew Southwest from BWI to MDW and my wife insisted we arrive early enough to be 5 of the first 30 in line. Her fear was we could be split up if we arrived any later. WELCOME ASSIGN SEATING AT SOUTHWEST

This is the very reason we do not have assigned seating. Makes you want to be early to your flight.... if it ain't broke don't fix it...
 
And yet, you can still check in online and not rush to the airport either. I wouldn't want to see them go to a reservation-type system for the assigned seating, but I would like to see a seat assignment when you check-in; whether it's online or in person. This is the number one reason why I do not fly them is this reason. I'm not getting up like Pavlov's dog and stand in line for hours just to get seperated from my wife and son anyways because I wasn't the first person in line like the others who actually don't have anything else to do. The greatest thing about Southwest flying to the same destination that you are is that you can fly several airlines and get a similar or cheaper flight than just on them. In the next 2 years, jetBlue and Southwest will start competing seriously. I think jetBlue's product is superior at this time.
 
After watching tonight's episode of "Airline" you'll see why the time for assigned seating has come. The episode at MDW was ridiculous!
 
732guy said:
After watching tonight's episode of "Airline" you'll see why the time for assigned seating has come. The episode at MDW was ridiculous!
[post="197248"][/post]​

You REALLY think that a loudmouthed blowhard like that imbecile wouldn't have managed to raise a stink regardless of whether his seat was assigned or not?
(Not to mention his at-least-50-pounds-too-fat-for-the-outfit-she-was-popping-out-of "fiancee"--the one with all the lawyer relatives. Geez, what a charming couple!)
:blink:
 
FM2436 said:
....We were 5 of the first 30 and we were able to seat ourselves all together. The flight was fine, but would still enjoy to assurance of assigned seating.

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/041029/southwest_seating_2.html
[post="196181"][/post]​

Assurance of assigned seating? What assurance? It is at least as common as not to find that pre-assigned seat "selection" with the legacies means, in reality, "which middle seat do you prefer?" or in the case of two or more pax traveling together, "we will seat you as near to each other as possible for now (often in middle seats in different rows), and hopefully an agent can switch you to seats together at check-in."

Should Southwest implement pre-assigned seating, unless they have vastly more efficient and equitable ideas than the legacies for pre-assigned seating, it will be "the beginning of sorrows" for Southwest that will quite possibly turn profit into breakeven or loss and it will be hasta la vista to the fewest complaints rankings that WN consistently achieves when Customers learn that pre-assigned seating and a seat of one's preference are frequently not the same thing.
 
Tango-Bravo said:
Assurance of assigned seating? What assurance? It is at least as common as not to find that pre-assigned seat "selection" with the legacies means, in reality, "which middle seat do you prefer?" or in the case of two or more pax traveling together, "we will seat you as near to each other as possible for now (often in middle seats in different rows), and hopefully an agent can switch you to seats together at check-in."

Should Southwest implement pre-assigned seating, unless they have vastly more efficient and equitable ideas than the legacies for pre-assigned seating, it will be "the beginning of sorrows" for Southwest that will quite possibly turn profit into breakeven or loss and it will be hasta la vista to the fewest complaints rankings that WN consistently achieves when Customers learn that pre-assigned seating and a seat of one's preference are frequently not the same thing.
[post="227462"][/post]​

Thank you, thank you, THANK you!!! I'd be willing to bet that any of our Customers who are ASSIGNED a middle seat would be pitching a major fit! Let's also not forget that open seating enables us to make those quick turns that have been the envy of the industry over the years... our fleet does not make money sitting on the ground, it's that simple. It amazes me whenever I nonrev to hear Customers grumble about not having their "assigned seat". Of course it's not as readily apparent on the first flight of the day, but if it's a continuing passenger, I'll tell them to observe how quick that plane is turned, then I'll ask them how much they think that assigned seating would have slowed down the process. All of a sudden it all makes sense!